Toaster Notes From My Best Friend the Dating-Optimist (A Christian Romance)

Chapter Eight

The rest of Emery's first date goes relatively well, once Andy decides to catch up with her. At the end of the night, he gives her a peck on the cheek and a boyish smile. She - of course - melts. If only she would listen to me enough to realize that he's been giving that same smile to other girls all evening.

    Once we finally get home, it's almost eleven. Whoops. Tomorrow's a school day. If Mom sees us, she's going to chew us out. I rush Emery upstairs. She goes quickly, not even bothering to take off her jacket. I take mine off slowly, knowing that Mom is probably still up waiting for us. I also know that as the older sister, I should go and tell Mom that we're home safe. I walk gingerly into the kitchen, where Mom is sitting at the table. Her hands are wrapped around a mug of - coffee? At this time of night? She looks tired. I sit at the table across from her.

    "Hey Mom. Sorry we're back so late." At my admission, my mother looks ready to yell. Then, she doesn't. Maybe it's the time.

    "Just go upstairs Rory, I'll talk to you and your sister about this tomorrow after school." I nod, getting up to leave before Mom changes her mind.

                        -

    Morning comes way too early. I roll out of bed at seven, feeling gross. I don't think I brushed my teeth last night. I stumble over to Emery's bed, where I attempt to shake her awake.

She sleeps on.

Frustrated enough that I have to be up at this time after being out so late last night, I drag her onto the floor. She lands with a resounding thump and wakes up screaming.

    "Leave me alone! It's not time for school yet!" She barks. I scoff, shoving my phone in her face. 7:02am. My sister stands up instantly, still tangled in her bedsheets.

We both drag ourselves to the bathroom, taking a minute to realize that only one of us can shower at one time. I let Emery go first, since she needs to wash her hair. I brush my teeth and wash my face, pulling my hair back into a messy ponytail.

    Still in my pyjamas, I trudge down the stairs into the kitchen. Mom is there again, except she looks noticeably less tired.

    "Hey Mom. Sleep well?" I mumble. Mom grins, sliding a steaming mug down the counter towards me. I catch it and bring it to my mouth, excited to realize that it's coffee. We're never allowed coffee.

    "Better than you, I think."

"You . . . you're letting me have coffee?"

"I think you need it." Still slightly groggy and overwhelmed with emotion, I walk over to my mother and bear hug her.

"Thanks Mom." Mom gives me a squeeze, sitting back down at the table and sipping at her own cup of coffee. I sit down across from her again, fingers wrapped protectively around my coffee mug. Suddenly, I straighten.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you - I have to go away for school next week." She doesn't look too happy about having this sprung on her at seven in the morning, but she lets me continue.

"Mr. Fairfax says that I have no choice but to go. All the expenses are covered." Mom clears her throat.

"And you're going . . . where, exactly?" She raises an eyebrow. Only one. It must be a mom thing, because I've never been able to figure out how to do it.

"Oh! Right . . . Scotland." I half expect Mom to lose it, but she doesn't. Wow. Two for two.

"Okay." That was unexpected. I had fully expected Mom to find some way to keep me here. She doesn't. That scares me a little. I was counting on being able to stay home on account of my 'overbearing, protective mother' - her words, not mine - to study for my exams. No such luck, apparently.

This'll be interesting.

About ten minutes later, Emery comes down the stairs. She's already dressed, and has her hair perfectly coiffed. I glance at the time 7:36am. It must be a new record. I listen, suddenly hearing a few more pairs of feet move around upstairs. Uh oh. I might just lose my shower slot. I leave my coffee - quite reluctantly - and run upstairs.
                                                                                      -
    Danny drives Emery and I to school, since Mom's busy with the little ones and his first class at the university doesn't start for another hour. He pulls up to the curb in front of the school.

    "See you guys later." We get out of the car - our parents' old minivan - and wave at Danny.

    "Bye Danny!" My sister calls. She hasn't been in high school long enough to learn not to do that. I duck my head, picking up the pace a little.

    I go into the school and walk up the stairs to my locker. Emery's locker is downstairs, so she won't be following me here.

I look down the hall and notice Asia at her locker. She closes it, catching my eye and walking over.

"What's up? How did the rest of Emery's date go?" She asks. I shrug, rolling my eyes.

"Well, you know. Emery thinks she loves him, and he's an idiot." Asia raises an eyebrow.

"Like all of the guys in our grade nine class?" She asks. I nod, chuckling.

"Except that this guy's in grade ten." Asia cringes.

"Ooh. Ouch. She shouldn't stay with him." She says confidently. She and I have been sharing 'dating' tips since kindergarten. Not dating noticeably 'bad' guys has been one since we were eight and Asia decided to 'date' the 'bad boy' in our class - Aiden. He turned out to just be rude. Since then, she's always referred to me about the guys she's dating, and I to her. Apparently we now refer to each other about the guys my sisters date.

"So, Lizzy dating anyone?" I shake my head.

"No, I think I've scarred the majority of my siblings - at least for a few years." Asia presses her lips together, nodding solemnly.

The bell rings for first period.

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Hey guys? What's up? How's life?
I hope that you're all doing fantastic, and I hope you're enjoying the story!! I'm working on a cast list for this, and I can't figure out who to cast 'Five' as. I know you haven't seen much of him yet, but any ideas? What about Emery? I'm still missing someone for her.
I checked my number of reads earlier today and it was 14. Now it's 24. I'm quite happy. *smiles ecstatically*
Oh - just out of curiosity - is anyone listening to Cody Simpson's EP 'Wave One'? As a side, does anyone else remember when he sounded like a little kid back in 2010-2011?
Anyway, I'm thinking about doing a double update - stay tuned!

xx

Emma