Hey guys, thanks for all your R/R's. keep em coming. Enjoy. Luv, Steph
Riley lay sprawled across the new lilac duvet, on her bed, covering various school notebooks with the words "Riley 4 Mark". The infamous schoolgirl tradition made her smile, as she gazed around her and Chloe's newly decorated room. It had been a few months now since the girls had opted for a more mature style in their bedroom. They'd traded in the hot pink walls and neon green bed covers for pale pinks and soft blues. Various lavender trinkets sat on the desks and dressers; famous prints had taken the place of wall – hung Josh Hartnett posters. (Of course, these were still visible, but they'd been tacked to a sage bulletin board, in more of a collage fashion.) The slightly ruffled curtains also added their own "something" to the room, but they were used sparingly, just enough to soften their gray hues. Overall, there was a sufficient use of pastel and frill to make the room look more grown – up and romantic, without making it seem, as Chloe often put it, "babyfied". Right now the room appealed to Riley's mood. It's dreamy romance only seemed to accentuate Riley's disposition and she sat anxiously by the phone, waiting for it to ring.
Just then, Chloe rushed into the room, her arms full of books, all of which were about to tumble to the floor. Riley jumped off the bed and grabbed half of the pile of books, somewhat freeing her sister's hands. "Jeez!" Riley whined. "What's with all the books Chlo?"
"Nothing much, just a few books I picked up at the library – You see I finished, like all of my homework – and I wanted to start my research for Mr. Wilson's term paper – I was there all afternoon and I…"
"Chloe, you're rambling! And, you're supposed to breathe between sentences." Riley rolled her eyes, and then suddenly fixed her gaze on Chloe. "Did you say you were researching Wilson's term paper? The same paper that you have, like, a whole month to write?"
"Yeah," Chloe replied cheerfully, having regained her breath. "I went to the library after school and finished piles and piles of work that I had to do. Then I gathered research materials for my term paper," she pointed at the towering stack of books, she'd placed on her desk, "and I thought, "Hey why not get a head start." Then, as I was leaving I bumped into Cammie and she was all, "Oh my God, I'm going to fail my algebra test tomorrow!" So, I stayed late and helped her study, before I dropped her off at work and then I came home."
"Well, looks like someone's had a very productive evening." Riley smiled, but was inwardly wondering about Chloe's overly energetic mood.
"Yeah, and it's like not even seven o' clock. I'm going to go for a jog on the beach – I just love the sunset and the dolphins – and then I'll grab a quick shower, because I'm heading down to the Newstand to pick up Cammie. I'm giving her a ride to this party – her mom is using the car – and you know what, I've just got so much oomph tonight, that I think I might stay and "PAR – TAY" for awhile, myself." She stopped and took another deep breath. "So, you wanna come?"
Riley gaped at her sister, knowing something was wrong, but not knowing what. She knew that Chloe's incredibly busy schedule had been causing her major anxiety lately, but she was surprised to see her so – hyper; that was the best word to describe it. It was an extreme opposite of the dreary mood she had been in this morning and Riley made a mental note, to herself. Lately, Chloe had been having frequent mood swings, but nothing as dramatic as this. She wondered what it was that had caused the sudden change, but decided against interrogating her sister. She didn't want to take the chance of spoiling Chloe's good spirits; she figured she could check some things out while Chloe went to her party. (By now, all daydreams and anticipation about Mark Richardson had been put on the back – burner, and were being replaced by Riley's growing worries.)
"Riley!" Riley's head snapped upwards. Chloe had interrupted her train of thought. "Huh?" Riley asked.
"Well, are you coming or not?" her sister repeated anxiously.
"Oh no…I've got – stuff, to do…for school. You go ahead. Have an extra good time for me." She flashed her sister a smile, as Chloe grabbed a pink, hooded sweatshirt and headed out the door. "Be home by 11 Chloe, or mom will be on your case."
And with that Chloe left, waving a disinterested hand in the air, and leaving a suspicious Riley home alone.