Inked Creations

CHAPTER SEVEN: "Story Time"

"WAKE THE FUCK UP! IT'S TIME TO GET BAKED AND OPEN PRESENTS!"

Sophie's shouting wakes me from my peaceful slumber. I'm stretched out under the comforter, my head covered by the dark fabric. I'm toasty warm, and have zero desire to leave my little goblin nest of a bed.

Suddenly, the comforter is gone, and the entire bed is shaking. I open my eyes to find both Kaylee and Sophie jumping up and down next to me. I grab my pillow and whack it into Sophie first, then Kaylee. Both girls drop to their butts and smile at me.

"Okay okay OKAY!" I grumble playfully. I sit up, yawning, and stretch my arms up. "I'm up, geez. You guys are worse than actual toddlers!" I let loose a giggle, and crawl to the edge of the bed. Standing, I stretch again. The smells from the kitchen making my stomach rumble.

"Breakfast is ready, y'all!" Kaylee states as she walks over to the kitchen area. She pulls three plates out of the cabinet, and starts loading them up from the pans on the stove. I can smell the bacon, and my mouth instantly waters. "I made scrambled eggs, bacon, and corn beef hash!"

I grab my Star Trek onesie from the floor, give Sergio a good scratchin' behind his ears, and make my way to the table. I pull on the onesie and plant my butt in one of the chairs. Kaylee places a loaded plate in front of me, and takes the seat next to mine. Sophie sits across from us, and we all dig in.

We definitely stayed up way too late last night, and I'm beyond exhausted. Thankfully, it's a holiday, so I don't have anything to do except relax with the girls all day.

A few minutes later, I push my empty plate away from myself and lean back in my chair. I let loose a sigh of satisfaction. I look over towards the tree to find roughly 30 presents stuffed underneath. We had all agreed upon no more than ten gifts total for each of us, so as to not break the bank trying to outdo each other. So we each bought five gifts for the other.

"The food has been consumed." Sophie sighs across the table. "Lets get baked and open presents!" She stands up, grabbing all the plates from the table, and heads back to the kitchen. I hear one of the cabinets open and close, before Sophie returns with my blue glass bong. She places it upon the table and starts to pack it up.

"Fuck. My lighter is empty. Hawthorn, you got any lying around?" She asks.

I stand from the table, and stretch. "Yeah. I think I have one or two. Lemme grab one."

I head over to my vanity, bare feet padding across the cool wooden floor. I open three drawers before I find a bright green lighter. Before I turn back to the table, I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror. Ugh. I look like the dead. I grab a ponytail holder and brush, and take the lighter back to Sophie.

"Thanks babe!" She flicks the lighter, and takes a rip off the bong. Exhaling, she sighs. "Ooooooh yes. That's the best way to kick off Christmas day." She passes the lighter to Kaylee, who proceeds to take a large hit as well.

I run the brush through my rats nest hair, freeing it from any tangles. My blonde roots need to be dyed, badly. My ends need another trim. I'll just grab another box of dye tomorrow. I pull my now knot-free hair up into a high ponytail, and take the lighter from Kaylee.

I feel my whole body loosen and relax, as I exhale the smoke. I definitely needed this break from work. From reality. I find myself thinking about that girl from yesterday, Ink. I should definitely shoot her a text....

"Present time, ladies!" I'm pulled back by Sophie's voice. She's now standing by the tree, holding two presents in her hands. She gestures for Kaylee and I to come join her. We leave the table, and plop down on the couch by the tree. Sophie hands a present to each of us. Mine has Spiderman wrapping paper, while Kaylee's is bright pink.