Tuesday morning I roll over, and come face to face with a snoring Callie. I try to remember whose Idea it was the four of us share a room.
I sit up and look at the clock, its 4 in the morning. A bad feeling what woke me up. Callie is fine; obviously, her snoring is loud enough to wake a small country. Mari and Sarah are curled up together, like they always do when they get cold. I sigh and grab my jacket, walking toward the door. I walk down the hall, hands in my pockets, heading for the vending machine. It's been a long time since I woke up from a bad feeling. The next day Cal fell down a flight of stairs. It was bad. All of us spent hours in the ER. To afraid to leave her.
I lean against a wall, staring at the soda choices.
"I don't know why you're wasting your time standing there debating." I turn and see Randy standing there. "We all know when you wake up from something you always go for the Mountain Dew." He walks over and wraps his arms around my shoulders and pulls me against him. "Come on Princess, tell me what woke you up, I'll even spring for the soda myself."
I cuddle myself into his arms. "A bad feeling. Which sounds dumb."
He pushes the button for my soda, and leads me down the hall to a little lounge area. "Kai, those bad feelings have always come true in the end for you. The time Cal fell down those stairs, when I broke my arm. The time dad got hurt in ring." He pauses as I take a drink. "You checked on the girls?"
I nod, "Everyone but Nol."
Randy laughs, "She's okay, curled up in bed possibly noticing that my spot is cooler than it should be."
Curling up against him I realize this has never changed. Randy has always been able to tell when I was upset. The night Cal fell, Randy called me. Maybe we never lived together, but he had that ability to know. His mom and our dad were high school sweethearts, she was pregnant when they graduated, never told dad. She went on to marry Bob Orton, and after having Randy, Bob urged her to tell Dad. He always made sure he and I knew each other, it was important to him, that we have some sort of relationship.
"Rand, do you know how Dad is?" I ask softly, laying my head on his shoulder.
"Randall isn't the only one who knows when your upset little one." Dad's voice says from behind us. He walks over and sits in front of us. "Even when you were a baby you always had this problem. You would wake up crying and not quit until I held you. Steph could never calm you down. Ever." He reaches for one of my hands. "Just a reminder, you are not alone. Sotora (Sora), Jezabel (Mari), and Callie will be here no matter what. And us. Your okay, baby girl."
I nod, and smile at them both.
Storyline might have been able to taken them from me, not just for work, but in public too. But this proves that they will never take them from me when I really need them.
