I Wish

Chapter Twenty Four

Chapter Twenty Four

I reached my hands behind my back and felt Ayley's bare arms.

"Good morning." She whispered in my ear and pulled her hands away.

"Morning." I kissed her soft lips.

She giggled.

"Sit." I pushed the chair beside me out with my foot.

She sat down next to me and took a piece of bacon off the tray.

"Where's Jess?" She asked.

"Guess." Emma said as she sat down next to Ayley.

"Is she seriously still sleeping?" She smiled.

Emma nodded.

"Should we go attack her?" Ayley asked.

"Wake up song?" Emma looked excited.

"Yes!"

     They grabbed each other's hands and ran to Ayley's room then, now armed with Ayley's pink guitar, ran downstairs.

"I gotta see this." I said.

"Video tape it!" Synthia called after me as I went downstairs.

"Kay!" I called back.

We three huddled around Jess who was on the floor in a mess of blankets.

"Shall I start?" I asked.

"Yea, here." Ayley handed me her guitar. "The baby's in the way, I can't play it."

I took the guitar.

"Wait!" I whisper-shouted.

"What?" Ayley asked.

"Your mum wants me to record this."

"Oh, here give me your phone." She held out her hand.

I took my phone out of my pocket and handed it to her.

"Okay, go now." She said, pointing the camera at me.

I strummed the first chord and we sang.

It's time to get up in the morning

We've got McDonalds breakfast for you

We drove two miles to get it

So you better get up and eat it

You lazy bunch of children

So it's time to get up!

It's time to get up!

It's time to get up!

Time to get up!

It's time to get up!

It's time to get up!

Oh, it's time to get up!

It's time to get up!

Get up!

Suddenly, Jess burst into life and threw her hands in the air.

"Time to get up!" She yelled.

     We all laughed and helped her get up then made our way back upstairs to see Miranda sitting at the kitchen table.

"Morning." She said.

"Hey, Manda." I smiled.

"Did you record it?" Synthia asked me.

"Yea, do you want me to email it to you?"

"Sure."

"I'll give you my email in a second."

"I already have it." I laughed. "Sent."

Her phone vibrated and made a noise.

"That was fast." She said.

I smiled.

"Did you sleep well, babe?" I said as I sat back down in my chair.

She nodded with a smile.

"Good." I smiled back.

I took another piece of bacon and bit half of it off.

"So what are we gonna do today?" Ayley asked.

"I don't know, what do you want to do?" Synthia answer Ayley's question with one of her own.

"I don't know."

"Well then, I guess we'll just be sitting around the kitchen table eating bacon all day." She said. "Right, Jess?"

We all looked at Jess who had a plate with at least 10 pieces of bacon on it.

"I like bacon! Leave me alone."

     We all laughed at Jess and decided that we were going to go into the town is Strathroy for a day of Strathroy fun.

"I want to share you." Ayley smiled.

"Should I be frightened?" I asked.

"Nope."

"I don't know why I'm trusting you." I said.

"Cos you love me." She smiled. "Now come, I'm driving."

"You're driving?" I said.

"Don't sound too excited." She grabbed the keys and slid her feet into her Toms, crushing the backs.

"You know, Louis would disown you if he saw you doing that to your Toms." I told her.

"I can't bend over to fix them."

"Here." I bent down and put the shoes on her feet properly. "Better."

"Hey guess what." She said.

"What."

"You're sitting beside Emma."

"What?" I said.

"Nononononononononononono!" I heard slowly get louder from the basement.

Emma came running through the kitchen.

"Nonononononono!" She yelled. "No!"

"Love you too." I said.

"No, Ayley!" Emma whined.

"Yes, Emma!"

Emma grunted.

"I win." Ayley smiled.

"I just won't go." She said.

"You're hurting his feelings."

Emma stepped around Ayley and faced me.

"Am I?" She asked.

"A little." I confessed.

She wrapped her arms around me.

"I'm sorry, Noo, I didn't mean to." She said.

I hugged her back. "It's okay."

She let go of me.

"I'd love to sit beside you." She smiled.

"Awesome." I said.

"Jess is in the back!" She yelled.

We heard a faint "awwe, man!" echo from the bathroom.

"Jess, let's go!" Ayley called.

"Coming!" Jess ran down the hall, put her shoes on, and ran out the door in front of us and we followed.

     We all piled into Ayley's family's van. Ayley took the driver's seat, Synthia sat beside her (so the law says is necessary), I sat in the middle row beside Emma and Jess sat in the back with Miranda. Dave didn't come because he said he needed to do housework. Which Ayley told me translated to watching NASCAR and eating crisps and sleeping all day.

     When we arrived in Strathroy after Ayley's stellar driving, I could not prepare myself for what I was about to see.