Chapter 13
I awake with a start as I feel a body fall on top of me, letting out a loud, "Oof!"
"Get up, Tony! It's Christmas morning," Trent's voice registers. I groggily swat at him.
"Leave me alone."
"Hey, we're gonna open presents without you if you don't get out of bed," mom says. My eyes flutter open to see her leaning against my door frame with her arms crossed.
"What time is it?" I ask.
"Eight," she answers and I groan. Eight is too early to wake up, even on Christmas. It's a holiday; you're supposed to sleep in. Why is it that they wake me up so early?
"I don't want to get up," I mutter.
"Fine, we'll be off enjoying Christmas presents and the company of Aunt Sheila," Trent says, jumping off of me.
"Just get up," Mom says. I roll out of bed, grumbling all the way as Trent leads us down the stairs, a huge grin on his face.
For the next half hour, we go around the circle, opening presents one by one. Trent got a nano-drone, a couple video games, and clothes. Mom received a phone case from Trent and some new candles from me. I got some new movies, clothes, and a pair of bluetooth headphones. Around nine, Sheila, Freddy, and Alice roll in, toting more gifts.
After we finish up with gifts, mom and Sheila tag team breakfast, making us all pancakes and bacon. I topped my pancakes with fruit, whipped cream, and syrup, because that's the best way to have a pancake.
All morning, there's a thought burning in the back of my head. An itch I can't seem to scratch. A reminder of the little box sitting in my room with Liz's name on it. I thought about returning it, but something about it felt wrong, almost. Like I needed to keep it, and there it sits.
After breakfast, I dress myself in some of my new clothes--a pair of black jeans and a button up with birds on it--and make my way downstairs, the gift tucked away into the pocket of my jeans.
"Mom, can I borrow the car?"
She looks at me with alarm, eyes wide and eyebrows raised. "Where do you think you're going?"
"I need to bring Liz her gift."
She frowns. "I thought you two were no longer on speaking terms?"
Right. We aren't. But somehow, this feels like the right thing to do. I don't know why, but something is telling me that I need to do this. Whether Liz receives it well or not, I know I need to deliver this gift, because the moment I saw it I thought of her.
"Mom," I plead. "I need to do this."
She sighs. "Well, okay. Just be careful. There's a lot of snow. Maybe even a blizzard soon."
"It'll take me like 15 minutes. Don't worry. I'll be back before you know it," I reply, grabbing her car keys. I've driven through worse weather conditions, I'm sure I'll be fine.
*
I knock on the door and Liz's mom, as always, answers the door. Her face brightens, eyes lighting up when she sees me. "Tony! It's been so long since you've come over. Please, come in, get out of the cold." She steps back, holding the door open for me.
"Actually, I just wanted to drop off a gift for Liz, if you could just give it to her for-"
"Nonsense!" she cuts me off, waving it off with a hand. "It's more meaningful for you to give it to her. Come in, please."
At this point, I feel like I can't argue with her, so I step inside. She closes the door behind me, grinning. "Here, let me get her for you. Just wait here," she says before disappearing around the corner. I shuffle my feet awkwardly, starting to regret this decision. I feel unwelcome. What if she flips when she sees me? Yells at me in front of her mom? Oh, poor Miranda doesn't need to see-
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To Save Her
Teen Fiction*Tw// suicide, gore, blood Tony's waiting for the bus when he sees a girl in his class committing suicide. He's not sure if it was a dream or maybe a vision...? Questions are running through his head of what he should do. Should he talk to her? Leav...
