They Call It Magic...

Chapter Two

I woke up and smiled at the thought of starting a new day before I remembered what had happened. Two days and two nights had passed since I called Mona’s parents at the hospital. That’s two days and two nights since I last saw my best friend. She hasn’t returned my calls or and I haven’t been allowed in to visit her. And I know she’s mad at me because of what I did but that doesn’t give her a right to just cut me off, does it?

            I fumbled around on my nightstand for my phone and then heard something thump on the floor. I sighed loudly before kicking off my sheets and pretty much rolling out of bed. And when I say rolling I mean literally rolling because I landed face down on the floor.

            “Really?” I grumbled to myself.

            I glanced around and then grabbed my phone out from under my bed; there were no missed calls or texts from Mona or her parents (or anyone for that matter) but I wasn’t surprised. It was just a few minutes after 10am and visiting hours for the mental hospital where Mona was staying had started two hours ago. I saved her life and I’ll bet all she can think about is how I told on her, I thought.

            There was a knock on my bedroom door and I jumped to my feet. “Who is it?” I called while I tried to comb through my crazy hair with my fingers.

            “Mommy says we need to start packing,” my seven year old sister Brianna’s tiny voice chirped through the door.

            I was about to ask her what I needed to be packing for when I remembered that I had my cousin Riley’s wedding coming up in two days. Well, technically, she was my second cousin and it wasn’t just any old wedding. Tomorrow morning my whole family would be flying to London and that would apparently give us enough time to shake off the jetlag and be ready for the wedding Friday night. And I’m sure you’re probably all wondering why Riley’s wedding was even in London in the first place so I’ll just explain it all right now. My family originated from England but my grandmother on my mom’s side decided to move to America when she was in her twenties to start a new life. So half of my family lives here and the other half lives in (or around) London and that’s just how it’s always been.

            “Are you packing yet?”

            I rolled my eyes at my little sister and her never-ending need to know exactly what I was doing. “Does thinking about it count?” I asked her.

            “Mommy, Valorie’s not packing her wedding things!” I heard Brianna yell as she ran back down the hall.

            I realized thinking about packing wasn’t actually going to get me anywhere so I decided to go get ready for the day. I grabbed the outfit I had prepared for the day off of the top of my dresser and headed into my bathroom. Ten minutes later, I emerged back into my bedroom with my makeup applied and light brown hair perfectly wavy. I was wearing dark pink Lucky t-shirt with light pink hibiscus flowers on it and my favorite pair of Hollister short shorts. I laced up my colorful Nike running shoes (even though I didn’t think I’d have time for running today) and made my way out of the room.

            I turned the from the hall and into the living room where my little sister and lazy big brother were both parked on the couch with donuts in their hands. Brianna and Joe both had chocolate smeared on their faces and I rolled my eyes. She’s seven and he’s eighteen, yet they still both eat like they’re toddlers, I thought.

            “Good morning ReeRee!”

            I glanced into the kitchen and saw my dad waving a spatula at me. My mom was standing next to him, pouring raisins into a pot of what smelled a lot like oatmeal. I grinned and shook my head at both of them; they had been calling me ReeRee for as long as I could remember and I don’t think they planned on stopping any time soon. Dad had turned around and was stirring the pot and I walked over to peer inside.