A Graveyard of Stars

Chapter Five

Dedicated to Bexygame for the gorgeous banner on the side! Thank you so much.

-G

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When 8:30 rolls around and Abigail still isn't rolling up my driveway, I assume she changed her mind about me. I'll admit, but only to myself, I'm kind of, maybe slightly, a little bit upset that she hasn't come.

I force myself to shake it off and forget it. No biggie. Relying solely upon myself to arrive at this supposedly spectacular party, I jog down the stairs and head straight for the door.

"Danielle."

With my hand on the door knob, I turn to see my Mom walking toward me from her study. "I'm going out," I explain.

She stares at me. I'm aware that if I walk out this door, the next time I see her I won't be in the right state of mind. She'll be tired and disappointed and fed up. We grow more and more apart every time we play those roles. We watch each other and I can tell the movie is playing behind her eyes too because she is forced to look away. I wonder how we could let life grip us so tightly around our throats that this has become the remains of us. I chew on my lip as she fiddles with her silk robe that's draped lazily around her body. I swear we are the only people who can make the other nervous.

"To the grocery store, I hope." She speaks while coming to stand in front of me.

"It's almost nine o'clock."

"I didn't have time to go today."

I groan. "That's because you spend all your time in that study. I mean, when was the last time you felt the sun?"

"Some people actually have to work for a living, you know." She cocks her head as if waiting for me to drop to the floor and beg for a job.

I sigh. "Yeah I know. And I'm one of those people who don't. I catch your drift," I tell her, while waving a hand in the air to dismiss her true intentions. Before she has the chance to respond, the sound of a car zooming into our driveway cuts through our mother/daughter bonding time.

I crack open the front door just enough for me to sneak a peek and confirm what I expected. Abigail just pulled into my driveway and is now skipping to my front door.

"Who is it?"

I slam the door shut and turn toward my mean, overly critical Mother. In all my seventeen years of living my Mom has only met two of my friends. Connor, who eventually brought along Craig and they both agreed that my Mom can be a bit intimidating. I've come to the conclusion that the only people my Mom worries about being kind to are the people from her workforce.

"Danielle, who is it?"

I don't think a kind girl like Abigail Winston will be able to take my Mom's intense glares and harsh remarks. That's why I was hoping she would come while my Mom was still cooped up in the study.

My Mom is out of patience which means I'm out of time. There's a knock on the door.

"Got it!" I announce, undoubtedly too enthusiastic. I quickly squeeze out the door and find myself face to face with a beaming Abigail.

"Hey! So sorry I'm late. I had to help my grandma pack for-"

I tug her down the front steps by her arm while saying, "Don't sweat it. Let's just-"

"Who is this?"

My Mom is standing on the top step with an expression I can't put my finger on. She keeps glancing at Abigail's head and I'm wondering if she's trying to figure out whether or not the girl wearing the flower headband is in high school.