Dreamjumper

Chapter Four

                 

"Just a little more air!"

  Lance poked his head up over the fence and squinted. He lifted a hand to shield his eyes. "What?"

  Trade cupped his hands around his mouth, and yelled back as loud as he could, "We need some more air!"

  Lance gave him the thumbs up and ducked back under the fence.

  Kicking her blue slippers off her manicured feet, Kim pulled on her gloves and leaned back in her lawn chair. "Who would have guessed that Trade would manage to get something like this so early in the morning?" she asked incredulously.

  She was referring to the lopsided bouncy castle that was positioned right in the center of Trade's yard. Trade had promised James a surprise the night before, and he planned to keep his word – he knew that if James came home and there was nothing special for him, he'd figure out that there'd been a party and rat his brother out to their parents.

  Trade has called us at six o'clock in the morning, and I was grateful that he had woken us up. I'd had trouble getting to sleep the night before thanks to my troubling thoughts of Amanda's piercing gaze.

  "You have to admit, he's really committed to his decisions. I would've forgotten if that were me, to be honest," I admitted, just as Nate sauntered around the corner of the house and into the backyard.

  "Looking good, looking good!" he said as he looked the structure up and down in approval, flashing his mischievous grin. He was still holding a plastic cup in his hand, and his hair looked disheveled. You could tell that he'd been partying, and that he hadn't stopped until the early hours of the morning.

  "Dude, are you gonna help or what?" Trade said with a slight tone of annoyance, looking up from the pump. His mouth curved downward as he awaited an answer.

  "Yeah, yeah, don't worry. I'm helping," he said, wiping his mouth with his sleeve as he downed the rest of what was in his cup.

  Lance stepped out from behind the fence where he was manning the pump, leaning against the gate. "What are you drinking this early in the morning?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow.

  "Relax, it's not beer or anything. It's fruit punch from the fridge," Nate waved a hand in dismissal, and threw the cup over his shoulder onto the snow.

  "Pick that up, my mom's gonna be pissed if we leave our crap out everywhere," Trade said, his tone becoming more assertive this time.

  "What are you scared of, a freaking anti-litter mascot? You still watch Disney Channel?" Nate laughed, kicking his cup across the yard to the opposite side.

  "Nate, go pick it up right now and then help us with this. I swear to God, I will call your uncle and tell him about your tattoo," Trade threatened, narrowing his brown eyes.

  Nate's eyes widened for a moment, and genuine fear crossed his face before he composed himself again. "Fine, Princess. I'll help you make your beautiful palace," he scoffed, sauntering away to pick up his trash.

  As everyone got back to work, I reached one hand into my pocket; I plugged my earbuds into my iPhone and pressed play. Leaning back into my chair, I closed my eyes and gave a small sigh. The sun was just beginning to ascend into the sky, and just the right amount of light danced across my eyelids. The music was a little too loud, but I barely noticed it. I needed something, anything, to occupy my mind, and some synth-heavy 80s music did just the trick.

  Now that my friends were awake and it was morning, I at least felt some sort of peace that had not been present the night before. If it had been, I would have been able to sleep. My eyelids were heavy, as if my eyelashes were weighing them down. I felt like I was drifting in and out of reality, and it took all of my concentration to stay awake. Though I felt stressed and on edge, I couldn't help feeling the impact of my exhaustion.