Well I got a wonderful PM from someone asking me to please continue this story, a very long time ago, and seeing as I actually have most of it typed up I thought maybe I should, you know, try to finish it. I don't know if anybody is still reading, but I may as well post this up just in case!
This is rather short and not very good though, more of a filler.
To Be There Now
As predicted all hell breaks loose when I get home. Phoebe and Grams are already having a shouting match at full volume in the living room. I hover in the doorway watching, not wanting to throw myself into the furor and the firing line
My younger sister is crying while Grams just looks livid.
"I didn't mean to do it," Phoebe is crying.
"Didn't mean to do it?" Grams repeats. "Of course you meant to do it! How could you, Phoebe, how could you?"
Phoebe doesn't say anything.
"And all for a boy! How long have you been going out with him?" She demands.
Phoebe shrugs helplessly.
"You're fourteen. You are not old enough to have a boyfriend! You know full well that I'd never have allowed this, or you wouldn't have felt the need to hide it from me."
I take a small step forward and a floorboard creaks. Both of them turn to look at me, Phoebe a little hopefully and Grams…well.
"Did you know about this?" She asks me.
"I…well…"
"So you've helped your fourteen year old sister to hide the fact that she has a boyfriend who is a senior?"
"No, not exactly-"
"Did you know he was into drugs?" She spit's the last word.
"Of course not!" I protest at once.
Grams glares from me to Phoebe.
"It's like I don't even know who the two of you are anymore," she says. "I've never been so ashamed in all my life. Suspended."
She's says the last word in a low voice as if she's afraid the neighbors might be able to hear.
"It's not the end of the world," I say, trying to be practical.
It's the wrong thing to say.
"Not the end of the world?" Grams shrieks, forgetting about potential eavesdroppers. "This will be on her permanent record! Permanent record. Forever!"
"Yeah, I get what the word permanent means, thanks, I didn't study all that SAT vocab for nothing."
The sarcastic remark is out of my mouth before I can stop it and Grams looks furious.
"Well, I know exactly where Phoebe gets her blatant disregard for rules from, Prudence! Do neither of you have any respect for me at all?"
"Of course we have respect for you," Phoebe says hurriedly, rubbing her cheeks, but I roll my eyes.
"It's always about you, isn't it?" I ask. "You always have to assume everything we do is about you, that we do things just to get at you. Well we don't! It's not all about you!"
"I've had just about enough of you," Grams says. "Both of you. Phoebe, you're grounded for the foreseeable future, as are you, Prudence. You may go to your practices but otherwise I want you home, immediately. And you can forget about seeing that boy. Both of you, in fact. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Grams," Phoebe says dutifully. "Sorry," she adds in a whisper.
"Crystal clear," I mutter.
"Go to your rooms," she orders.
We both traipse silently up the stairs, but I go into Phoebe's room instead of my own.
"Prue, I'm really sorry," Phoebe says, starting to cry again.
"Why would you do something so stupid, Phoebe? You know better than that! And for him of all people! A boy!"
"Wouldn't you do anything to help somebody you loved?" Phoebe questions, staring at me with wide eyes.
I think about all the things I would do for her or Piper, and nod reluctantly.
"Yes, I would." I don't tell her that I don't believe her when she says she loves him. I'm sure she believes she loves him, but what does she know about it? She's fourteen. And she can do so much better than him. So instead of telling her this I hug her.
"Sorry," she says again.
"You can stop apologizing," I tell her, sighing. "Everybody makes mistakes."
"Thanks," she says, giving me a half-hearted smile.
"Just promise me one thing."
"What?"
"Don't do anything like this ever again."
"I promise," Phoebe says vehemently.
The title is a song by Carissa's Wierd. (Yes, that is spelt right!)