Thank you for all of your reviews, I really appreciate it! I'm glad there was good feedback on the last chapter, hopefully you like this next one! I own nothing.

Chapter 7: Morning

"Rayanne! Get out of bed, young lady! You're going to be late for school!"

"What the—" Rayanne awoke to her mother's yells and a pounding in her head. Great. She'd heard that tone of voice before. Unfortunately, she was in no mood for it today. The door burst open and Amber poked her head in.

"Get up! I am not doing this with you today!"

"What the hell! I'm naked! Get out!" Rayanne shrieked, pulling the blankets over herself. As she did so, she realized, with some relief, that she actually had clothes on.

"Oh quit the melodramatics, Rayanne. I'm not buying it. What time did you get home last night?"

"What time did you get home?" Rayanne asked pointedly, rolling onto her knees and putting her hands on her hips. "I didn't see you when I got in."

Something changed in her mother's face. "This isn't about me, I'm the adult here."

"Could've fooled me," she muttered.

"What was that?" Instant sharpening of the tone, like jagged ice.

"Nothing!" Rayanne rolled her eyes and hoisted herself out of bed. "Just don't be a hypocrite. You obviously stayed at Rusty's last night. I don't care. Don't worry, I'm going to school. I have dress rehearsal tonight." She padded past her mother towards the shower.

"Well you're on your own tonight, Missy. I'm staying at Rusty's, incidentally."

"Like I want to hear the details of my mother's sex life!" Rayanne yelled back over her shoulder as she shut the bathroom door.

"Okay kiddo, what is going on here?" she heard her mother's voice through the door.

"Nothing! Everything's fine! I'm just dead tired!" she started the shower, hoping to drown out her mother's questions. Obviously Amber would find out the truth soon enough, but right now, with this fierce hangover about to kick in and a long day ahead of her, she didn't really want to get into it. "I'm just an unstable bitch with no friends," she sing-songed to herself, as she shampooed her hair. "Nobody loves me, it's trueeeee…" she belted out the Portishead song as she rinsed her hair. "Not like you doooooo…" She started to feel a little better, although she was still a bit annoyed that her mom was ditching her for Rusty again tonight. At least it meant she could do whatever she felt like after dress rehearsal. 'Or whoever,' she thought, with a chuckle.

She braided her wet hair and quickly applied some makeup to her face, purposely smudging her eyeliner and curling her lashes like Rickie had taught her. Okay, so maybe Angela hated her, she could be thoughtless and selfish and she was possibly an addict – to adrenaline, to pain, to drama, whatever – but she was still Rayanne Graf, the most fun person she knew. She made things happen, injected some colour into the boring grey of daily living. Not everyone could handle her, but no one could deny that she was an original.

"Okay, I'm ready Mom!" she called out a few short moments later. She was going to miss homeroom but she didn't care, no one would expect her there anyway. She would probably cut most of her classes and work on memorizing her lines today, and she would face the day head-on, whatever happened.

Angela awoke to something bouncing on her bed. "Danielle, quit it!" she called out threateningly, pulling her pillow over her head. The bouncing continued, only harder this time. Whoever was bouncing was too heavy to be her little sister. She whipped the pillow off her head and looked up into a pair of blue eyes, shining with amusement.

"Oh my god, what are you doing here?" she exclaimed, surprised and a bit horrified that Jordan was seeing her first-thing in the morning. Her hair was probably a mess, she had no make-up on and she was wearing the same humongous nightshirt he had seen her in before. She was tempted to put the pillow back over her head.

"Patty said I could come up and wake you," he said, smiling shyly. "I thought it would be a funny surprise or something."

"More like embarrassing," she mumbled, but she smiled, despite herself. Unexpectedly, Jordan lunged at her and pulled her into his arms, holding her close against him. She felt his heart beat against hers as they lay there together for a moment.

"What was that for?" she asked happily, thrilled at the sudden unprovoked gesture. There couldn't be a better way to start the morning.

"Uh, just glad to see you, I guess," he kissed her cheek and pulled away to look into her eyes again. 'I could get lost in those eyes,' she thought dreamily, reaching up to touch his face. He looked tired, but absolutely adorable.

"Angela, time for school! No funny business in there!" Patty chided, lightly tapping on the door, waking them both from their reverie.

"Yes! I'm up, Mom! Thanks!" she dashed up from the bed and opened the door quickly to show that nothing had been going on. Patty smiled at them from the doorway, a bit knowingly.

"Jordan, thanks for waking her up. I knew you would be more successful than I would be. But leave the door open next time," she said in her mock-stern voice. "Now why don't I get you a cup of coffee and something to eat while Angela gets ready."

"I like my coffee black, I think, but sweet," Jordan was saying as they headed down the stairs. Angela smiled, listening to him, then silently thanked her mother for providing the distraction she needed to get on with her day – although she desperately wanted to get ready and look nice, she also knew that she could easily spend the entire day looking into his eyes.

She hadn't expected him this morning, but it had definitely been a welcome surprise. She still wasn't sure sometimes if she was "crowding him" (as he'd said once, which still kind of stung) so she was thrilled that he'd come on his own volition. Hopefully, her family wouldn't be overly embarrassing… She quickly went through her morning routine, showering, brushing her teeth and applying her makeup, then she pulled on her favourite sweater and jeans. She remembered that there was dress rehearsal for the play tonight and last-minute set stuff to do, and Rickie would be counting on her to be there.

When she came down the stairs to the kitchen, she couldn't help but smile at the scene before her. Graham was heaping more food onto Jordan's plate, saying, "Eat! Eat! You're a growing boy," while Danielle read the newspaper to them. Patty was rushing around gathering up papers and file folders, but she seemed a bit more at ease than usual. Angela had the sudden overwhelming urge to kiss both her parents, she was so happy at that moment. Her mom beamed at her.

"Hey honey, do you want some eggs and bacon?" Graham asked as Angela grabbed a carafe of orange juice off the table and poured herself a glass.

"I'll just grab some eggs," she put the orange juice down and headed towards the stove and the pan of eggs. "What are these little things?" She picked up a pastry and sniffed it. There was a tray of them, fresh from the oven.

"Ah yes, those are cheddar and chive scones. I'm trying them out for the brunch buffet. I want everyone to try them and tell me what you think." Angela broke off a piece of one and popped it into her mouth. Her dad had gotten the combination and ratio of ingredients just right. She marveled at how far he had come with his cooking in just the past few months. She'd always known he was talented, but she had never imagined him cooking for anyone other than his family.

"It's great, Dad. I think you got the balance of flavours just right. Here Jordan, try this," she put one on his plate.

"What are those little green things?" he asked.

"They're chives," Graham replied. "They're in the onion family and are sort of like green onions, only smaller and thinner."

"Do you always cook such fancy food for your family?" Jordan asked, in that funny blunt way that he had.

"Dad is opening a restaurant soon," Angela said proudly. "He's testing out all the menus on us."

"Wow, lucky," Jordan sighed. "That was really good."

"You two should probably head to school," Patty came over and started clearing away the breakfast dishes. Angela insisted on helping her, she was elated about how well everything was going. She hadn't known whether her dad would have freaked out or her sister might have said something inappropriate… so many things could have gone wrong and she was relieved that they were acting like normal people today.

"I'm staying after school today, there is some set stuff left to do for the play," Angela said to her mother as they stacked the dishes into the dishwasher.

"Oh remind me to buy tickets," her mother told her enthusiastically. "Your dad and I really want to come."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, seriously. Rayanne's got one of the main roles, doesn't she?" Angela couldn't help but feel a small flicker of annoyance at the mention of her former best friend's name.

"Yeah so?"

"So…" Patty smiled and put her hands on her daughter's shoulders, "I want to support her, and all of you. You're all putting in a lot of hard work. I know she's done some things you're upset with her about…" Angela turned her face away, "but if you were truly friends in the first place, you'll work it out." Patty grabbed her chin in her hand. "It will all be okay."

"Sure, Mom, whatever," Angela turned away again, rolling her eyes as she did so. Why was her mom so naïve sometimes? It was likely going to be impossible to forgive Rayanne. Her actions felt so premeditated, so heartless.

"I know you don't believe me, sweetie, but it's true," Patty said, as if reading her thoughts. "I was young once too, you know."

"Oh Mother…" Angela sighed in mock-annoyance, giving her mother a quick hug. "Please leave me to make my own mistakes." Her mother smiled wistfully at her and playfully tweaked her nose, then said simply, "Call me if you need a ride home."

As if on cue, Jordan appeared in the doorway of the kitchen. He was holding two paper bags in his hands. "Uh Angela, are you ready to go?" Angela nodded, letting go of her mom and making her way towards him, looking at the bags in his hands with curiosity. Jordan thanked Patty for breakfast as they left, looking a bit awkward.

"Anytime, sweetheart," Patty gave him another winning smile, waving as they walked away.

"Did Dad make us lunch?" Angela smiled, walking behind him through the dining room and into the front hallway, grabbing her coat.

"Yeah, they're called paninis. They're Italian. He thinks they're gonna be the next big thing," Jordan handed one of the bags to her as they exited the house towards the car parked outside. He opened the door for her.

As Jordan started the car, Angela breathed an audible sigh of relief. "Phew, that could have been awkward," she said breezily. "I'm sorry you had to be alone with them."

Jordan shrugged. "It was okay. It was like being at my Nona's house, except it was your dad wearing the apron." They both laughed at that moment, catching each other's eyes. "But seriously, it was fine. They're all… nice. And they're normal."

"Sure, whatever," she rolled her eyes. "And embarrassing and strict. I have like no social life on the weekdays because I'm not allowed to do anything. You're probably allowed to do whatever you want." She said this last part without thinking, then realized that she knew basically nothing about his home life, since he never brought it up. There were rumours, of course, but they had never been confirmed and she wasn't prepared to ask. Was it her imagination, or did he suddenly look sad for a second?

"They just probably care about you," he said quietly, his hands on the steering wheel, his fingers tapping lightly to the beat on the radio. Angela was tempted to pull his hand into hers but it seemed more like something she wanted for herself in that moment, so she refrained. She also wanted to ask him why he'd come to pick her up this morning and whether he'd missed her, but she wasn't sure if she would like his answer so once again, she held back.

The rest of the car ride was silent. Jordan seemed lost in his thoughts, although he would occasionally sing along to something on the radio. She loved his voice, the way it was just a bit husky but also sounded natural, like his speaking voice.

When they pulled into the parking lot, Jordan just sat there for a moment with his eyes closed, making no move to get out.

"Are you going in?"

"Probably eventually," he replied, fiddling in his pockets for eye drops or a cigarette, most likely.

"Alright, I'll see you later then," Angela leaned in and kissed his cheek, determined not to be affected by his sudden withdrawal.

"See you," he said, barely turning his head as she left the car. She shut the door a little harder than intended, annoyance taking over. What had happened? She stalked towards the front doors of Liberty High alone, fighting back against the inevitable rush of insecurities and emotions that threatened to overtake her.

Oh drama... please please read & review!

BTW the song that Rayanne is singing in the shower is "Sour Times" by Portishead, released in 1994.