What If Tomorrow Comes [Clean Version]

~January~

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!" The room exploded into cheer, an extraordinary feat for the 8 people in the room, two of which were children.

"Well, that was a year for the books," Lex noted. Everyone shared a nod of agreement.

"But it's done. This is the time for fresh starts. Are you doing to have resolutions, or are you done with them?" Ethan asked. Lex nodded.

"It's not to make me a better person. I just want to be employed with a steady paycheck by the end of the year," she said, "You?"

"Get a job that I can hold," Ethan responded, kissing Lex. She looked at him with a confused look. "We didn't do it at the stroke of midnight."

"Smart," she responded. The conversation fizzled and everyone moved to talk to someone different.

"So, Lex, are you thinking about going to college at some point?" Paul asked Lex.

"I might. When I'm older. I dropped out because I was too busy taking care of the household and that's my main goal," she explained.

"What would you study?"

"Business in all honesty. I might do psychology," she replied, "Maybe grad school after that, though I have no idea."

"Well, don't do what I did at grad school. I went to a grad school tour. I really liked it and I had done my interview. At the end they asked me if I had anymore questions. I looked at them and said, 'well, I don't have any questions, but I do want to say this—'" Paul said. Ethan came to the pair and looked at Paul.

"If you can't find me, I'm in my room from second-hand embarrassment," Ethan said. Lex and Paul nodded as Ethan headed upstairs.

"I said, 'I know I'm ready for grad school. But is grad school ready for me?'" Paul said. Lex groaned.

"Paul, you don't say that. I know that and I dropped out of high school," she said.

"I know, I know. It was really dumb," he admitted. Tom wormed his way into the conversation.

"Is this about the grad school story?" Tom asked. Paul nodded. "Please stop."

"Paul, yes stop. I don't want to start the year hearing the grad school story again," Emma said. Paul looked at her.

"Fine," he said.

The house began to empty after that. Lex went into the kitchen to refrigerate any leftovers and run the dishwasher. She was exhausted, partly because she left all the cooking to the last possible moment, requiring her to wake up at about three in the morning the day before. By some miracle, Lex managed to stay awake almost the whole day. When the final leftovers were put away, Hannah emerged in the doorway, pajamas on, teeth brushed, and a hairbrush with hair ties wrapped around it in her hand.

"What's up, Banana?" Lex asked, washing her hands.

"Can you please braid my hair?" Hannah asked. Lex grinned.

"Of course. Let's get to your room," Lex said, walking through the house, turning off all of the lights and locking all the doors and windows before setting the alarm and going to Hannah's room.

"Thank you," Hannah whispered.

"No problem. Did you have fun with Tim and Diane?" Lex asked, diving Hannah's hair in two and starting on the left side.

"Yeah. Diane goes into my lap of her own free will. Can I ask you a question?" Hannah asked.

"Besides the one you just asked, of course," Lex replied, adding onto the three strands, crossing left over middle, right over middle.