Back Where I Belong

Chapter 16

Zoey's pov (a month later)

"Hey birthday girl," Bryana greets, poking her head into my room.

I make a face and groan, "Don't remind me."

"Why not? You're finally seventeen. Just another year of living with the smelling boys before you're free," she jokes, crossing the room to get over to my dresser. There, she grabs my green brush, then marches over to me, ready to help untangle the monster that is my hair.

"Believe it or not, I actually like living with them," I reply, wincing a little as she pulls the brush through my newly dyed hair. Yep, it's finally back to its usual colorful self. Michael took me to get it dyed this morning. And Ashton took me and Charlotte to get our noses and my lip pierced yesterday.

"Shocker," she says, her eyes sparkling. I laugh.

My laughter dies off as my stomach starts to twist. My face twists up. I break out of Bryana's grasp and make a beeline for my bathroom. I kneel down by the toilet and puke up my lunch. I feel my hair get pulled back out of my face and mentally thank Bryana for that.

"Are you feeling okay?" She questions after I finish.

"Yeah. It was just like, a heat of the moment thing. Nausea just hit me out of nowhere," I tell her honestly. Well, almost honestly. I had been randomly getting sick all week.

Bryana frowns, but drops the subject and goes back to brushing my hair.

"Ready for your party?" She asks, practically bouncing around the room.

"No. We should just sneak out the window and hide. Just until the party is over," I suggest.

"Zoey," Bryana scolds, placing her hands on her hips.

"They won't miss me that much, right?" I question, inching towards the window. She rolls her eyes and grabs my arm. I groan loudly as she drags me towards the door.

                               ~

"Where are we going?" I ask ad Bryana pulls me out to her car.

"Your party," she replies, tuning on the radio. I grin as Sounds Good Feels Good starts to play, starting in the middle of Airplanes.

"A restaurant?" I question, as we walk inside the building.

"Yes. We know how much you hate parties, so we opted for dinner instead," Calum says from behind me.

"You guys are awesome," I gush, hugging my older brother tightly. The other three appear behind Calum. I release him and hug them. Then Ashton goes over and kisses Bryana.

"Hey Zoey, are you okay? You look a little pale," Jace states from across the table. That makes all eyes go to me. Peyton frowns and takes my hand.

"I'm fine," I lie, taking another bite of my chicken. I swallow, then almost immediately feel the familiar twisting in my stomach. I push my chair away from the table, then run to the bathroom, where I throw up again.

"Zoey, I'm worried about you. That's twice in one night," Bryana states as soon as I walk out of the stall.

I sigh and wash my hands before popping a couple of mints in my mouth, "I'm fine."

"That's what you told me the other day when you got sick," Charlotte says, walking into the bathroom.

"She got sick the other day?" Bryana asks, turning for face her. Charlotte nods.

"Guys, I'm fine. I swear," I protest.

"I don't believe you. But I'll let you off the hook for now. But if you get sick one more time, then we're taking you to the doctor's office. Deal?" Bryana asks, giving me a stern look.

I groan, but nod, knowing that she wouldn't back down until I did. The two of them nod, satisfied, then walk back out to the table with me.