Hi guys! Thanks for all of the wonderful feedback I'm getting. I will have Sandy comeback when they get back from the camping trip. I never had intentions for Soda to cheat on Tali. They are too much of a cute couple. Keep reviewing. Here's chapter 21. This is three weeks later.
*Introduction* Three weeks ago, my brother was shot & almost killed. Now, he's back home & annoying the crap out of everyone. Even the dog. I went back to school & everything's been great. I went on a couple more dates with Soda to the rodeo & to the diner.
*Present* We were all at the Curtises. Even Paxton & Parker. In the past couple of weeks, the twins had gotten a lot closer with the gang. Soda, Steve, & me were playing poker(Soda was cheating), Two-Bit & Paxton were arm wrestling, Dally wasn't doing anything, Pony, Johnny, & Parker were talking, & Darry was still at work.
"Stop cheating Soda!" Steve accused.
"I ain't cheating Stevie!" Soda exclaimed, dropping his cards & putting a hand on his heart. A card fell out of his sleeve & Steve scoffed.
"Ha!" he chortled, jumping over the table onto Soda. They started wrestling as Darry came through the door with a big smile.
"Hey Darr. What's going on?" Soda asked, putting Steve in a headlock. Steve grunted.
"For Winter Break we are going camping!" Darry shouted happily. Everyone sat up.
"What'dya mean camping?" Two-Bit asked. Darry sighed.
"You know? Camping? In tents? Outside? Surrounded by nature?" he asked. The gang nodded.
"Well, my boss was gonna go camping this week with 11 other guys. They had to cancel so he gave me the spots. There's 12 spots, so I thought us seven, Tali, Parker, Paxton, Evie, & Tali's dad." he explained. I groaned.
"Our dad?" I grumbled. Parker looked at me.
"I can get him to let us go." he told us. Me & Paxton nodded.
"I already called Evie." Darry stated. I looked at everybody.
"Wait! That means we're leaving tomorrow! Me & Evie need to pack." I exclaimed. I kissed Soda & opened the front door. Evie was already standing there.
"I've come to kidnap you." she said. I nodded eagerly & looked back at the boys.
"I'll be back sometime. I have to pack too. I want you guys done." I instructed. My brothers gave me a fake salute & I walked out the door with Evie. We got in her car & started towards her house.
"Can I actually meet your brothers & sisters tonight?" I asked. She had five. I've been to Evie's plenty of times, but I've never really gotten to meet them. She shrugged. We pulled into her driveway. She had a really nice house. It was two stories, like mine, but it was very decorated. Her parents & Evie are really creative. We walked inside & were instantly rushed by the little ones.
"Okay. Introductions & then you guys need to go to bed." Evie said.
"Why do we gotta go to bed?" the maybe oldest one asked. Evie put her finger up to her mouth to shush them.
"This is Jarvis & Isaac." she said, pointing to a pair of boys. Jarvis had black hair & blue eyes, & Isaac had blonde hair with green eyes.
"This is Harley & Robin." she introduced two girls. Harley had dark brown hair & hazel eyes, & Robin had red hair with blue eyes.
"Last, but not least, this is Phoenix." she finished, pointing to a little girl who had black hair & green eyes. We went up stairs & I helped her pack.
Do you just wanna spend the night at my house?" I asked. She looked at me.
"Can I? I don't want to have to deal with them in the morning." she asked. I nodded. We walked down stairs & into the living room. Evie's mom was painting with an easel. She was always painting or making something.
"Hi Tali. How are you?" she asked me.
"I'm good Mrs. Prescott. How are you?" I greeted. She smiled.
"I am doing great!" she bubbled. Evie rolled her eyes.
"Okay. Mom, I'm gonna spend the night at Tali's tonight. We're leaving pretty early in the morning." she said. Mrs. Prescott nodded.
"That's fine. Love you. See you next week." she acknowledged. She came over & hugged Evie. We walked out & got in the car, starting towards my house.
"Have you ever been camping?" I asked. She sighed.
"Before the youngest five came, Me, Dad, Mom, & Levi used to go all the time." she spoke. I was puzzled.
"Who's Levi?" I asked.
"Levi is my older brother. He's eight years older than me. Nobody's ever met him, not even Steve. He went to Vietnam last year & about two months ago, he went missing in action." she told me. I was shocked.
"Evie⦠I'm so so sorry." I apologized. She nodded.
"It's okay. He moved out before any of the littles could even remember him." she finished. We drove the rest of the way in silence. We walked through the door & Rain greeted us. Dad & Parker were in the kitchen. I couldn't hear what they were talking about, but my guess was camping. We went up stairs & I started to pack. I could hear Paxton cursing through my wall. We walked into his room & saw him sitting on the floor, angrily stuffing clothes into a duffel bag.
"What's going on?" I asked, stifling a laugh. He grunted.
"Parker said that if he talked to dad, I had to pack for him." he whined. Me & Evie walked out & went back down stairs. Parker & Dad were now in the living room, so we went into the kitchen. I took out graham crackers & vanilla frosting.
"Take these up to my room. I'll be there in a second." I told her. She took the stuff & I went to talk to dad. Parker wasn't there anymore.
"So?" I asked. I sat on the couch & he looked at me.
"Don't worry. Your old man ain't going with you guys." he chuckled.
"Thanks dad." I said.
"Yup. Go on up to bed. Don't stay up too late eating frosting." he spoke. I got up & started towards the stairs.
"Wait how'd you?" I stopped because he wasn't in the room anymore. I walked up the stairs & found Evie feeding Rain spoonfuls of frosting.
"So that's why she goes nuts every time I bring that out?" I asked, jumping onto my bed. She started to laugh & I started to eat. These are the best things in the world. We soon both fell asleep. Graham crackers & frosting in hand.
