CHAPTER TEN
(chapter title - Questions and Answers)

"What the hell are you doing here?" John inquired, breaking away from the hug. Hannah looked down at the ground as Jules stroked her dark hair.

"I-I quit school." Hannah whispered, keeping her head down.

"Why?" Jules asked, putting an arm around Hannah's shoulders. Hannah shook her head and continued to look down at the ground. Jules put a hand under Hannah's chin and lifted it up so that she could see Hannah's face. She could tell that the younger girl had been crying.

"You can tell us, Hannah. It's okay." John told his childhood friend. She sighed and walked over to the table where Jules and John's laptops were set up. Jules pulled up an extra chair from a table nearby and set it next to where she was sitting. Hannah sat down while John went to get them more Cokes.

"Tell me what's wrong, sweetie." Jules said in a soothing, motherly voice.

"M-my classes were just too fucking hard." Hannah told her, tears coming to her eyes. Jules scooted her chair closer and hugged Hannah close to her.

"Do Anna and your moms know about you quitting school?" John asked, entering with three Cokes. Hannah shook her head as John handed her a Coke.

"You have to tell them, sweetie." Jules told her friend, smiling as John handed her a Coke and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. Jules shook her head as John sat next to her.

"It's okay." Hannah told them, taking a small sip of her Coke.

"Do you want to talk about why you left school?" John asked. Hannah sighed and nodded.

"It was after my business class…" Hannah began.

"Ms. Johnson-Jefferson, I need you to stay behind after class." Professor DeVaney told her, his voice firm. Hannah nodded as the bell rang for class to end. Anna motioned for her sister to come, but Hannah shook her head.

"Yes, Professor DeVaney?" Hannah asked the young intern, walking to his desk.

"Have a seat." He indicated to a chair in front of his desk. Hannah sat down and folded her arms across her chest.

"Why didn't you discuss your essay on The Importance of Philosophy with the rest of the class?" DeVaney asked.

"B-because I didn't do it." Hannah whispered.

"And why didn't you do it?" DeVaney inquired, adjusting his glasses.

"I was out with my friends." Hannah told him.

"So, you decided that instead of doing the essay I assigned you, you decide to go out with your friends, am I right?" DeVaney questioned. Hannah just nodded and looked at the floor.

"Please look at me while I'm talking to you." DeVaney snapped, startling Hannah. She jerked her head up and looked at the young intern's face.

"I'm going to give you another chance to write your essay. I want it in my hand by Friday - that gives you four days. I usually don't do this for any other student, so don't tell anyone, okay?" DeVaney sighed, stood up and went to the board to write down the assignment. Hannah saw Anna out of the corner of her eye, leaning against the frame of the doorway, arms folded across her light blue shirt, an angry glare sparked across her face.

"You're free to go." DeVaney said as the students for his next class filed in. Hannah quickly gathered her schoolbag and quickly walked passed Anna. She ran to her car in the student parking lot and turned on the ignition. As she headed towards the MSU campus, she put in her Fiddler on the Roof soundtrack and sang along with it as she drove.

"So, you didn't even bother to say goodbye to Anna or call your moms to let them know you were coming?" Jules inquired, standing up and throwing her Coke cup away. John was packing up their laptops so that they could go back to the dorms so that they could catch a movie with Adam. He was still depressed that Eileen was in the hospital, so the three of them were gonna try to see a comedy - most likely Over the Hedge or Cars, whichever they were in the mood for.

"No, and I feel horrible about it." Hannah answered, hanging her head in shame. Jules patted her back as John handed Jules her laptop bag.

"We ready?" John asked, digging his car keys out of his jacket pocket. The girls nodded and followed him out the door.

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Adam was waiting for the four of them when they reached the dorms. As he climbed in the back, he noticed Hannah sitting in the backseat.

"Dude, this is our friend, Hannah. Hannah, this is Adam Evans, my roommate." John introduced his friends.

"Nice to meet you, Hannah." Adam greeted her as he sat behind John.

"Nice to meet you, too." Hannah mumbled, looking out the window. John looked in the rearview mirror and shook his head. Adam nodded and talked with John and Jules about how Eileen was doing.

"As far as I know, she's doing okay. Dad, mom and Caitlyn flew home at five, so I had to drive them to the airport. Uncle Roger is staying until tomorrow and then he's flying back." John informed him.

"Hannah, we're going horseback riding this weekend. Wanna come?" Jules asked as they pulled into NCG cinema.

"Umm, can I get back to you on that, Jules? I wanna see Eileen sometime while I'm here." Hannah said, still looking out the window.

"Sure - that's fine." Jules told her, sighing and getting out of the car.

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After the movie, John, Jules, Adam and Hannah were arguing all the way back to the car. They had decided to see X-Men 3.

"Storm is so cool!" Hannah said.

"No way! Wolverine is the bomb!" John argued.

"I would love to have Angel's power! The ability to fly could come in handy some day." Jules chimed in.

"I personally think that Cyclops is the coolest mutant." Adam piped up, opening the car door for Hannah. She smiled and climbed in behind Jules.

"Dude, how come your girlfriend gets to sit in front?" Adam asked jokingly, sitting behind his roommate.

"Dude, cause I've known her all my life and I've only known you a short time. Ya gotta earn it, dude." John answered. Jules and Hannah quietly giggled as they drove back to the dorms.

"I'm hungry. The only thing I've had to eat all day today is a pizza roll." Hannah announced when they were almost to the dorms. John laughed and pulled into an Arby's drive-thru.

"What do you want, Hannah?" John inquired, pulling up to the window.

"Just some curly fries and a medium Coke." Hannah answered, getting her wallet out.

"That's not very healthy." Adam teased. Hannah laughed as she handed John a five from her wallet.

"Adam's right, Hannah. You need something healthier." Jules added, her tone serious. "I'll make you a salad when we get back to my dorm room." she added, putting a hand on top of John's. He smiled and gave her a quick peck on the cheek.

"So, Adam, tell me about yourself." Hannah said, turning towards Adam so that she could see him better.

"Well, I was born and raised in Dansville. My older sister, Lynn, raised horses, mostly Thoroughbreds and Arabians. I showed my Thoroughbred gelding, Camera Man, in the Ingham County Fair. When I was thirteen, my family and I moved to East Lansing where I attended MacDonald Middle School. I graduated from East Lansing High School in 2012 and got accepted to Michigan State University through the acting scholarship." Adam told her.

"Wow - that must've been fun, having a brother and sister to hang out with." Jules said, handing Hannah her fries and Coke. Hannah smiled and took a long sip of her Coke.

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Later that night, Jules was asleep in her dorm when the phone rang. Rachael, Melanie and April were fast asleep, so the call didn't annoy them like last time.

"Hello?" Jules croaked into the phone.

"Jules? It's Joanne. Is Hannah there?" Joanne's voice sounded panicky.

"She's at the motel with dad." Jules answered sleepily.

"I just called there and your dad said that she was with you."

"Shit." Jules whispered, sitting up in bed.

"Do you know where she might be?" Joanne inquired.

"No clue." Jules looked at the clock - 2:45 AM. "She might've headed back to school."

"At a quarter to three in the morning?"

"I don't know what to tell you, Joanne." Jules answered.

"Let me know if you hear from her, okay?"

"I will, don't worry." Jules yawned and hung up the phone. Pulling Twiggy near her, she closed her eyes and fell back asleep.