An Unexpected Friendship

Chapter 29

My alarm clock blares loudly signaling that it's time for me to get up for school. I pull a pillow over my head trying to drown it out, but it makes no difference. "Okay I'm up!" I growl turning it off. The sound of a text popping up on my phone grabs my attention. I pick up my phone to see a text from Tucker.

'Picking you up in 20 for school,'  it reads. I ignore his text and pull my blanket up over my head. The peace and quiet doesn't last long when the sound of the doorbell ringing triggers Blue and Kona to start barking. I frustratingly force myself out of bed and trek down the stairs. It takes a minute to get the pups out of the way, but I finally get the door open.

Tucker is standing there fiddling with his shirt, completely unaware that I've opened the door. I clear my throat to get his attention. "Oh good morning!" he smiles and kisses my cheek. "Hey," I say softly. "Why aren't you dressed yet?" he asks with confusion. "Because I'm not going to school today," I answer tiredly. "Why not?" he asks. "Because I don't want to. I just don't feel up to it," I explain. "Look Soph, I know you have a lot going on but, you can't just skip school," he says. "Tucker, I don't really want to talk about it. Just go to school," I plead. "I'll stay with you then. We can talk and-" he spews. "No! I don't want to talk Tucker. I just want to be left alone," I say in frustration. I can see the hurt on his face as he's taken back by my outburst. "Consider your wish granted then," he says in defeat. My heart sinks as he turns away and walks back to his car. I stand there in the doorway and watch him disappear down the road.

I quietly close the door behind me and walk back upstairs to my room. I sit down on my bedroom floor and decide to Facetime Luca. To my surprise, he picks up. "Hey," he answers. "Hey. I'm surprised you picked up," I tell him. "Yeah well it's my free period. What's up?" he asks. "There's just a lot going on right now and I wanted to talk to you about it," I sigh. He scoffs at my response. "No shocker there," he rolls his eyes. "Did I do something wrong?" I ask. "Oh I don't know you just only seem to call or text when you need something," he says. "That's not true," I say. "Yes it is. We've hardly talked since you moved to Florida. And when we do, it takes you forever to respond," he says harshly. "I'm sorry. I've just had a lot going on since moving here," I try to explain. "Yeah so you've said," he sighs. The bell sounds in the background signaling the end of his free period. "Look, I gotta go," he shakes his head before hanging up.

I sit on my bedroom floor in disbelief. I've managed to screw up two of my most important relationships in the matter of half an hour. Sadness and frustration bubble to the surface causing a tear to slip down my cheek. I quickly wipe it away and rest my head back against my bedframe. Blue nudges my door open with his head and walks over to me. I gently stroke his back as he rests his head on my lap. Kona joins us not long after and curls up next to me. I sit with them for a while before I force myself to change out of my pajamas. The exhaustion is obvious as I examine myself in the mirror. After changing, I slip on my shoes and walk downstairs.

I close the front door behind me and continue to walk until I find myself outside of Ash and Ali's house. I knock loudly on the door and Ali opens it a few seconds later. "Hey what're you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in school?" she asks. "I skipped. I was hoping you could bring me somewhere," I say. "Uh yeah I have some free time. Where to?" she smiles. "Orlando Thrive Therapy," I answer nervously. She furrows her eyebrows in confusion. "Everything okay?" she asks concerned. "Not really, but I think it's about time that I start talking about what's going on with me," I tell her. "Let's do it then," she says softly.

*Alex's POV*
"Yes sir Principal Miller. I can assure you that we will be talking to her. I appreciate you letting me know. Have a good one," Servando says. "Unbelievable," he sighs sliding his phone into his back pocket. "What happened?" I ask curiously. "Soph skipped school today even though we told her not to," he says in frustration. "Again? That's like the third time she's skipped since starting at Boone," I sigh.