Disclaimer: I don't own anything! It's all property of S.M.
By the time Friday came around, I was already exhausted.
When school was over, I already had two essays, a lab report, and a novel to finish off. And it was only the first week of school. I had barely gotten any sleep the night before, and Evelyn, Jeremy and I were taking Rani out tonight. I was so tired, and my bag was so heavy it was tipping me over when I walked out of the school and towards Quil's car. He saw me stumbling, and jumped out of the car to help me.
"Man, they really don't take senior year lightly," I said to him as he took my bag off my shoulder. With the weight suddenly lifted, I got my sense of balance messed up and walked right into him.
"Whoaa, you okay there?" he asked, putting his arm around my waist to steady me. As it always did when he touched me, my stomach began to flutter.
I mumbled "yeah" looking down at the floor. As we walked towards the car, I noticed his arm stayed exactly where it was.
After a night of partying with our high school students, Evelyn and I came home around 3:30 AM feeling deader than ever.
"Ugh I can't believe I have to wake up at 7:00 tommorow," Evelyn groaned as she climbed into the bed.
I shrugged at her before turning out the light. "That's what you get for forgetting your keys at home."
"My dad will kill me if he catches me sneaking in at his hour. You know that. So what am I supposed to do?"
I said nothing, just climbed in the bed beside her. Thanks to the moonlight floating in through my windows, I could still see everything around me.
"At least you can go home and go back to bed. I have to help set up for the engagement party tomorrow," I complained.
"You're coming, right?" I asked after a few minutes.
Evelyn, already half asleep, nodded with her eyes closed and mumbled something incoherent.
I shoved her.
"I said, Embry gave Jeremy an invitation last week, and he asked me to be his date," she told me again, louder this time.
"Date?" I asked. Her eyes flew open and found mine.
"Yeah," she said cautiously.
I took a deep breath. "Ev, are you really going down this road again?"
"It's not the same. Things are different this time," she decided after a pause.
"Who are you convincing? You break his heart every few months. Isn't it time to move on."
She pulled a pillow over her head and turned her back to me.
"It's too late for this conversation. Can we please talk about this tomorrow?"
"Okay. But we WILL talk about it," I said, succumbing to my exhaustion and falling asleep.
I'm awoken at 7:30 the next morning by aunt Emily.
"Hey hon. Breakfast is on the table. Eat something, and then come straight to the hotel to help set up, okay?"
I nod and close my eyes again, until I hear her car pull out of the driveway. Next to me, there's a note lying on the bed.
Hey,
As in your normal fashion, you sleep like a dead person. But HA HA Emily said you have to go help set up. So there. I'll come by later to help you get ready, kay?
Evelyn
She had, in her typical manner, ended the note with a smiley face and heart next to her fancy signature.
I smiled and got out of bed to get ready. I put my hair up in the highest ponytail possible and didn't bother putting on any make-up, knowing it would sweat off anyway.
Ten ridiculously strong wolves and they want a 17 year old girl with no muscle content to help them out.
By the time I got to the hotel, all the women except June were already setting up. The party was to be held in the nicest hotel on the reservation, whose rooftop garden overlooked the beach. It didn't hurt that the hotel was owned by Evelyn's father, who allowed us the garden at nearly half the price.
Tables were being put down by the Leah and Sam, the only guy there. Honor and Emily were helping put down the chairs around said tables. Sharon was holding a clipboard over her large, pregnant belly and instructing Kim on how to lay out the bar. Rachel was hanging decorations around the door and was the only one working alone, so I asked her if she needed help.
"Oh good, you're finally here. Can you…" she looked around, assessing what had yet to be completed. "There," she said pointing to the railing around three sides of the rooftop. "Can you hang the silver twinkly lights around all three sides?"
I picked up the lights and headed to start my work. Hanging lights was unfortunately the kind of work that kept only my hands busy. Every time I circled, the only thing coming through my brain was Quil.
Quil Quil Quil Quil Quil.
Before I left to go out with my friends last night, he had sent me a text message.
C-
Have fun tonight. Be careful
How does he always manage to do this to me? I'm supposed to be mad at him, but one text message and it's all okay.
When the first side was done, I moved on to the middle railing, the one facing the ocean. I was hit with a memory of the last party we had all gone to.
At Leah's wedding, everything was perfect. It was normal! I was 14, and Quil was….I actually didn't know how old.
He'd been my "date", and we had danced with me standing on his toes like a little girl. It was so easy. There was no confusion, no secrets, no random feeling popping up out of nowhere.
This was how I spend the next few hours. Just thinking about Quil, and how easy it was, and his eyes, and his body, and his….
"Claire!"
I jumped, and dropped the string of lights I'd been putting up. They fell down two stories and hit the sand on the beach with a thump.
I sighed, and turned around. Rachel gave me an apologetic look and said "Sorry about that. But after your done with those, you can go home. What's taking you so long anyway?"
I looked around the garden. It was almost complete, with the exception of tablecloths and flowers being put up. Everyone had left except for Rachel and Kim, and within my daze I'd done absolutely nothing.
I apologized to her and said I'd be gone as soon as I'd finished