Wild Ride - The Alternative Version (Book 2)

Chapter 29~Christmas Vacation

THREE MONTHS LATER

It seemed like the time flew right by after Abbie started school, because now she was going on Christmas Vacation after today. I was going to pick her up from school, and then we'd go back to the house and wait for Elise. I talked her into coming to stay the whole vacation with us, so a little over a week she'd be here, and she doesn't have to work because she took Abbie's full vacation off. She'd planned on only coming for Christmas Day, but  I just would not settle for that. But, I won and she finally agreed to come stay with us and spend all of vacation with Abbie and I, however Abbie doesn't know she's coming yet. 

These past three months have been pretty eventful. After that day that Elise had asked me if I'd thought about dating again when she came to stay after breaking up with Mike, I'd gone to Brian for help. He was the only one that knew about me having feelings for Elise. I'd told him what she had said about not wanting me to say it was a mistake that we slept together, and I asked him if it sounded to him like she might've been in directly saying she reciprocated my feelings. He said that he thought so, but he couldn't be absolutely sure. He's been trying to help me come up with a way to tell Elise how I feel, but with me being such a coward, that hasn't happened because everytime I get the chance, I chicken out. Brian thinks it's hilarious, though, so in the meantime I'm entertaining him. Abbie also teases me about it too, because Brian can't keep anything from that kid. 

Back in October, Abbie had parent/teacher conferences, which Elise and I both met up for to attend. Abbie's grades are awesome, as per usual, and she's even started doing better in math compared to last year, though it's starting to get harder. She seems to be taking the challenge and never failing to meet it, and she's not afraid to ask for help when she doesn't understand something. 

Abbie has pretty much mastered piano now, which didn't really surprise me any because she started picking it up so quickly the first lesson I had with her. Now, on top of guitar and piano, she's asked me to teach her to play drums, so that's what we're currently working on. Somehow, this kid manages to balance school, guitar, piano, drums, and basketball all at once. 

Abbie's basketball season began at the start of November, they're about halfway through now. They've been doing really good this year, it's Abbie's first year being on an all girls team since the teams divide into genders at the third grade. They don't have games or practices any time there's no school, so she won't have either over vacation. If school got cancelled for some reason, then there'd be no practice or game that day. She gets along with all the other kids on her team, which is really not much of a surprise, and she loves her coaches. 

Last week, Abbie had her Christmas concert at the school. I think she was one of the loudest kids out of her group that was singing. She stood on the top row of the risers because she pretty much stands taller than most of the kids in her class, in the middle, and you could tell very easily where her voice was coming from and that she definitely was not one of those lip-syncing just to get through the event. 

She's also had a few friends over in the last three months, both from her current school and from the school she attended in Los Angeles, though Dustin has not made an appearance at my house yet and that is perfectly ok with me. Elise still thinks it's amusing how "over-protective" I am, and teases me about it often. I don't think I'm over-protective, I just want to lock her in a room until she's thirty so she's about as far from any boys as she can get. This way, she won't get hurt, but oh no, I'm not allowed to do that. 

I drove to Abbie's school and got her signed out for dismissal, and soon after her name was called out over the intercom, she came strolling down the hallway like she owned the place. Honestly, it wouldn't really catch me by surprise if she did. But she's learned to control her running in the halls, something she had trouble with when she was six. I'm not sure about the two years I was M.I.A. but I'm pretty sure, being the rebel she is, she sprinted down the halls.