Surfing Midland (Complete/ First draught).

Chapter 21

Even though the last day of school was scheduled it was still unexpected when it came, I had spent much of the morning wondering why I had to go. I'd only been to school for two weeks; there were a lot of things I wouldn't be getting that most others would. Not to mention I had only a handful of friends, it would be easier to stay at home and chat with them over facebook instead then travel down to Butte for a day of boredom.

A maxi dress and sandals were all I wore; the days were growing hotter, drier and longer. If the pond hadn't been on the ranch I was sure my skin would have dried out days ago, the thought of going on holiday to the beach was something I was excited about.

"Oh, you look lovely today Leah. Last day of school for the year, how do you feel?" Honestly, I felt about as great as I looked. 'Lovely' was an understatement, I felt amazing, awesome and pretty all rolled into one.

"Thank you Trisha, Val....you look nice today too." I noticed Valerie had swapped out of her usual plaid and jeans for something a little more feminine. She blushed at the compliment and ducked her head, Val looked as uncomfortable as I'd felt when arriving out at the ranch. It made me wonder how many times she'd dressed in feminine clothes and despite our differences and my grudge I would encourage and dress her in female-friendly clothes.

"She does, doesn't she?" Trisha questioned from where she stood; it seemed the last few days and weeks worth of dramas had thinned out, and Trisha was again happy to be around Valerie.

"So are you excited for the last day of school?" Trisha asked as she leaned over the breakfast bar, the way she was talking it was like she was a teenager again and we were best friends. I laughed, what else could I do? Never before had I met an adult that could mimic a teenager so well, not to mention have me want to spill my guts to her?

But instead, I shrugged, trying to hold my laughter. "Eh, after today my life goes downhill anyways. So I might as well love it while I can." Trisha picked up on the joke and began cackling, Valerie cringed. I would probably be cringing too if my mom were chuckling, but she wasn't my mom, so I ignored it.

We joked around a little more until Declan came into the kitchen, he looked a bit too serious. Most times he went into the kitchen with a broad smile on his face and a few smart-ass words but not this morning, it made me worry that I'd done something wrong or that he'd found something out from my mom.

"Val, you're going down to Butte with Trisha and the kids. Leah, you're coming down with me, if you're ready, then we can head out." I knew then that something was wrong, a lead weight suddenly settled in my stomach as I grabbed my purse and headed out to Declan's truck.

Declan came out not too long after I had climbed into the cabin of the truck, the scowl he had was a little less severe than a few minutes ago, but as soon as he jumped into the car and started up the engine, the atmosphere was a little off.

"So I overheard your argument with Valerie last night, and I felt a little...insulted about that last jab of yours. You realise that once you leave here, I won't end contact with you, right? Sure my track record isn't the best, but you have to give me some credit." Biting my lip, I tried to think back to what I had said the night before and was mortified at what I remember saying.

I wasn't one to get so emotional and let my mouth run away with me; there were few things I regretted saying, but that bit about Declan and his contact ending were one of them.

Sighing loudly I kept myself from nail bitting or lip chewing as the nerves welled up suddenly, "I'm sorry for saying that...it just popped out. I wasn't even thinking of you when I said it." I didn't know what else could be said to ease whatever Declan was feeling, babbling and spewing my guts out apologising just wasn't my thing, so I shut my mouth at the end of my little apology fest and waited for Declan to say something.

"Let's be honest; I haven't been the greatest dad to you...I don't even know where to begin making up for not being in your life, but we can always start somewhere, right? You don't know how to be a daughter either, so we're learning as we go. But please, don't judge the future by what happened in your past. It'll get better, I promise. And hey, look at you and Val? You're starting to get along, right? Or am I just imagining this peace in the house?" I laughed at the question, by some miracle the peace had lasted and I hoped it continued.

Though since the peace had started, I had noticed a visible lack of Devyn, which sucked because even though he creeped me out a little, I still liked looking at him. Even his smiles were better than looking at Valerie in any mood.

"I think the chip on Valerie's shoulder has gone or is smaller...or she's managing it better because she hasn't tried to kill me in about twenty-four hours, which is great." It was the truth; I think I sweat less now that Val and I had called a truce.

"That's good to hear; I'd like for you both to get along. She's had a hard time at school the last few years, and I think she got a bit jealous of you just slipping right into the fold. You both come from really different worlds, Val lives in a little pond where she's always safe but you've been out in the big ocean for years, and you're a lot more confident and socially developed I would say." Had Declan been watching that closely? I always considered myself outgoing and confident, not like Val who seemed a lot less friendly and a lot more withdrawn but I put it down to her not liking me over her being shy and reserved.

"Where did this doctor Phil stuff come from?" I hated over analysing things, it always lead to headaches and heartaches, but if Declan wanted to try and decipher stuff at a subtler level then I wasn't going to stop him. I probably couldn't stop him with a blindfold, so there was no point in trying.

"Nowhere, I've always watched people more then they realise. You should try it sometime; it's relaxing." Snorting loudly I doubted what Declan said but didn't say anything against it as we settled into a comfortable quiet like we did most other mornings.

Today felt like the beginnings of any other day, just the way I had hoped for but doubted would happen