Chapter 11!

Ok, I'm sitting in my bed because I'm sick. I decided heck why not write some more. My dad told me not to get on the computer but oh well. So here you go!
Emily tossed and turned on her bed. She wasn't in a nightmare this time, but instead trying to decipher the information about Chad. Emily found herself, yet again, arguing with herself.

'He wouldn't do that!'

'But it certainly looked like he was.'

'Oh shut up. He would not be with that know-it-all Taylor.'

'They certainly were close.'

'How do you know? You weren't even there!'

'Yeah, neither were you!'

"Oh my gosh! What is wrong with me?!" Emily plopped her head into the pillow. "I can't believe I'm fighting with myself…and I can't even win!" She spoke into the pillow.

Emily sighed as her cell phone rang beside her. She held the phone above her head – without moving her face from the pillow – and answered then quickly hung up. Two minutes later, the phone rang again.

"Go away." Emily groaned to the phone. She rolled over, squinting her eyes. The phone kept ringing. 'Of course it's going to keep ringing. It's an inanimate object!' She picked up the cell phone and put it to her ear.

"Yes?"

"What kind of greeting is that for your lovely boyfriend?" Chad's voice sounded from the other line.

Emily paled. She didn't want to talk to him. She had no feeling to talk to him. "What have you done lately to make you so lovely?" She said half-teasing.

"Hmm, well I did give you the last cookie Zeke baked." Chad didn't like the fact that Zeke baked, but he did enjoy the by-products of Zeke's hobby.

"Very true," she commented. 'What was I thinking? Chad wouldn't cheat on me. He's not that kind of guy.'

"Something wrong, Emster?" He broke the silence they were sharing.

"I'm just tired, that's all." Emily rubbed her eyes.

"Nightmares again?" His voice laced with worry.

Emily just sighed. She was asked this question so many times a day now, that she didn't even see the point in answering.

"I'll let you go then. You need your rest."

"Ok. Bye." Emily hung up before he could reply. Her eyes didn't leave the phone for a moment. Finally, she rolled right back over with her head in her pillow.

She sat in silence for approximately ten minutes, and then her phone rang. Emily groaned before answering the phone.

"What do you want?" her monotone voice rang.

"Em, Chad just called me. He's worried about you."

"Sadie, he's always worried about me." Emily rolled her eyes.

"He said you seemed distant. This wouldn't have anything to do with that McKessie girl would it?" Sadie ignored Emily.

"Sadie--"

"Because you know, Nat and I aren't always right. We could have easily been wrong."

"Sadie--"

"So really, you shouldn't jump to conclusions. I mean he could have just been asking for help for homework or something." She kept going.

"SADIE!"

"Oh, I'm sorry…were you saying something?"

"Yeah, kinda!" Emily practically yelled.

"Oh, keep going then."

"Well as I was saying, I'm just tired." Emily felt like going and banging her head on something hard.

"Nightmares again?" Sadie replied.

"I'm going to bed now, Sadie." Emily sighed.

"You sure you'll be alright?"

"I'm going to bed now."

"Ok. You sure you'll be alright?"

"Goodnight, Sadie." Emily's voice was filled with agitation.

"If you get scared call me!"

"Goodnight, Sadie."

"Goodnight." Sadie's voice was filled with defeat.

Emily hung up again. She drew her knees up to her chest and hit her head on her kneecaps. "Shoot me now." She mumbled.

"Rather not do that." Troy stood in the doorway. His arms were folded across his chest and he was leaning against the door frame.

"Go away." Emily grumbled.

"Ooh, someone's crabby." He teased.

"I'm not in the mood, Troy."

"Come on. Lighten up." He ran and jumped, landing next to his sister.

"I'm serious, Troy."

Troy ignored her and began to tickle her. She kicked and hollered, but she wasn't laughing.

"Troy, stop it! STOP IT!" Emily thrashed around. Troy stopped.

"Em, what's wrong?"

"I'm just tired, okay?" Emily rubbed her eyes.

"Nightmares again?" He leaned back on her bed, using his elbows to prop him up.

Emily gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. 'Why can't they just leave me alone?' She thought. "Long day." She managed to get out.

"Ok, I get the hint. I'm going." Troy stood up and walked out the door, but his concerns still weren't gone.

Emily moved back to her original position. Her phone rang…again.

"What?" She said angrily.

"Hello, there." A cheerful voice wafted from the ear piece.

"Jason, go away!" She groaned.

"Nope. I can't."

"And why is that?"

"Because, Chad's worried about you."

"Tell me something I don't know, Jason." Emily was getting sick of these phone calls. 'Is twenty minutes of silence too much to ask for?' She thought.

"Come on, Em. You need to talk to us."

"I already talked! Now, I just get asked questions over and over! I wish people would stop treating me different and just leave me alone! I'm fine, okay?" Emily was met with silence on the other end.

"You sound crabby. Are you having those nightmares again?" Jason remarked after a while.

"Goodnight, Jason." Emily replied with gritted teeth. She pressed the 'End' button on the phone and tossed it to the end of the bed. Two minutes later, she heard the familiar ring of her cell phone.

"Go away." She answered the phone.

"Why, what a cheerful greeting."

"I mean it: go away."

"You know you love talking to me." Zeke's voice called from the other line.

"Don't you have something to bake?"

"Nope, I'm full of free time. So why don't you tell me what's going on with you and Chad?"

"What's he doing? Starting a phone chain?!"

"No. Well, I don't know considering I don't know what a phone chain is, but whatever." ' Zeke is so oblivious.' Emily thought.

"I'm just tired." Emily answered.

"Nightmares again?"

"Goodbye." She hung up. 'This is getting really old.' She thought. She walked over to her desk and took out a pen and paper.

Leaving

It doesn't matter what you do

It doesn't matter what you say

When you leave, you leave

And that pain never goes away

Emily crumpled the paper into a ball and threw it randomly out into the room. She took out another sheet of paper. After another dozen crumpled pages – all in only five minutes – her cell phone rang again. Emily screamed in frustration and pounded her head on the table.

"What do you people want from me?!"

"Um, the Algebra 2 answers?" Nat said in a confused tone.

"Oh, hey, Nat." Emily gave her the homework answers and they had a nice little chat. All about normal stuff, too.

"Well, I'm going to go. I'm really tired." Emily concluded.

"Ooh, those nightmares again?"

"I hate you."

"Love you, too! Goodnight!" Natalie hung up. Emily took her battery out of her cell phone. 'There, no more calls tonight.' she thought.

Emily looked at the clock: 11:28. She groaned, rolled her eyes, and let herself fall back on the bed.

Emily walked up to school without Troy. He had gone to practice before school with Gabriella in the music room. She had heard parts of the song when Troy would sing them under his breath, but he rarely did this. Their father still hadn't completely approved of the singing, and Troy thought it was best not to mention it.

She saw Chad walking up the front steps. Emily was about to talk over to him, when an intelligent looking girl walked up to him. Taylor McKessie.

"They were right." She said to herself.

"Who was right?" Natalie's voice was loud.

"Nat! Shush!" Emily pointed to the direction Chad and Taylor were talking.

Natalie and Emily watched intently, almost as if it were one of the Wildcats' Basketball games. Taylor and Chad's conversation didn't last very long, but they did get pretty close while they talked.

"What do I do now?" Emily sank against her locker after they walked inside.

"About what?" Sadie walked up to her locker and opened it.

"Chad and Taylor were talking outside again." Natalie informed her.

"Again?" Sadie questioned.

"Dump him." Natalie said simply.

"WHAT?!" Sadie and Emily responded together.

"Dump him before he dumps you. It saves you a bunch of embarrassment."

"Natalie, that's horrible advice!" Sadie's voice practically echoed through the halls.

"Why? Because I want to save my friend some humiliation?"

"No, because he could not be cheating on her! We could be wrong! She should talk to him."

"No, dump him."

"Talk to him."

"Dump him!"

"Talk to him!"

"ENOUGH ALREADY!" Emily screamed at them. She grabbed her messenger bag and went searching for the music room. She needed to find Gabriella. She would know what to do.

She reached the music room, but it was locked. Emily placed her ear to the door. No sound came out. 'They must already be finished.' She thought.

Emily glanced to her side and saw Chad's familiar outline walking down the hall. She quickly turned the other way, trying to make it out before he saw her.

"Emster?"

She froze and winced. She knew what she had to do, but she didn't want to do it just this second.

Cliffhangers! I love them! Don't you? (What world do you live in, Allyn? -Jordan)

Review :-) (Finally, peace and quiet with my cookies! -Jordan)