Part 14: The Edge of Seventeen
A/N: Hello, ALL! Yes, yes, I know...it took me FOREVER to update. Kind of gives you the impression that I stopped writing...I know, I'm horrible. And then, when you open your email, and it says, "Update", you cry in joy and click on the link to read the new chapter. Hahaha! Yes, I know the way you all are.
ANYWAY, NOTES TO REVIEWERS/FRIENDSES:
KIKI: Yes, yes. I'm a very slow writer. Just kidding. I tend to write this very fast, but I'm always doing some retarded editing, and...well, I don't know...You were so right about that whole "When in doubt, write about his dead daddy". LOL.
TRINITY: Yeah, I saw Venus. And, soon, I'll see...the episode the comes after Venus...and stuff...I don't know. I started the chapter before I watched Venus, and then I finished it after I watched it. Um...I'm pretty sure pot's legal in Canada...last I heard, anyway. Yes, more Craig dreams...yes.
CRASHETBURN: Hm. Not much to say to you, really. But don't worry, that's not a bad thing. Yeah, the producers Degrassi are all like, "Oh, well, Craig should be with Manny, make it intense, blah blah blah blah blah." Somehow, I think that Cralex would be better to make it 'intense' because...well, that's just the way I think.
ONTO THE STORY! WAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Craig returned home late from the old house. Joey wasn't up, and that was a good thing...for now. He knew Joey wasn't asleep; he never was when Craig went out with his friends, and now he was home late, and that wasn't going to end good. Nonetheless, Craig went up to his room and quietly closed the door.
He took his shoes and jacket off and crawled into bed. Now, he was tired, and he would deal with Joey in the morning. He was sure that Joey would deal with him in the morning as well, and he was not prepared with a story to get him out of the trouble he'd gotten himself into. His friends were obviously getting irritated with him because he was always hanging out with Jay. He ran off from the movie theater and got high with him, and he was sure that they weren't going to back up his story now.
The next morning, Craig woke up and took a shower. He was still putting off going downstairs and lying to Joey. But when the water turned cold, he had no choice. He got dressed and went downstairs to the kitchen, where Joey was sitting, sipping coffee. Joey was quiet for a few minutes before looking up from his newspaper.
"Why'd you get home so late? You said you'd be home by eleven." The dreaded question.
"We stayed out later than we thought we were, and we lost track of time," Craig said quietly. "Sorry. It won't happen again."
"Marco and Paige called and asked if you were here. It was 10:58 then. They said you left the movie theater. Where'd you go?" Craig stared at Joey, searching for an answer.
"I went to go get some coffee. At the Dot."
"Why would you leave the movie theater to go get coffee?"
"Because I felt like having coffee! I was cold!" It wasn't a total lie; Craig did stop at the Dot after he'd left the old house to get coffee.
"You hate coffee."
"I know I hate coffee!"
"Then why do you drink it?"
"Because it's warm." Joey seemed to have dropped the conversation about Craig being home late, and now he was just asking about coffee.
He hoped that Joey wouldn't find out about him getting high...and then driving. But that's what the coffee was for. Craig was lucky that the Dot was open late that night.
"So, uh...when are Caitlin and Angela coming back?" Craig asked a few minutes later.
"Soon. I should probably call." Joey picked up the phone and called Caitlin at Spike's. He talked to her for a while, and then hung up. "She'll be here in an hour or so." Craig nodded and sat at the table silently.
A/N: HAHA! THE SHORTEST CHAPTER EVER! Okay, all, review! DO IT! But first, follow the arrows! DO WHAT THE ARROWS TELL YOU! (Actually, they're V's, but who cares?)
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Just kidding. Hell, I had you all worried there for a second. THE CHAPTER GOES ON!
At School, Thursday
Ellie Nash was extremely annoyed with Ashley Kerwin. She said she was going to London to have a new life, and then she comes and returns to her old one. Oh, and of course, she keeps hurting innocent Craig. Okay, maybe not-so-innocent Craig, but he was for the most part.
As she led her through the halls of Degrassi, Ellie didn't speak. She wanted to say something about Craig, but she wanted Ashley to see him first. They went into the cafeteria. Spinner, Jimmy, Paige, Hazel, and Sean were all sitting at a table. "Where's Craig?" Ashley asked. Sean stood up and walked out of the cafeteria with them.
"He's with Jay," Sean said coolly.
"What's he doing with Jay?" Ashley said.
"Getting high. He's been doing it for almost a week now. Every day for the last week."
"Have you been...?"
"No. I asked Jay about it. He said that Craig acts pretty messed up when he gets high, but it's funny to watch."
"Why don't you try and stop him? Craig has a car now, he...he could hurt himself." Ashley whispered.
"Yeah. But...he gets coffee. It brings him out of his high and he gets home okay, so...I don't know."
"Where is he now?"
"An old house a few blocks away. We can't go there now, though. Just wait until he comes back; they always do. They're in Jay's car. Jay doesn't get as messed up. Just wait." They went back into the cafeteria and sat at the table.
Later, in class, Ashley kept glancing over at Craig, who was sitting on the other side of the room, trying to pay attention, but seemed distracted. He was leaning his head on his hand and staring at the board.
"Craig?" Mr. Armstrong said. Craig looked at him.
"What?" he said quickly.
"Just making sure you're paying attention." Mr. Armstrong continued teaching. Craig wished that Mr. Armstrong was like Mr. Simpson, who didn't 'just made sure you were paying attention'.
Forty-five minutes later, Craig was free from class and school and went home. He promised to meet Ellie, Sean, Hazel, and Paige at the Dot at around four. When Craig got home, Caitlin was sitting on the couch watching TV. He sat down next to her, and leaned his head on her shoulder. "No falling asleep," Caitlin said. They continued to watch TV and Craig didn't fall asleep.
Craig looked up at the clock and got up. "I gotta go. I'm meeting some friends at the Dot. Um...I'll be back later. I have my phone and stuff, so...yeah. Bye, Caitlin."
"Bye."
Craig drove to the Dot and was having fun talking to Ellie and Sean when the jingle of a bell from the door made Sean glance up at the door and see Paige and Hazel walk in. She sat down at the table, and then quickly said, "I'm gonna go get something to drink."
"Get me something, too," Hazel said.
"Me, too," Ellie added.
Paige nodded.
She stood up and the four continued talking.
Spinner handed Paige three drinks from behind the counter. She bumped into someone and looked up. "What?" Paige said, seeing Ashley.
"I was gonna talk to Craig," Ashley said quietly.
"Well, Craig doesn't want to talk to you," Paige snapped.
"How do you know?" Ashley said back.
"Look at him," Paige said. "He's talking to his friends. He's happy. Just...leave him alone." Ashley stared after Paige as she sat down with Craig, Sean, Ellie, and Hazel, and handed her girlfriends their drinks.
Ashley watched them mumble amongst themselves for a minute. Craig turned around and looked at Ashley. He turned around and ran his hand through his hair. He kept on talking for a few minutes and then heard Ashley leave. His heart sank and he felt bad for ignoring her. Craig stood up and followed her out of the café. It was pouring down rain and it was cold.
"Ash!" he shouted. Ashley stopped on the sidewalk. She turned around and looked at him.
"What? Go back inside and talk to your friends and be happy!"
"I'm never happy! Just...come back! I wanna talk to you."
"You already are."
"Don't make this harder than it already is for me." Ashley stared at him for a second before walking up to him. "Here. Sit in the car and we'll talk."
"You sure you want me in your car? I mean, it's—"
"Ashley. Get in the car." Ashley shrugged and opened the door. She got in the passenger seat. Craig got in the driver's seat and closed the door.
"So."
"So."
"Why'd you come back?" Craig asked.
"Because I didn't want to live in London. I like Toronto better."
"I like Toronto, too, but...I don't know. I like BC."
"Everyone likes BC."
"I wanna talk about us."
"Me, too. Craig, listen, when I told you that I didn't love you anymore...that was a huge lie. I didn't know what I was thinking. I felt it at the time, but...now, I know that it was the biggest mistake that I've ever made."
"Okay, Ash, we're back at Square One. First, there was Craig and then there was Ash. And then, there was Craig and Ash. And now...there's Craig, and then there's Ash."
"Craig...I want us to be back together."
"But, Ash...I'm trying to...me and Alex were..."
"Alex?"
"Yeah, Alex..."
"Alex Nunez? You and Alex? That's just...I thought..." Ashley looked out the tinted window.
"Ashley. Don't. Me and Alex haven't done anything yet. We're on the verge of it. She's...got problems...at home. And she was the only one who wanted to talk to me while you were off with Spinner."
"Craig, I'm sorry--"
"Stop it! I don't want to hear you right now! Listen...I know me cheating on you hurt you. I know that you felt horrible. So did I. But after you dumped me...twice...it's like...you've hurt me more than I've ever hurt you. What have I done to Alex? Nothing. And she's done nothing to me. And maybe that's better for both of us. But right now I need time to think. So just...go home. It's raining, and I'm not leaving my friends."
"You've already left your friends. Drugs, Craig? Why? Why would you do drugs?" Craig was taken aback.
"Who's been feeding you this crap?" he said quietly.
"Ellie and Sean told me. You can't hide from it. I know what you're doing."
Ashley sighed and shook her head. She got out of the car, Craig right behind her, and she ran down the street. Stopping halfway down, she yelled something at Craig and Craig yelled back and went inside the café.
"That didn't sound good," Paige said.
"Nope. She's not happy. Oh, well. Who cares."
"Nobody."
"Exactly. So, let's not worry about it." Paige nodded and they continued with the conversation they'd been having.
Craig's head started hurting again. He'd assured Joey that the headaches had faded...they'd just gotten worse. He stopped complaining about them after a week of having to deal with them. "They're gone," he'd told Joey days before. Joey cancelled the trip to the doctor's for a medication change.
"Craig, are you okay?" Hazel asked. Everyone's attention turned to Craig, who was resting his head on his hand, wincing in pain. Craig nodded but then another wave of pain overcame him and he had a sharp intake of breath.
"Spinner! Can we get some water over here?" Ellie called to Spinner, who was waiting another table. He looked over at Ellie, and then at Craig, who was trying to get through his headache. He dropped the order sheets on the table and jogged to the back of the counter and got a cold glass of water. Spinner took it to their table and gave it to Craig.
"I'm fine..." Craig mumbled, looking down at the table.
"You're not fine!" Paige shouted. "Drink this!" Everyone in the Dot was now staring in their direction as the seventeen-year-old went through a reoccuring headache.
Craig lifted his head up and shakily grasped the glass of water. He put it up to his mouth, took a small sip, and then quickly set it back down on the table.
"I think you should go home," Ellie said calmly. She put her hand on Craig's shoulder, and he looked up at her. They looked at each other for a second, and then Craig nodded.
Spinner came back from the other table and said, "I just got off the phone with Caitlin. She said that he should probably lay down for a while, so..."
"So we need someone to drive him home, and someone to follow so that we have a ride back."
"I can drive home myself," Craig said quickly.
"No. You're in no condition to drive," said Sean.
"Yeah, I am."
"No, you're not." Craig sighed defiantly and scoffed.
"Fine."
"I have Dylan's car, so I can follow. We need someone to drive his car." The four looked at each other, each wanting desperately to be the one to drive Craig's car.
"Are one of you retards going to drive me home or do I seriously have to do it myself?" Craig said irritably.
"I'll do it," Sean said. Hazel and Ellie sighed. Craig handed Sean his keys; he was the only one he could really trust, anyway.
They all left, Hazel with Paige, and Ellie with Sean and Craig. Sean watched Craig carefully as he drove. Craig was looking out the window, blankly, but somehow, he looked sad. A kind of...lost sort of look. When he pulled up to Craig's house, he got out of the car and carefully closed the door. Caitlin appeared at the front door, meeting Craig as he got there.
She thanked Sean for making sure that he got home safe, and then she closed the door and took Craig upstairs. After he was in bed, she turned the radio on low so that it wasn't completely quiet--he couldn't sleep with it like that anymore.
Craig yawned and fell asleep. His headache had long since faded--it actually had in the car--but he liked to sleep. He didn't get headaches when he slept.
Joey got home an hour after Craig did. He talked with Caitlin about what happened at the Dot, and he went upstairs to Craig's door and peered inside. Craig was sleeping peacefully on his bed. He looked comfortable, and Joey did not want to disturb him.
He went back downstairs to talk with Caitlin. They talked for a long time, and later on, Angela's friend's mom dropped her off at the house, and she ran inside. "Hi, Daddy! Hi, Caitlin!" she said. She hopped on the couch between them and looked at them.
Joey heard footsteps coming from the stairs. He looked over and saw a very tired Craig. "Hey, buddy. How're you feeling?" Joey said coolly. Craig shrugged.
"Better," he said.
"I heard that Sean drove you home."
"Huh...? Oh, yeah...I guess he did..."
"You guess he did?"
"Sorry...my memory's a little messed up. I was...really tired."
"You were having a headache."
"No, I was tired."
"Craig!"
"What?"
"Why didn't you just tell me that you were still having headaches? I would've done something about it," Joey said. Craig looked at him, still groggy.
"They went away for a while," Craig lied.
"No, they didn't. Spinner said that you've been having them for three weeks now."
"Spinner's a liar! Look--he got Jimmy shot and almost killed! Why would you believe someone like that?"
"Because he knows what he's saying. He wouldn't lie about this. You would." Craig was instantly offended and hurt. He didn't know that Joey thought of him as dishonest, and he didn't want him to think of him like that.
"Craig, I'm sorry," Joey said quickly. "It's just that...after you lied about your medication..." Craig was obviously upset now, and he was ignoring Joey.
Joey put his arm around Craig's shoulder and pulled him closer to him. Craig's body was still, but he didn't protest when Joey touched him. He felt a lot better after a while, but wasn't going to admit that he had been having headaches for almost a month. The phone started ringing and Caitlin got up to answer it.
"Craig, it's for you," Caitlin said, handing him the phone.
"Hello?" Craig said.
"Craig." It was Alex.
"Alex, what's up?"
"My mom and her boyfriend got here a few minutes ago, and...they kicked me out. I need someone to talk to," Alex said.
"Yeah. Okay. Where are you now?" Craig asked.
"I'm...at a phone booth outside the 7-11 on Bay Street."
"I'll be there in a few minutes, okay?"
"Okay. Bye." Craig hung up and tossed Joey the phone.
"I have to go find Alex. Her mom and her boyfriend kicked her out. I'll be back later," he said. Craig ran upstairs to get his jacket, shoes, and keys, and then ran out the door.
He found Alex standing inside the phone booth in front of 7-11, with a backpack that was probably filled with clothes and other things. He rolled the window down and told her to get into the car. She complied, tossed her backpack in the backseat,d and looked at the floorboard.
"I'm sorry I made you come out here to get me. I know you've got better things to do than pick up girls that get kicked out by their mom and evil mom's boyfriend," Alex said quietly. Craig noticed that her hair and her clothes were both soaking wet. She must've walked a while to get there.
"No, not really. I was with Sean, Ellie, Paige, and Hazel at the Dot, but then I had to leave. Health issues," Craig explained. Alex nodded. "You look cold." Craig took his favorite leather jacket off, something he had only done for Angela, and handed it to Alex. She put it on over her shoulders and was filled with both physical and emotional warmth; someone actually cared about her. She blushed and Craig turned the heat up.
He drove off and they stopped in an empty parking lot.
"So why'd you get kicked out?" Craig asked.
"My mom said she couldn't deal with me anymore," Alex answered. "She said that if I was so strong, then I could go make it on my own."
"That's...retarded. You can stay with me, if you want." Alex glanced up at Craig, with surprise and excitement.
"Seriously? You'd let me stay with you?" she said.
"Yeah. Joey and Caitlin won't mind." Alex smiled.
"Thanks, Craig."
"No problem." Alex leaned forward and kissed Craig, who kissed back. "This isn't comfortable." Alex reclined her seat and Craig crawled to her side of the car. They proceeded to make out in the car. That is, until there was a knock on the window. Craig and Alex pulled apart and looked up. Sean.
"Sean?" Craig said. Sean was leaning up against the car next to them, laughing. Craig went back to the driver's seat, started the car, and rolled down the window.
"You and Alex?" Sean asked. "I didn't know you two were together!"
"We've been together for ten minutes. What're you doing here?" Craig demanded.
"I had to go to the store to get something for Ellie, and then I saw your car, so I decided to stop and see if you were here...lo and behold--you both were!" said Sean.
"Okay, well, we have to go. Alex's mom kicked her out, and she's staying with me for a while."
"I'll talk to you later," Sean responded. He turned the other direction and walked home. Craig pulled out of the parking lot and drove home.
He pulled up to the house and they got out of the car, Alex carrying her backpack with her.
Craig entered the house with Alex right behind him. He took her up to his room and Alex took off Craig's jacket and set it on the bed. Alex picked a CD case up off the nightstand. "The Ramones?" she said. It was the Ramones, Animal Boy.
"You like 'em?" Craig asked.
"I'm more into the whole rap-thing, but if you like them, that's cool. I've never heard any of their music." Craig stared at her.
"You've never listened to their music?" he said blankly. Alex shrugged and shook her head. Craig sighed. He took the CD out of Alex's hands and put it in the stereo. Craig turned it to number seven.
Alex bobbed her head to the music.
"Not bad. Put it on repeat."
You've got to pick up the pieces
C'mon, sort your trash
You better pull yourself back together
Maybe you've got too much cash
Better call, call the law
When you gonna turn yourself in? Yeah
You're a politician
Don't become one of Hitler's children
Bonzo goes to bitburg then goes out for a cup of tea
As I watched it on TV somehow it really bothered me
Drank in all the bars in town for an extended foreign policy
Pick up the pieces
My brain is hanging upside down
I need something to slow me down
Shouldn't wish you happiness, wish her the very best
Fifty thousand dollar dress
Shaking hands with your highness
See through you like cellophane
You watch the world complain, but you do it anyway
Who am I, am I to say
Bonzo goes to bitburg then goes out for a cup of tea
As I watched it on TV somehow it really bothered me
Drank in all the bars in town for an extended foreign policy
Pick up the pieces
My brain is hanging upside down
I need something to slow me down
If there's one thing that makes me sick
It's when someone tries to hide behind politics
I wish that time could go by fast
Somehow they manage to make it last
My brain is hanging upside down
I need something to slow me down...
The two finally stopped listening to the song and Craig turned off the stereo. Alex curled up on Craig's bed and yawned. "I'm sleeping on your bed," Alex stated, pulling Craig's pillow under her head.
"I'll join you in a few hours," Craig said simply. "But not now. Now I have to go talk to Joey, and...do that weird, thanks-for-saving-my-life-thing. I don't know. I like talking to him. But you'll be fine sleeping, right?" Alex nodded. Craig shut off the light and went downstairs, leaving a tired, sleeping Alex in his room.
"Hey...Joey?" Craig muttered, noticing that the kitchen where Joey was sitting was all but full. Joey looked up tiredly and smiled softly. Craig was quiet for a second before speaking again. "Thanks." Joey nodded understandingly.
"I'm gonna go out for a while. Alex is upstairs sleeping...and, um...I'll be back later...or whenever."
"Okay," Joey said. Craig left and Joey listened to the sound of his car drive off. He was going to ask him something, but he didn't want to create tension right now.
Craig drove several blocks until he reached his destination--the cemetary. He parked the car and got out, carefully treading across the soft ground. He stopped at a headstone that he hadn't been ready to look at since the death--his father's. Craig knelt down on the wet grass and ran his fingers across the marble. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so sorry." Craig couldn't bare to look at it anymore, and he turned away and looked over at his mother's.
He was there for about an hour when he heard a rustling in the bushes and he quickly turned around. In the night's dark shadows, he could barely tell who it was, but he recognized her instantly. It was...Paige.
Craig stood up quickly. "Uh...Paige..." he stammered.
"Craig," said Paige quickly. "It's okay. I'm not here to like...harass you or anything. Talk to you, but not harass."
"Okay. About what?" Craig asked. He stared at Paige for a second. He felt it starting to rain and looked up. Clouds covered the dark sky and and the wind blew.
"I wanted to talk...about you. I know you've probably done this a million times, but I've never actually had a real conversation with you. Really, we've almost never talked. Please?" Craig glanced at her before looking back toward his mother's headstone.
"Yeah. Um...we should probably go somewhere else. It's starting to rain, and...I don't want to get sick."
"Why didn't you wear your jacket? You know how the weather is here," said Paige.
"I didn't want to wake up Alex." Paige stared at Craig blankly.
"Alex?" she asked.
"Yeah, she uh...got kicked out, and...she's staying with me for a while."
"Oh. Anyway, yeah, we can go somewhere...how about to the infamous Dot?" Paige suggested.
"Okay," Craig said, shrugging. Craig followed Paige through the bushes and got into his car, while she got into Dylan's. They drove to the Dot, and got a table, which Spinner gladly waited.
"I'm so lucky that I get to work the night shift so I can see my friends here at weird times of the night!" Spinner said. Paige looked up at him for a moment, watching him as he talked to Craig. The two looked at Paige, but she didn't realize it until they were both saying, "Paige!" She snapped out of her trance and blushed furiously. Spinner and Craig laughed, and then Spinner went back behind the counter. He came back and set three drinks down on the table. "On me," he said. "Especially this one." He took a drink from the third glass.
"So...what is this? A date?" Spinner asked, sitting down at the end of the table.
"No, this is an is-gonna-be conversation. Paige stalked me and said she wanted to talk to me, so...yeah."
"Oh. Well, don't let me interrupt." Spinner sounded insulted. He stood up and left his drink on the table.
"Spinner!" Paige cried. "You can be included in the conversation. It's not about you. If it were, we wouldn't have come here." Spinner ran back to the table and sat down.
"So, what'd you want to talk to me about?" Craig asked.
"Um...you know...your headache earlier...I was wondering, like...exactly...what are your headaches from?"
Craig thought for a second. "Joey is taking me to the doctor to find out exactly what they're from. Really, I don't know."
"Ellie said that it could be from your medication. You know, from switching them."
"It can't be."
"Why not?"
"Can you two keep a secret?" Spinner and Paige nodded. "It can't be from my meds, because I'm not taking them."
"Craig, you know it's not safe if you don't take your meds," Paige said calmly.
"I know. But...it makes me feel...just...I don't like taking them. They taste like crap."
"Like, literal crap or they just taste really bad?" Spinner asked. Craig stared at him for a few seconds. Craig's cell phone, which was sitting on the table, started ringing. Spinner picked it up and looked at the screen, but Craig snatched it from him quickly.
"Hello?" Craig said. "Yeah...fine, I'll be right there." He hung up. "Joey wants me home, so, uh...I'll see you guys at school tomorrow."
Paige and Spinner watched Craig leave. When Craig was out of the cafe, Spinner looked at Paige. "That wasn't Joey. The phone said 'Jay'. He's going off to get high."
"What do you want me to do about it? I don't want to get him in trouble."
"Fine. I'll do the right thing, then." Spinner pulled out his own cell phone and called Joey.
"Hello?"
"Joey? It's Spinner."
"Oh, hi, Spinner."
"Listen...um...didn't you say that Craig wasn't allowed to see Jay anymore?" Spinner asked.
"Yeah, why?" said Joey.
"Well, Paige, Craig, and I were all sitting here at the Dot. Craig's phone started ringing, and I picked it up. It said 'Jay'. Craig told us that you told him that he needed to go home."
"Do you know where they're meeting?"
"Yeah, there's this weird old house a few blocks away, and that's where they are."
"What are they doing there?" Joey asked. Spinner was quiet for a second.
"They're getting high." Spinner heard Joey sigh.
"Thanks for telling me, Spinner."
"No problem, Joey," Spinner said proudly. They hung up. Joey was glad that there was a tracking device on Craig's car. It had been there since it was first built, and it just...came with the car.
He went upstairs to his bedroom, where Caitlin was using her new laptop for work. Joey took it from her and minimized the window she was working in. He went to the website that the device was from and got the position for where Craig was.
Joey got into his car and drove around until he saw the black BMW parked in front of an old house. Joey got out of the car and saw that the front door to the house was open. He went inside and almost vomited. The smell was unbearable; he wondered why anyone would deliberately stay in the house for more than a minute.
He heard talking and laughing coming from the only room in the house with a light. Joey pushed the door open and saw several people in the room. Four were people he'd never seen before. Jay was sitting next to Craig on the bed.
Craig, who was holding the bottom of a bong with one hand and a lighter in the other. Craig looked up at Joey. His eyes widened and he froze for a second. He pushed the bong out of his grasp and tossed it at Jay. "Jason Hogart! Get that thing out of my face! I don't do drugs!" Craig shouted. Seeing the look on Joey's face, Craig glanced over at the other door, which led to another hallway, which led to the other exit to the house. He could escape this tension now.
He coughed a little and looked up at Joey again. Then, he got an idea. He grabbed Jay's hat and tossed it at Joey. Jay leapt and got his hat, while Craig went in the other direction toward the other door and ran down the other hallway. He was out of the house, out the side door. There was a hole in the fence. He had no time to start the car. Joey would catch him. Brilliant! He was amazed at how smart he was when he was higher than a kite. He crawled through the hole, which led to the neighbor's yard. He sat up against the fence and sighed. He looked through the fence and saw Joey get into the car and leave. Now he wondered how he was going to walk in the door at home without getting yelled at or being able to face Joey.
He was surprised when he got home to find that everyone was in bed. Quietly as possible, he went upstairs and closed the door to his room. Alex was asleep on the bed, still, only now she was wearing some of Caitlin's shorts and had no makeup on. Her hair was wet, and her earrings were laying on the nightstand. He took his shoes off and crawled into bed. Wrapping his right arm around Alex's waist, he slowly fell asleep.
A/N: HOLY CRAP! I AM DONE! THAT WAS HARD! I COULDN'T THINK OF ANYTHING, INCLUDING A TITLE OR ENOUGH DRAMA.