C.2.R

Chapter 25 Quick Hellos and Long Goodbyes

Chapter 25 Quick Hellos and Long Goodbyes

The day was going by smoothly, too smoothly. Everyone was acting so normal and the feeling was eerie. Rain thought for a moment that maybe she was just overthinking it, that everyone did have a right to be happy since in just a few days it would be Christmas. She pushed it to the back of her mind. She should be happy that everyone wasn't so on edge anymore, right? She was the last one to sit at the lunch table and she found everyone in their usual conversations. Xavier and Derek picked on Sky and Blake who were being extra lovey dovey since they wouldn't see each other at all during break and surprisingly Daniel was defending Sky instead of picking on her with Derek and his brother. What's got him so in love with love? That just left Josh who sat to the left of Rain and picked uninterested at his salad.

"Hey Josh," Rain greeted softly as she took her seat and he simply nodded in response. "Did you ever tell Dani?" she asked and he shook his head no. "Well I guess that'll give you something to do over break." The seven of them had been spending Christmas together every year for the past three years along with the rest of their immediate families. They'd usually get a lodge somewhere with the adults being generous enough (and just wanting a break from their teenagers) to get separate cabins from them. They'd spend the week playing in the snow and eating marshmallows around campfires, it was always fun.

"I guess so."

She slung her arm around his shoulder "Cheer up Moon Pie you got one more day."

"I'm still going to have to spend break with them."

"Yeah but they won't act up around the rest of us."

"Yeah they care too much about their image to let that happen."

"You refuse to see anything positive about this don't you?"

"There isn't anything positive about what they're doing they're going to ruin Elizabeth's childhood just like they did mine."

"And you turned out just fine didn't you?" she said and he just shoved another fork full of lettuce in his mouth reluctantly. Pulling her arm back to her side she began to consume her own food while listening in on what the rest of the table was talking about.

"I'm gonna kick your butt the same way I always do," Derek gloated.

"We'll see about that hot shot," Xavier replied. She assumed they were talking about snowboarding, one of the boy's favorite things to do during break.

"I really wish you could come babe," Skylar complained to her boyfriend, the same way she did every year when she had to be separated from him.

He smiled pecking her nose "I'll be there in spirit. So," he cleared his throat "I'm coming to C.2.R to drop off your gift right?"

"Right," she answered eyeing Rain who scrunched her eyebrows in confusion as a response to her stare.

"I'm quite curious as to what you got me," Blake said not noticing the brief second he didn't have his girlfriend's attention.

"Yeah and I'm quite curious why Rain took the day off," she said purposely being a little louder so everyone at the table could hear. Rain worried that something like this would happen. When she took off it registered in the computer making it visible to everyone in IC. She had hoped no one would check their computers until after school that way she wouldn't have to deal with their protest but Skylar checked her computer religiously. Rain knew that if anyone were to notice it'd be her but she still had wished otherwise.

Skylar's piercing blue eyes narrowed in on Rain who glared at her for opening her big cherry glossed mouth.

Daniel was that first to speak "What?"