A/N - O. M. G! I sooo didn't mean for it to be this long for me to update.
I've had 11 & 12 written for a bit but...I had to add finishing touches,
edit, proofread with Corel (seeing as how I save on WordPad) and other
stuff...plus, they are both kinda short so....I thought I'd just kind of
add more than two chapters again. Anyhow...Hope ya enjoy!
Ch 11 - Getting Ready To Pack My Bags - 3/20/07 - Sunday - 5:43am
The last few weeks had been nothing for Riley. For the last two months she had dreaded them ever ending. These two months ending meant she was going back. Back to California and back to her parents. She had tried several times to convince her mother but it wasn't happening, and Sarah wouldn't let her daughter talk to David. Riley wasn't going to give up just yet though, she was upstairs in her room at five forty-three in the morning, calling her parents again. She prayed to God that her dad answer the phone.
"Hello?" came the annoyed voice of a man.
Riley's heart jumped. She grinned as she spoke, "Daddy?"
"Riley?" David Brennon sounded surprised.
"Yeah...daddy....I...I wanna...I wanna stay here."
"What?"
"I wanna stay here...with Aunt Marie and Uncle James..."
"Well, honey, I respect that you want to make your own decisions and--"
"If it wasn't for mama, would you let me stay?"
"Well...to be honest....yeah...."
"Will you try and convince mama to let me stay?"
"Riley, I don't know--"
"Daddy! Please! I have friends here! I have a steady boyfriend! Daddy...I don't wanna come back!"
"Riley...."
"Daddy, please..." Riley brought on the fake tears and crying. "I don't....I don't wanna come back...I...I wanna stay."
"I don't think I can change you're mother's mind about this."
"Daddy...please...try...for me?"
"Alright, I'll try but...I don't know...how it will go..."
"Thanks dad...I...If you do this...I'll...I'll visit you when you want...and when I can..."
"Both of us?"
Riley nodded, "Yeah.."
"Alright....I'll try." "Call me?" "Yeah...I'll call you..."
"Thanks daddy.."
And with that, they both hung up. Riley lay sprawled out across her bed and let the phone drop from her grasp. It landed on the ground with a thud and she sighed. "Well....I guess I better get ready to pack my bags..."
~*~*~
3/20/07 - 11:36am
Riley sighed as she watched the clock, waiting for her father to call her. It had just turned 11:37pm. She rolled over on to her back and looked up at the ceiling. Maybe it would pass time quicker. Or maybe it would make it pass slower. She glanced at the clock. She could have sworn her clock said 11:35. "What?" Riley sat up and looked at it again. Nope....still 11:37. "Stupid clock!" She flopped back on her bed with a sigh.
Ray heard Riley yelling at her clock. He raised an eyebrow at her door, which he opened to find his cousin staring at the clock. "Yelling at inanimate objects again?"
"Looking up commodious words in the dictionary again?" Riley shot back.
Ray looked like he was going to respond then stopped, frowning. "What?"
"Commodious words...big words...get it?"
"Ah...ok...whatever."
Riley shook her head, "Whatcha doin?"
"I'm not doing anything....you're yelling at objects I assume?"
"Yeah...waiting for the time to pass....waiting...for my dad to call."
"What?"
"I'm waiting for my dad to call me back..."
"Why?"
"I...kinda called him at five something this morning and asked him to try and convince mom to let me stay..."
"Oh."
"Yeah..."
"So...is that what I heard drop earlier?"
"Probably...when I got off, I fell to the bed and dropped the phone."
"Huh...interesting....I thought it was something in my dream..."
"What were you dreaming about?"
"Eh...nothing in particular..."
If she wasn't mistaken, Riley could have sworn Ray was...embarrassed perhaps was the right word...about his dream. She smirked, but couldn't hold any longer. She started laughing. This caused Ray to glare at her. Riley had turned around and had her head hanging off the foot of the bed, "Whatcha doooin?"
"What?"
"Nevermind....what time is it?"
Ray looked at her clock, "Eleven forty."
Riley slid slowly off the bed and eventually had to go sideways. "Oi! This is going to take forever!"
"When was he supposed to call you?"
"Noon...ish..."
Ray rolled his eyes.
"What?" Riley asked, moving to sit upright.
"Call someone..."
"But my dad might call...."
"And ask them to come over..."
"Oh...ok..."
Ray shook his head and left her room, leaving the door wide open.
"RAY!"
Ray doubled back and closed the door.
"Thank you." Riley said as she picked the phone up off the floor. She called Travis. "Come on....pick up you're phone..."
Travis answered with a, "Hello?", at the same time that Riley said, "Dammit...", thus ensuing a double sound of, "What?...Nevermind."
"Let's start over...I called...it rings..."
"Hello?"
"Hey Travis!"
"Riley..."
"I want you to come over! I need something to pass the time!"
"Why?" "Because...time is slow...and I'm waiting for my--to call." "What?"
"I'm waiting for my--to call....hold that thought, I got a beep." She flashed over to see who was on the other line. "Hello?"
"Riley?"
"Dad...hey..."
"I talked to you're mom..."
"Uh-huh...."
"And...she....."
"Yeah..."
"She....." David liked the image he got in his head of his daughter, waiting impatiently for the verdict.
"Come on, dad! Tell me!"
"She said you can stay.."
"Really?"
"Yeah...she'll even tell you herself."
"Yes...honey...I'm going to let you stay..." Sarah Brennon's voice came over the phone.
"Mama...this is the coolest thing ever! You have got to be the best parents in the world right now!"
You could hear Sarah smiling, "Thanks hun...I want you to call us every weekend...and visit us when you can."
"I will..."
"Ok...well...I'm gonna let you go...we don't need a big long distance bill.."
"Bye mama..." When Riley heard that her mother had hung up, she quickly flashed back over to Travis, "Ya still there?" She asked as she got up and walked down the hall.
"Yeah..." By the time he got the word out of his mouth, Riley had opened the door to Ray's room.
"Good. Meet me at Mickey's..." She pointed at Ray as she said this to her boyfriend.
Ray pointed to himself and mouthed, "You want me to go?"
She nodded furiously at her cousin as Travis said, "Why?"
"Because...I have something really great to tell you!"
"Ok...see you there in a few."
"Bye!" Riley hung up and Ray immediately spoke. "What's going on?"
"Just because you're my cousin doesn't mean you get to find out before everyone else." With that she turned and left his room, dialing another number. By the end, Riley had called Lily and Robbie as well.
"Can..."
"Yes, Robbie, you can bring Kim."
"Alright, see ya.."
~*~
3/20/07 - 1:13am
Ray and Riley were the first two there. They sat in the normal booth in the back. "Come on, Riley!"
"No. You don't have any special family thing where you get to know before everyone else.
Robbie and Kim came in, then Lily, and finally, Travis. They all sat down in the booth, girls on one side, boys on the other, all facing their significant other, of course.
"So, what's going on?" Travis asked.
"Yeah, what's the big news?" came Lily's question.
Robbie spoke next, "What's up, Riley?"
"Yeah, really, I mean, you don't call all of us for nothing." Kim said. Riley had even called her before Robbie could.
"Come on, Riley! Out with it already." Ray was trying to push her to say whatever it was.
"You don't know?" Robbie asked.
"You're her cousin...How do you not know?" Kim asked.
"She wouldn't tell me..." Ray and Kim still despised each other but they kept it to themselves most of the time anymore.
Riley looked around the table at her friends, glanced at Mickey, then, just as all 5 of her friends leaned in for her to say it, she shouted, "I GET TO STAY!"
"What?" Came the chorused response from Travis, Lily, Ray, Robbie, Kim and Mickey.
Riley turned to find Mickey right behind them. "When did you get there?" She shook her head, "Nevermind! It doesn't matter! The point is that I get to stay! I don't have to move back to California!"
There were tons of comments all thrown at her at once. She didn't understand any of them except one, which was only part of it and from Travis. "That's great! Do you know what this--" And he was drowned out by everyone else, who were all drowned out by one another. Riley laughed at them. "And I thought I was surprised."
~*~*~*~ A/N - Ok...So maybe I got to it a bit quickly...her staying an all....but, oh well! Review and I'll give you a cookie!
Ch 11 - Getting Ready To Pack My Bags - 3/20/07 - Sunday - 5:43am
The last few weeks had been nothing for Riley. For the last two months she had dreaded them ever ending. These two months ending meant she was going back. Back to California and back to her parents. She had tried several times to convince her mother but it wasn't happening, and Sarah wouldn't let her daughter talk to David. Riley wasn't going to give up just yet though, she was upstairs in her room at five forty-three in the morning, calling her parents again. She prayed to God that her dad answer the phone.
"Hello?" came the annoyed voice of a man.
Riley's heart jumped. She grinned as she spoke, "Daddy?"
"Riley?" David Brennon sounded surprised.
"Yeah...daddy....I...I wanna...I wanna stay here."
"What?"
"I wanna stay here...with Aunt Marie and Uncle James..."
"Well, honey, I respect that you want to make your own decisions and--"
"If it wasn't for mama, would you let me stay?"
"Well...to be honest....yeah...."
"Will you try and convince mama to let me stay?"
"Riley, I don't know--"
"Daddy! Please! I have friends here! I have a steady boyfriend! Daddy...I don't wanna come back!"
"Riley...."
"Daddy, please..." Riley brought on the fake tears and crying. "I don't....I don't wanna come back...I...I wanna stay."
"I don't think I can change you're mother's mind about this."
"Daddy...please...try...for me?"
"Alright, I'll try but...I don't know...how it will go..."
"Thanks dad...I...If you do this...I'll...I'll visit you when you want...and when I can..."
"Both of us?"
Riley nodded, "Yeah.."
"Alright....I'll try." "Call me?" "Yeah...I'll call you..."
"Thanks daddy.."
And with that, they both hung up. Riley lay sprawled out across her bed and let the phone drop from her grasp. It landed on the ground with a thud and she sighed. "Well....I guess I better get ready to pack my bags..."
~*~*~
3/20/07 - 11:36am
Riley sighed as she watched the clock, waiting for her father to call her. It had just turned 11:37pm. She rolled over on to her back and looked up at the ceiling. Maybe it would pass time quicker. Or maybe it would make it pass slower. She glanced at the clock. She could have sworn her clock said 11:35. "What?" Riley sat up and looked at it again. Nope....still 11:37. "Stupid clock!" She flopped back on her bed with a sigh.
Ray heard Riley yelling at her clock. He raised an eyebrow at her door, which he opened to find his cousin staring at the clock. "Yelling at inanimate objects again?"
"Looking up commodious words in the dictionary again?" Riley shot back.
Ray looked like he was going to respond then stopped, frowning. "What?"
"Commodious words...big words...get it?"
"Ah...ok...whatever."
Riley shook her head, "Whatcha doin?"
"I'm not doing anything....you're yelling at objects I assume?"
"Yeah...waiting for the time to pass....waiting...for my dad to call."
"What?"
"I'm waiting for my dad to call me back..."
"Why?"
"I...kinda called him at five something this morning and asked him to try and convince mom to let me stay..."
"Oh."
"Yeah..."
"So...is that what I heard drop earlier?"
"Probably...when I got off, I fell to the bed and dropped the phone."
"Huh...interesting....I thought it was something in my dream..."
"What were you dreaming about?"
"Eh...nothing in particular..."
If she wasn't mistaken, Riley could have sworn Ray was...embarrassed perhaps was the right word...about his dream. She smirked, but couldn't hold any longer. She started laughing. This caused Ray to glare at her. Riley had turned around and had her head hanging off the foot of the bed, "Whatcha doooin?"
"What?"
"Nevermind....what time is it?"
Ray looked at her clock, "Eleven forty."
Riley slid slowly off the bed and eventually had to go sideways. "Oi! This is going to take forever!"
"When was he supposed to call you?"
"Noon...ish..."
Ray rolled his eyes.
"What?" Riley asked, moving to sit upright.
"Call someone..."
"But my dad might call...."
"And ask them to come over..."
"Oh...ok..."
Ray shook his head and left her room, leaving the door wide open.
"RAY!"
Ray doubled back and closed the door.
"Thank you." Riley said as she picked the phone up off the floor. She called Travis. "Come on....pick up you're phone..."
Travis answered with a, "Hello?", at the same time that Riley said, "Dammit...", thus ensuing a double sound of, "What?...Nevermind."
"Let's start over...I called...it rings..."
"Hello?"
"Hey Travis!"
"Riley..."
"I want you to come over! I need something to pass the time!"
"Why?" "Because...time is slow...and I'm waiting for my--to call." "What?"
"I'm waiting for my--to call....hold that thought, I got a beep." She flashed over to see who was on the other line. "Hello?"
"Riley?"
"Dad...hey..."
"I talked to you're mom..."
"Uh-huh...."
"And...she....."
"Yeah..."
"She....." David liked the image he got in his head of his daughter, waiting impatiently for the verdict.
"Come on, dad! Tell me!"
"She said you can stay.."
"Really?"
"Yeah...she'll even tell you herself."
"Yes...honey...I'm going to let you stay..." Sarah Brennon's voice came over the phone.
"Mama...this is the coolest thing ever! You have got to be the best parents in the world right now!"
You could hear Sarah smiling, "Thanks hun...I want you to call us every weekend...and visit us when you can."
"I will..."
"Ok...well...I'm gonna let you go...we don't need a big long distance bill.."
"Bye mama..." When Riley heard that her mother had hung up, she quickly flashed back over to Travis, "Ya still there?" She asked as she got up and walked down the hall.
"Yeah..." By the time he got the word out of his mouth, Riley had opened the door to Ray's room.
"Good. Meet me at Mickey's..." She pointed at Ray as she said this to her boyfriend.
Ray pointed to himself and mouthed, "You want me to go?"
She nodded furiously at her cousin as Travis said, "Why?"
"Because...I have something really great to tell you!"
"Ok...see you there in a few."
"Bye!" Riley hung up and Ray immediately spoke. "What's going on?"
"Just because you're my cousin doesn't mean you get to find out before everyone else." With that she turned and left his room, dialing another number. By the end, Riley had called Lily and Robbie as well.
"Can..."
"Yes, Robbie, you can bring Kim."
"Alright, see ya.."
~*~
3/20/07 - 1:13am
Ray and Riley were the first two there. They sat in the normal booth in the back. "Come on, Riley!"
"No. You don't have any special family thing where you get to know before everyone else.
Robbie and Kim came in, then Lily, and finally, Travis. They all sat down in the booth, girls on one side, boys on the other, all facing their significant other, of course.
"So, what's going on?" Travis asked.
"Yeah, what's the big news?" came Lily's question.
Robbie spoke next, "What's up, Riley?"
"Yeah, really, I mean, you don't call all of us for nothing." Kim said. Riley had even called her before Robbie could.
"Come on, Riley! Out with it already." Ray was trying to push her to say whatever it was.
"You don't know?" Robbie asked.
"You're her cousin...How do you not know?" Kim asked.
"She wouldn't tell me..." Ray and Kim still despised each other but they kept it to themselves most of the time anymore.
Riley looked around the table at her friends, glanced at Mickey, then, just as all 5 of her friends leaned in for her to say it, she shouted, "I GET TO STAY!"
"What?" Came the chorused response from Travis, Lily, Ray, Robbie, Kim and Mickey.
Riley turned to find Mickey right behind them. "When did you get there?" She shook her head, "Nevermind! It doesn't matter! The point is that I get to stay! I don't have to move back to California!"
There were tons of comments all thrown at her at once. She didn't understand any of them except one, which was only part of it and from Travis. "That's great! Do you know what this--" And he was drowned out by everyone else, who were all drowned out by one another. Riley laughed at them. "And I thought I was surprised."
~*~*~*~ A/N - Ok...So maybe I got to it a bit quickly...her staying an all....but, oh well! Review and I'll give you a cookie!