Shot in the Dark

It was the night before Christmas...

It was Christmas tomorrow and James' parents still hadn't shown up, it didn't seem like they were coming back for him anytime soon. I guess I did feel bad for him, not that gives him any excuse for him to treat me the way he does. I couldn't help thinking though that I wouldn't be too happy if my parents up and left me to go on an adventure of a lifetime. Did they even call him? 

I knew how it felt to be let down by a parent, I was angry at my Dad for months after he left. I kept telling myself that he would come back after every few months like he normally would and we would be fine. He might not have Mum but that doesn't mean I had to be cut off too. I can still remember when I had the first payment off him the day after my sixteenth birthday, with his short message of 'Happy Birthday'.  I had more emotional posts on Facebook from people that I had only talked to once than my own biological Dad. I guess their posts didn't have a couple of zeros attached, but still it wasn't about his money. I had a lump in my throat and tears brimmed my eyes because this was what it took to end my denial, that he had no intention of ever coming back. 

I led on my bed with my legs raised against the wall, whilst surrounding my head with pillows. Fairy lights hung around my room with photos of me and my friends hanging off them. I loved sitting like this with the lights off alone with just the twinkling lights to keep me company. The Christmas presents I had bought for the family, and begrudgingly including James led to the side of the bed that I had wrapped earlier that day. 

I used to remember on Christmas Eve it was a time that Mum and Dad both refused to work, we'd spend the day baking cookies and decorating the house ready for the family to be over for the next day and spent the evening watching films all huddled together drinking hot chocolate with marshmallows. It used to be perfect. Now I'm stuck in my own room alone, I can hear Alec in James' room opposite and Mum and Will decided to go out for a meal for some 'quality time'. 

I was secretly hoping Mum was going to ask for us to bake together earlier seeing as the cookie ingredients were on the side, I guess she either was too busy with Will or she just forgot. Traditions change, people change. 

Fed up of wallowing in self-pity on Christmas Eve I decided that I may as well make the cookies alone because right now triple chocolate chip cookies were the only thing I could think about. Running downstairs in my fluffy red Christmas pj's, which let me tell you were the comfiest thing you'd ever find, I blared some Christmas tunes and got to business. Somehow, I had ended up making so many cookies that there wasn't enough room in the oven and we had three ovens. Don't ask me why, I guess when you have a house that is too big you just get things that you don't even need.

Pleased with myself that I hadn't managed to spill any flour over me or the floor, which is probably a first, I made my way to the dishes. I love baking, but washing up always ruined it for me.  I turned to put the mixing bowl in the cupboard and bumped into someone. Without even looking I knew who it was, waiting for the screaming to start I was startled when he just asked, "What are you cooking?"

Shocked was an understatement, I had to remind myself that I actually had to reply causing me to stutter out, "Oh..Umm, just some triple chocolate cookies." 

Way to go Isabelle, internally congratulating myself for making me look even more like an idiot, being to engrossed in my own internal monologue I nearly missed his compliment. "They smell good princess." So, normal people would just say thank you right? I mean he's spent the last god knows how many months making my life hell so I should just end it there right? 

No, without thinking I asked one of the stupidest questions to date, "Why do you call me princess?"

The famous smirk appeared with the dark glint that lit up his eyes, "Well princess, what could be more fitting for a stuck up, self-centered snob that thinks the world should fall at their feet. The only thing that doesn't suit your name is that you're not pretty, but I guess we can't have it all, now can we?" 

With that he walked away without a second glance at my hurt face, leaving to walk up the stairs he shouted back "Oh and princess I think the cookies are burning."

AUTHORS NOTE
Thank you all for reading💛 so far I've been pretty active with this book in the last two days but after this post I'll be posting every Monday. Please VOTE if you like this Chapter, or any of them for that matter. Thank you so much guys

-T