When He Calls (Moons of Nibiru - Book #1)

chpt - 21: therapy stones

finals are going well so far

here is a lil update while i try to survive until 23 november

ENJOY!!!

***

"WAKEY, WAKEY RYAN!" MR. PARRISH'S VOICE was louder than a rooster's cry on a farm while the sky was half night with the sun barely up; those were the conditions that morning.

Ryan woke up with a gasp which lasted a second when he found his father waltz in and he groaned.

"Come on, Ryan, get up." his father instructed.

"It's too early." Ryan moaned under the covers. "And the sun's not even up yet!"

"Well, we gotta get an early head-start if we wanna have the full day." said Mr. Parrish.

"Full day for what?" Ryan asked, lifting the covers a bit to peek at his father from the warm darkness. He saw his father was dressed in a checkered shirt with denim jeans and boots.

Mr. Parrish saw Ryan's eye and smiled broadly. "We're going camping."

"The fuck?" Ryan asked, but he mouthed it instead.

"I know, I know." said his father, raising his hands in defence. "It's short notice, I apologize. It was your mom's idea. She had it last week and said we should keep it a surprise."

"What time is it?" Ryan asked as he finally revealed himself from the covers. "Do we have time to pack?" He couldn't believe how fast he just accepted that they were going camping. In the past he'd have put up a fight for not being told in advance. But he didn't feel like erasing the bright smile on his father's face.

"It's almost four." said Mr. Parrish. When he saw Ryan's irritated expression, he sighed and softened his expression. "Your mom wants us to ... reconnect."

Ryan winced. "What about Caitlin?"

"She's coming with, of course." said his father. "Now, come on. Get up, go shower, get dressed and pack some clothes."

"How long are we gonna be away?" Ryan asked as he threw the covers off and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"A day or two." said Mr. Parrish as he walked back into the corridor. "Depends on how well things go."

Ryan watched his father leave and inhaled long and hard. He hoped they would not be met with family-bonding activities.

Ѻ Ѻ

After freshening up, Ryan packed a backpack of clothes: a pair of sweatpants, a pair of trousers in case they stayed an extra day, three t-shirts, a hoodie for the night and running shoes. His parents had finished packing the snacks and food already, but it wouldn't hurt for Ryan to slip in an extra pack of trail-mix.

Before climbing into the car Ryan checked his phone to see if Amy had responded to the hundreds of apologies he'd sent her. Unfortunately the only notification was from YouTube.

"I hope you're not gonna be on your phone the entire trip." said his mother as she slammed the trunk shut.

"No." stated Ryan. He switched off his phone and slid it into his trouser pockets.

"You should be glad I'm letting you take your phone with." Mrs. Parrish commented. "There won't be any signal, though, so all you'll be able to do is listen to music and whatnot."

"Fine by me." they heard Caitlin from inside the car. She already had her earphones in and readied herself for a nap until they got to the campsite.

After everything was packed, Ryan climbed in next to Caitlin and rested his head on her shoulder. It helped him not think about the empty seat next to him.