Everything with you

Part 20

Emma

I walk up to my room with a smile on my face. Upon entering, I find Hales with a serious look on her open laptop. She had exams this week, and she was studying a lot. I can see that she's in the same pajamas as me this morning. She scrunches up her nose, questionably looking at me. It makes her glasses fall down her nose, making me smile.

"Hey Hales! How's the studying going on?" I ask her, dropping my bag onto the chair.

"Ughh.. Horrible! I hate studying," she fakes fainting, falling backwards on her pillow.

"You'll be done soon!"", I laugh as I see her antics.

"Yeah, I know. Enough about me. Why are you smiling like that? What's going on?"

"I saw Justin today!" I say with a smile.

"I knew it! Tell me everything! she says, excitedly throwing her laptop onto the bed.

"Well.. I sent him a message to check if he reached home safe; he responded today evening, and later we went for coffee."

"Okay.. and?".

"We have another date this Saturday."

"Wow.. Okay, that sounds great, but you do remember what we discussed earlier, right? Make sure he deserves it. I'm sure he's great, but he doesn't deserve you if he hurts you again," she says with seriousness.

"Yes, I do remember that," I assure her. She gives me a quick nod.

"Let me get back to the subject, which I hate," she groans, taking her laptop back to study. I let her study without any further distractions.

I could relax a bit today since the studio was closed. Sophia wanted us to take a day off after what happened yesterday. I continued with my regular routine for the rest of that day. I also had a had a few assignments due the following week; I got to work on those too. On Friday, we were told to hand in our graphic design assignment on Monday. I sucked at designing anything. The assignment was on personal branding. I had an idea of what to do, but I had no idea how to make my vision come to life on paper. I did a few drafts on Saturday morning, but none of them were good. I had no idea how I was going to finish this by tomorrow. With a grunt, I crumple the paper from my latest attempt and throw it on my bed. I checked my watch; it was around 4 p.m. I had to get ready to go to the studio. I also had a date with Justin later. I decided to wear light blue skinny-fit jeans and a white top, which I had not worn before. It was different from what I usually wear. I preferred to wear clothes that were a size bigger; like many girls my age, I was also conscious of my body. I didn't like to wear anything that caught the attention of anyone. This was not too extra, but it did show my curves. I wear minimum makeup, tie my hair in a low bun, quickly grab my jacket, and head out.

Joanna had come to class today. She gave me a big smile as she made her way into the class while crossing me. Mrs. Shepard followed her into the class, handing over Joanna's bag. She turned around and came over to my desk. I stood up as she began to speak to me.

"Hi Emma, I wanted to thank you for what happened last Wednesday. I'm sorry you got involved in the situation yesterday. My son told me that you took care of Joanna when my husband attacked you. There's no excuse for Don's behavior." I could sense that she really was sorry for her husband's actions. I also notice how frail and weak she looked. I remember Don saying something about her not being well, but looking at her now, I'm afraid that was true.

"There's no need for you to apologize, Mrs. Shepard. I understand the situation. Justin had explained what happened. So it's okay. Please don't worry," I assure her. She gives me an understanding smile.