Author's Note:
You're lucky I got this uploaded in time! I spent the last 22 hours hanging out with my friends, so not exactly a great writing period! Also, I'm warning you in advance, I might be a little late with my next upload. PAT's are coming up in 10 days, and I really should be studying! Also, me and my friends are planning a couple year end parties, so I'm not sure how well I'll be able to write anyways, if you get my drift ;)
But anyways, enjoy the story for now!
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Scarlett jerked awake when their small car hit a pothole and her head met the window with a resounding CRACK! She winced and rubbed her head, slowly turning to look at her surroundings. Penny and Joey were both sleeping, looking comically similar with both of their heads hanging to the right, mouths slightly open.
“No, we can not stay at a hotel!” Vicky hissed. Scarlett jumped at the ferocity in her mother’s tone, suddenly realizing that she had the bad fortune to awaken during an argument.
Matt replied quietly, “Well, what else are we supposed to do? Sleep in the car, for God’s sake?”
“It’s a nice night…” Vicky trailed off. Trying to stay unnoticed, Scarlett inched to the side, to get a view of the temperature. Catching a glimpse, Scarlett’s jaw dropped.
Chucking humorlessly, Matt stated the obvious. “It’s -26 degrees!” Taking a deep breath, he pleaded, “Look, it can be a motel. A B&B? I know a nice B&B just before the border.”
Suddenly, the atmosphere in the car got chilly – metaphorically. “Oh, is that where you stayed? And I thought you slept in the whore house!”
Scarlett’s eyes widened and she had to try her hardest not to gasp. For one thing, she’d never heard her mother use language like that. And since when had Matt done anything remotely close to her mother’s accusation?
Matt slammed on the brakes and yanked the wheel, pulling the car over as to focus his full attention on the argument. “Rebecca is not a whore! And -”
Just as Vicky opened her mouth to respond, Scarlett realized that Penny was starting to stir.
“Stop! Penny’s waking up!” Scarlett burst out. She watched as both her parents jumped. Questions were clearly on their lips, but as Penny opened her eyes and gave a great yawn, they both turned to the front. Matt merged with traffic and asked with a forced calmness, “The B&B, then?”
Vicky smiled, a pained smile, and replied, “Why not?”
Even though Penny started chatting about dreams, the question hung in the air, leaving Scarlett to wonder if it was truly meant to be rhetorical.
* * * * * *
Something heavy landed on Scarlett’s nose. “Ouch!” she exclaimed, surging upwards out of the surprisingly comfortable bed.
Penny scrambled off her face. “Mommy says it’s time to go! Go, go, go!”
Blearily, Scarlett answered, “What about breakfast?”
Vicky wandered into the room. “It’s a B&B. Breakfast is included. Hurry, we need to get going.”
Five minutes later, the family was sitting around a table, eating pancakes with the old woman who owned the B&B. Suddenly, the front door opened and a woman’s voice called out, “Hey, Mom, I’m home!”
The old woman immediately stood up and crowed, “Rebecca! You came!” As they embraced each other, Scarlett shoveled another bite into her mouth, staring in awe at Rebecca’s shock of gorgeous red hair. The perfect waves cascaded down her back like a waterfall. Picking up a strand of her own limp, greasy (she hadn’t showered in 3 days) hair, Scarlett made a face. I wish I had hair like that, she thought. Scooping it up into a high, messy ponytail, she tried to make it unnoticeable, just as Rebecca turned around.
The atmosphere in the room froze. Rebecca stood, open-mouthed, staring at Matt. Matt was returning the shocked expression, and Vicky’s fork was hovering between her mouth and the table. Rebecca found her voice first.
“M-Matt! What are you doing here?”
Matt seemed to be caught between saying hello and denying that they knew each other.
“Hello, Rebecca,” Vicky broke the silence, with an ice-cold tone. “I’m Matt’s wife, and these are our children, Joey, Scarlett, and Penny.”
Scarlett gave a little wave when her name was said, as Rebecca looked from one face to another. She looked like a deer in the headlights. “You’re… You’re married?” she finally spit out at Matt. “How did this little fact get forgotten?” Rebecca looked livid.
“I… uh…” Matt’s eyes shifted to each of the other six faces as he tried to find an answer.
“You didn’t know?” Vicky was staring at Rebecca in a new light.
Rebecca answered, “Of course not! I would never have done anything if I knew!”
“What did you do?” Joey broke in, looking interested for the first time. Vicky jumped, seeming to realize that the children were still there. Joey and Scarlett were both watching the argument, while Penny was humming to herself as she swung her legs back and forth.
“Joey, Scarlett, take Penny and start putting your suitcases back into the car!” Vicky ordered.
Scarlett immediately stood and grasped Penny’s hand, pulling her towards the room they shared. Joey followed reluctantly, muttering angrily to himself.
Penny grasped her suitcase handle, and pointedly saying, “No!” when Scarlett tried to help, dragged it inch by inch to the door. Scarlett followed behind, her mind whirling with information that even Joey didn’t know. The conversation she had overheard in the car corroborated in a terrible way with what had just happened. What did this mean?
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Author's Note:
Soooo? What'd you think? One of my favorite chapters, I must say. Also, I found out very nicely that Wattpad doesn't like my fonts. So on the last chapter, I fixed the words from the red book. It's much easier to see where it starts and finishes now (it's not any different, but it's in bold and it's spaced differently)
Vomment! Help me out here! :D
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Turning Over A New Leaf
Novela JuvenilScarlett Eve is a self-proclaimed nerd. She has one friend, gets high 90's in school, and has major problems with bullying. Her family is struggling financially, but Scarlett is happy. So when her mother breaks news to Scarlett that they're moving...
