OFF TRACK

37

TREVOR

The next morning I wake up to two missed facetime calls from Summer around six am, so about three am California time. There's also a thread of texts from her and couple from Alex. I read the ones from Alex first and they make me laugh.

alex : bro i'm never doing this again, they're uncontrollable

alex : it's three am, they're still going, HELP

Then there's a video he sent of Summer and Ellie in their living room.

In the video there's a Beyoncé song coming from one of their phones as they dance in sync towards another phone that's recording them. If I didn't know better I wouldn't of thought they were drunk until Ellie goes the wrong way at the end and Summer starts laughing, which makes Ellie laugh and then they're on the floor dying of laughter. Under that Alex types, they've been doing this for an hour.

I text him back, sorry dude, but even if i was there i don't know if it would of been any help.

Then there's a thread of texts from Summer, who gets super lovey-dovey when she's drunk. I kind of love it because she's not always like that when she's sober.

summer : i miss uuuuuuuuuu

summer : why aren't you here?

summer : i asked alex he reminded me you're in new york

summer : i should stop drinking

There's a two hour gap in between those texts and the next few.

summer : i wish u were here, i miss u so much it's stupid

summer : why did you have to make me go and fall in love with you?

summer : wait u love me right?

summer : you better say yes

I chuckle at that group of texts and quickly type back.

me : first, of course i love you

me : second, i miss you too

me : third, happy birthday baby

me: i'm gonna order you guys breakfast, call me when you wake up

And I do, I order them a few different breakfast sandwiches and pancakes, along with some coffee and orange juice. I know none of them will want to cook.

But I can already smell the bacon Mom's cooking downstairs, so I pop out of bed and throw on the first t-shirt I can find in my suitcase before heading downstairs.

"Good morning, Mama!" I say as I round the large marble island in the center of our giant kitchen. This is Mom's dream kitchen, she grew up cooking and baking with her mother and grandmother, it's always been her favorite thing to do. And she's passed that love on to me.

"Good morning, honey," she's flipping pancakes as she says it.

"Can I help with anything?" I ask.

"Isn't it Summer's birthday shouldn't you be calling her?" My mom side eyes me, suspiciously. Mom marked her birthday on the calendar the second I told her, then scolded me for being here with the family instead of with Summer. But it's not my fault that my Mom and girlfriend have birthdays three days apart.

"It's six am back in California and I think she'd kill me if I called her right now," I chuckle.

"Oh I forgot about the time difference," she shakes her head with a smile, "I wish she could of just come too."

"Me too," I sigh taking a seat at the high top behind where Mom's cooking at the stove.

I end up sitting in the kitchen with Mom while she cooks a feast. Mom's sisters' and their families are coming here for breakfast then we're all going to my grandparents lake house for a BBQ and fireworks later tonight.

I'm helping Mom set the table when my phone rings across the room. Mom gets to it first.

"It's Summer," she says looking at the screen, "This photo of her is just adorable!"

Summer's contact photo fills the screen it's from when we went to Disneyland, it's taken from my point of view. She's sitting on the floor while we wait in a line. She's holding an ice cream cone and is in the middle of licking the rocky road ice cream. She's smiling and looking past the camera up at me.

"She's pretty cute, huh?" I say as I make my way to meet Mom in the middle of the kitchen. 

"You got a good one," Mom smiles approvingly as I answer the call.

Before I can speak Mom shouts, "Happy birthday, Summer!"

Summer's sleepy laugh rings through the speaker, "Tell her I say thank you."

I turn to my Mom, "She says thank you."

"Did she get our gift?" Mom asks. I raise a confused brow.

"Uhm Mom wants to know if you got their gift?" I ask.

"I haven't checked the mail yet," she answers and I tell Mom that.

Before Mom can say anything else I rush back to my room. 

"Happy birthday, baby," I say once we change the call from a phone call to a facetime call. Summer's still laying in bed, her black hoodie is pulled up over her head and her white covers are pulled up to her chin, there's no light in her room besides the phone screen lighting up her face.

"I miss you," she sighs.

"I'll be back tomorrow night," I reassure her.

"Not soon enough," she groans.

"Did you get the food I ordered?"

"Alex brought it in a few minutes ago but I haven't left my bed yet," she slightly smiles, "We had a night last night."

"I know, Alex sent me videos," I chuckle.

She puts her head in her pillow, "How bad are they?" Her voice is muffled in the pillow.

"It was actually only one video, and nothing bad. Just you and El dancing," I explain.

She turns back to the camera.

"Trevor!" Hannah's voice comes from the hallway. And then she just enters my room.

"Hey!" I glare at her, "I could of been naked."

"But you weren't," she winks.

Summer muffles a laugh in her hood, I think she loves watching my sister and I bicker.

"The aunts and their hooligans are here," Hannah finally explains why she bursted into my room.

"I'll be down in a bit," I hold up my phone, flipping it towards my sister, "I'm on the phone."

Hannah smiles when she see's Summer's face, entering my room and walking up to the phone, "Hi birthday girl! Miss you!"

"Hi," Summer smiles, "Miss you too, Han!"

"I'll let you two chat," Hannah smiles sweetly, then she looks at me, "You have ten minutes or I'm sending all the littles in here."

I nod at her as she leaves my room and shutting my door.

"I should probably go help with that," I sigh looking back at Summer.

"Probably, because Hannah will seek revenant," Summer smiles.

"Tell me about last night," I say as I stand up off the bed.

I put my headphones in so I can hear here as I shower and get ready. She recaps the party they went to in Beverly Hills then about going to the bars near UCLA. Then she says "I don't remember much after that, but I do remember eating a burger."

"Sounds successful," I say, now fully ready heading downstairs with my phone in hand. "I'll call you back later, love you, happy birthday!"

"Love you, miss you," Summer says now sitting up with the coffee I ordered her in hand.

"Miss you more, birthday girl."