Let Me Explain

O N E

THE house was pitch black, completely dark as night fell over. My parents were sleep and I was sure that they assumed I was too.

The memorized format of my house was engraved in my brain. I easily moved through the hallway, heading to my parents room. The door was already open, but a glowing light was visible from it.

I stood beside the doorframe, staring inside the room for a silent moment. My mom was on the left side of the bed, sleeping on her stomach with her left arm under the pillow. Her dirty blonde hair was messy.

From the lamp on the nightstand beside her, I knew that she had fell asleep reading one of her psychology books.

My assumption was confirmed when I saw the book laying on the ground, the spine of it broken as the pages were open.

It was a normal occurrence.

Looking back up, I noticed my dad who slept beside her. He was knocked out cold, sleeping on his back. The long overtime hours were catching up to him, and I could tell by how he was snoring. His snores were consistent, ringing out through the room at a same rate. The constant sound wasn't going to wake the neither of the them.

After standing there for another lengthy moment, I turned back around to head out of their bedroom.

With it being my last few days on strike, it hadn't really mattered to me about sneaking out. My parents were heavy sleepers, so there was absolutely zero concern about them hearing the front door. They also wouldn't be checking the cameras tonight.

I headed down the hallway and went down the stairs, taking the short distance to the front door as I unlocked it, stepping outside after and locking it again.

It didn't take much to see the black ford mustang parked a few houses down waiting for me.

A smile touched my lips as I walked the last bit to the car, standing next to the side of it. I pulled the door handle to the backseat opening the car.

"We were outside for ten minutes. I started to think you weren't coming," Asra turned around from the passenger seat, meeting my gaze.

Her black curly hair was resting down her shoulders. She was wearing a black halter top from what I could see.

Asra Terrano was my cousin, and the only person who could convince me to sneak out when I was already on my third strike.

The only reason she knew about the party was because her boyfriend Devin told us about it. He was a senior and knew a lot of college people, so it was an easy way to get us in.

"I almost pulled off," Devin turned, meeting my gaze.

His hair was cut low and he had his ears pierced. He wore a black t shirt with short sleeves, showing the tattoos on his arms.

"I don't know why you guys are saying something." I closed the door behind me, fitting in the tight space in the back. "Everyone knows my parents are strict."

Putting on my seatbelt and looking over, I noticed who was beside me.

Kade was sitting behind the driver side. He was my younger cousin, him and Asra being my only cousins on my mom's side.

This summer, he had picked up a lot of height, reaching six foot at only fifteen.

His dark, curly hair was messy and he wore a simple t shirt that was a compression type, fitting to his athletic body.