ABDUCTED

The Winter Wonderland Formal 2017

Friday, December 16

Chapter 16. Page 573

"No, Bianca! You were supposed to be her friend and you let this happen!" Trevor Mun shouted at me in the waiting area of the hospital. There it was. That... from my dream. My hands trembled as tears filled my eyes. "I-I didn't know! I swear I would've said something if I knew!" I shouted back through sobs. He turned away, unable to even look at me as his husband comforted him. "Why don't you get home? We're all just... tired," Daryl said in a soft tone.

I woke up to Rockwell silently getting ready for school. I checked the time, seeing that my alarm had gone off in silence due to me still being on the call. My phone felt hot in my hands as I unplugged it. "Oh, you're awake," Rockwell said, unmuting himself. I yawned. "Yeah. Did we fall asleep last night?" I asked. He chuckled. "Well, we didn't. You knocked off somewhere between Hubble's Law and Eternal Inflation theory. Or probably a little after when I left to grab a drink. When I came back you were sound asleep," he replied. I perked up, not remembering that conversation at all. "What did we say?" I asked quickly. "I think you wrote it down. You took notes almost the whole time. I see why you're such a good student," he complimented. I smiled, pulling the scrunchie out of my hair. "Thank you. Let me get ready and I'll see you at school?" I asked with a sigh. He nodded. "I like the bed-head look and I'd definitely love to see more of it, but I'll settle for seeing you at school," he said back. I laughed, shaking my head. "This guy is good," I thought to myself. "Bye, Rockwell," I said with a little wave. "See you later, gorgeous," he replied before hanging up.

16.574–

I walked out of the house, planning on catching a ride with Ciggy and Demi when I noticed Jay exiting his house. He held the door open as Minji walked out after him—wearing his clothes. They spotted me standing in my driveway as they were walking to his car. "Morning," I said, trying to make it seem like I wasn't staring. "Hey! See you at school?" Minji asked. I nodded. "Don't be late," I joked. She laughed, hopping in the passenger's seat of Jay's car. I looked to Jay as he gave me a half-smile and nod, not saying anything he got into the driver's seat. I watched them drive away in the direction of Minji's house just as Ciggy drove in from the opposite direction. I waved as I made my way to the back seat, setting my bag inside before sitting down. "Hey," I said in a soft voice. "Hey. How are you feeling?" Demi asked. I shrugged. She sighed. "Let's not talk about it then. Who wants to talk about a boy anyway? Not me," Demi said with a dramatic tone to her voice. I rolled my eyes. "Well, I guess you don't want to talk about how I fell asleep during my virtual study date with Rockwell—and how he stayed on the phone all night," I replied, matching her tone. Demi gasped, whipping around to face me in her seat. "Shut up! He didn't!" She said back. I nodded. "He totally did." She turned back around squealing in her seat. Ciggy laughed, keeping his eyes in the road. "I think she's happy," he commented. "Wait, so you're taking him to the dance?" She asked. I shook my head. "Nope, still going stag. I just... thought you should know," I answered.

We arrived at school with a few minutes to spare, Ciggy saying he'd be back to drop us off at my house. "Demi says it's so you guys can get ready together? But I'm still taking her to the dance separately... right?" Ciggy clarified. We nodded. "Cool. See you later, Cherry Spice. Bye, Bi," Ciggy said as he backed out of his parking spot. "You have him trained so well," I said shaking my head in awe. She nodded as she waved at him. "I know," she replied with a satisfied smile.

16.575–

Demi and I parted way as we walk to our homeroom classes for attendance. Hemingway required all students to report to homeroom once the doors unlock in order to be counted as present for the day. Sure most schools would argue that our policy would encourage students to skip classes—which is correct, but Hemingway believes in allowing us to make our own choices. Even if the teachers or faculty catch a student skipping a class, they simply inform them that they're "missing crucial material" and move on with their day. Homeroom only lasted maybe twenty minutes to half an hour, depending on the day. My mind raced right through it. I tried to connect the dots to the best of ability, but there were too many gaps. I needed more information. After all, most of everything I thought of was just speculation-mere  ideas in my head that I'd internally discuss with myself about.