Author's Note: Thanks to everyone for your patience! I know this is shorter than the previous chapters, sorry.
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters in this story, except for Casey.
Chapter 3: Good Morning
It was quarter past ten when Velma finally woke up with a yawn. She reached to her nightstand and found her glasses, which she promptly placed upon her face. With a slight stretch she glanced out the window. The rain had passed, and the remnants of the downpour were droplets of water that glistened in the sunlight on the surface of the leaves. Her gaze moved to the clock, and she noticed for the first time how late she had slept. Usually the intelligent girl was up by seven.
"Jinkies!" She gasped, climbing from her bed and rushing to the bathroom. She stripped off her orange nightdress and turned on the shower. Setting her glasses on the counter near the sink she stepped into the stream of warm water. Despite the warmth of the shower, she shivered slightly, the memory of the previous night playing in her head. The events had so shocked her that she wasn't sure how to respond. She was thankful to have gotten away from the creep, and even more thankful that Shaggy had been there just when she needed a friend the most. With a sigh she closed her eyes, letting the water run over her, and hoping it could wash away the memory of Casey.
After around fifteen minutes, Velma emerged from the shower, and wrapped herself in a fluffy white robe. She placed her glasses once more on her face, and toweled her hair as dry as she could manage. She then brushed her teeth and hair, before going to her closet, and pulling out another of her orange turtleneck sweaters, and a skirt.
Now ready for the day, the sleuth headed down the stairs. She could smell French toast cooking, and guessed that Shaggy and Scooby were probably having a midmorning snack. As she reached the base of the steps and got ready to turn into the kitchen, she heard Shaggy's voice.
"Like, not those Scoob!" The lanky youth scolded his Great Dane, "Those are for Velma, man."
Scooby quirked a furry brow as he looked from the steaming pile of French toast to his best friend. Velma wasn't even awake yet…and though it wasn't unusual for Shaggy to have plenty of food for his friends and himself, the dog usually got to eat first. "Ror Relma?"
"Yeah," Shaggy confirmed, adding the plate of breakfast to a tray that carried orange juice as well, "Like, she's sleeping a lot later than usual...and I thought I'd take her some breakfast in bed!"
"Ruh?" The dog blinked, tilting his head in confusion. Breakfast in bed for Velma? That wasn't something that Shaggy normally did.
"Relax, man! I'll get us some breakfast too! After I take this to Velma," The boy picked up the tray and was heading to the kitchen door when he nearly ran into Velma, who had just entered.
"Um…" Velma blinked as she took the tray from her friend, "Thanks anyways Shaggy, but I'm up now."
"Oh," the boy replied simply, "Well…I thought you might like some breakfast."
Velma blinked; looking from the tray to Shaggy, there was a strange hitch in the boy's voice. "Yeah. I overheard you and Scooby."
"Uh, right." Shaggy laughed, "I knew that."
"Are you alright?" Velma asked, raising a brow. The lanky boy was acting very strangely.
"I'm fine!" He laughed again with a smile, "Really!"
The Great Dane had been watching his two human companions, but shook his head as he gave up on trying to understand what was going on. Instead, the canine turned to the stove, and set about making his own breakfast, since Shaggy was too busy babbling like an idiot to do so.
"How are you, Velms?" Shaggy questioned as he and his friend sat down at the table, "Like, last night was rough, huh?"
"Yeah…" Velma sighed as she poked idly at her French toast, "It was. Thanks again, Shaggy, for being there."
"Like, no problem!" The thin boy responded with a smile, "What are friends for!"
"Right…friends." Velma replied softly. It was good to hear a somewhat normal comment after witnessing Shaggy's odd behavior. Still something in his tone made her even more suspicious that she was missing something.
Author's Note: Once again thanks for your patience! For more information on when I plan to update stories, please check out my website! The link is in my profile.