by Jarica James
"Charlie, stop!" Alice demands, not bothering with kindness and surprisingly, it works. It's such a shock that it brings me out. Slowly my senses come back to me, and I can feel Adam's hand rubbing my back, Abby squeezing my hand, Cole cupping my cheek in his hand and whispering to me, and Trent lifting my jaw to look up at him.
"Nobody said anything about leaving. Friends don't just leave, sweetheart," he soothes.
“We don’t care, Charlie. It’s okay,” Cole adds, using a calming voice and pulling me into a hug. “When are you going to stop pushing us away? You’re one of us now. We can handle it. I promise. We aren’t just going to abandon you because your life before us was bad or awful or whatever it was,” he promises.
I relax slightly, but I know it's too late to back out of this sleepover, and that scares me. I take a deep breath and give him a nod. For once I’m going to just have to let go and trust.
Once we’re all ready for bed, we push the couch out of the way so the air mattresses are in a row through the living room. Cole makes sure his bed is next to mine, and Abby takes the spot on my other side, much to Adam's protests. When we lie down, I force myself to stay awake as one by one the others finally give in to sleep. I roll over to my side, facing Cole, and study his face, committing it to memory as the sense of dread slowly builds. When I can’t take it anymore, I roll over and do the same to Abby. Eventually I can't fight it anymore and slowly fade into sleep.
When I wake up, my limbs feel confined. I try to turn over, but something heavy is thrown over my side. I blink a few times to clear the sleep away and realize that Cole is holding me, and Abby's snuggled right next to me with her hand loosely around mine. Slowly I slide my hand from Abby’s, then pick up Cole’s arm and drop it to his side. It’s easy to climb off the mattress once I’m free, and gingerly make my way upstairs, trying not to wake anyone. I take the time to go through my morning routine, using the bathroom and brushing my teeth, still groggy from being up so late and a bit confused.
When I come back down and look around, I have to laugh at the way they're all sleeping. Adam ended up on the floor and Alice is sideways with her head by Abby. Trent is the only one who looks like he didn’t move in the night… at all.
Since I'm already up, I decide to start some waffles for the group. The waffle iron is one of the few kitchen appliances I know how to use, so I go about making a huge bowl of batter.
“Morning, Charlie,” Abby says as she stumbles into the room. She looks adorable with her sleepy eyes, crazy hair, and pink pajamas. She sits up on one of the stools and rests her head on her arms. “Before you suggest I go back to bed, this is just how I wake up,” she mumbles. I pull out a mug and make her a cup of coffee. She quickly adds the cream and sugar that I slide her way, and then sits quietly, sipping her coffee and watching me work.
After she finishes her mug, she's a whole new person. “Okay, I’m Abby now,” she jokes. Closing the lid of the iron down, I turn and give her a grin and shake my head.
“You okay this morning?” she asks, sounding concerned. My brows furrow in confusion. I don’t know why she's asking that, I don’t even remember having a nightmare last night, which I was already thanking God for.
“You were whimpering in your sleep and thrashing around. I tried to reach for your hand to wake you up, but you were moving too much. Cole just woke up and saw you and pulled you onto his bed. You stopped thrashing when he held you, but you still whimpered so I took your bed and held your hand. You finally went back to sleep after that.” I'm a mixture of horrified and impressed. I'm impressed they were able to stop the nightmare before it really started, but mortified they had to calm my crazy thrashing down.
“Before you go and apologize, it’s okay. We didn’t mind a bit. Alice used to get night terrors. They started in the fifth grade, actually. That’s why we started the weekend sleepovers and they just kind of stuck. We were just happy we could give her one night of peace a week and her parents a break. It only lasted a few months, but we kept the tradition going,” Abby explains. I study her face for a minute, making sure she's not just trying to make me feel better. But as soon as I have the thought I shake it off… Abby wouldn’t lie to me.
She jumps up and helps me make the rest of the waffles, talking about ideas for fall break and just life in general. I can’t respond, but somehow she makes it feel like I’m not out of the conversation at all.
The others wake up slowly and join us for waffles. It’s only a few minutes later that Sophia walks in, talking to someone on the phone.
“Charlie, it’s Detective Flynn. He wanted to let you know that the papers we found helped point them in the right direction. They even got a warrant and dug into the email servers at your dad’s old job. They think they have it narrowed down now. He just wanted to let you know they made some progress,” she says, before walking back out and finishing the conversation. She didn’t even realize I’d kept it from the others and I feel kind of guilty that I have. When I look around, waiting for the questioning glances, they all pretend that they didn’t hear and start their conversations right back up. That’s why I love them, they aren’t going to push me to talk. They know I'll share when I find the courage.
We plan out the rest of our fall break while we eat, which looks like it's going to be pretty busy. They don’t even know how much it’s going to help me. I’m already grateful the constant distraction and plans will keep me from dwelling on the case or the kidnappers.
Friday
Morning
Charlie
Adam's truck pulls up to my house ten minutes early, like always. I'm wearing the school colors and have my hair pulled into a ponytail. For once I feel like a real high school student. Normally I wouldn’t get this dressed up, but this is for Alice.
Her boyfriend, Andy, will be at the game playing against our school. It's the only game scheduled during our break, since they apparently start their break next week.
"Hey, Charlie. Look at you all decked out with school pride," Adam teases as I hop in. I grin over at him and raise my eyebrow. He has his school shirt on as well.
"Let's do this!" Trent yells from his spot in the back seat. Thank God Adam has an extended cab truck to fit us all.
"We have to get Abby first. Cole's family always goes to these games, so he rode with them," Adam informs me, shifting to drive and taking off. They talk back and forth about the game, but I don't care about basketball that much, so I tune them out. Abby is already waiting outside on her porch when we pull up. She runs down the walkway and yanks open the door, diving in next to me, so I have to scoot into the middle. She joins right into the conversation like she was there for the whole thing. Seriously, it's just basketball.
Apparently I completely underestimated how big of a deal basketball really is in this town. The parking lot is packed, carloads of families still pulling into spaces and hurrying into the gym.
We follow the flow of the crowd, buying our tickets at the door and trying to find a space on the bleachers. Alice is waiting for us, glaring at anyone who bothers to get too close, daring them to take the seats she’s saved for us. She might be shy, but she’s fierce. We hurry over and claim our spots. She's so excited that she's practically glowing. I've never seen her light up like this and it makes me like this guy already.
"There he is!" she hisses, pointing out a tall guy who's chatting with his coach. When he turns, we’re able to get a better look. He has longer, wavy blond hair and green eyes. He looks over at her and winks before running off to join the rest of his team.
"Girl! He's adorable! Is he joining us for after game food?" Abby asks excitedly.
"No, I'm joining him and his family for dinner. They drove down to watch the game, so we're riding with them after it's over," Alice answers absently, her eyes glued to her boyfriend. I can't help but smile; she looks so happy.
"You into basketball, Charlie?" Adam asks after a moment, like it just dawned on him that I might not like it. He chuckles at my noncommi
ttal shrug. I’ve literally never watched a game, just played it in phys ed.
"Don't let her fool you, she's awesome at it in gym class," Trent says, giving me a fist bump. I grin at him but wave off his praise.
"I've heard you're better at dodgeball," Alice jokes. I shoot her a playful glare when she turns around. I'll never live down the Callie incident. At least this week we don't have to worry about her messing with us.
The game finally starts, the gym falling silent so the only thing echoing in the room is the quick squeaks of sneakers on the overly waxed floors. I follow along for a bit, but I lose interest pretty quick, so I pull up an ebook on my phone and start reading. A few moments later, a text pops up.
Adam: Bored already?
Me: Don't tell Alice. I can play the game in gym, but I'm not much for watching live sports.
Adam: I can take them or leave them. Except baseball... that's my sport.
Me: Do you play for the school's team?
Adam: Yeah, I'm a pitcher.
Me: Well, maybe I'll have to give baseball a chance when the time comes.
Adam: How are you doing? I know things are tense with everything going on.
Me: About as well as expected. Ever since the kidnapping attempt, my nightmares are worse. Not to mention the calls about the case. How are things with your mom?
Adam: Surprisingly well. Dad wasn't happy, but she apologized to me and him, and says she’ll go to AA when she’s home from rehab. She's been a new person lately from the sound of it though.
Me: That makes me so happy. You deserve better than that.
Adam: Charlie, I have a feeling you deserve better than a lot of things you've dealt with. I can handle it. Especially because I have you to talk to now.
Me: It is nice to have people to talk to. I had a best friend before, but she was always trying to be popular, and we stopped being real friends when we started high school.
Adam: Well now you have us. We don't just leave friends. Don't worry.
Me: I'm trying to get better at believing that. It's hard to change a few years of beliefs.
Adam: Well, we won't give up on trying to convince you.
I glance up and meet his smile with one of my own. I love that he noticed I was bored and decided to do something about it. He loves to break down that jock stereotype, since he’s the sweetest guy. Not to mention that smile gives me butterflies.
Adam
Seeing Charlie smile is one of my favorite things in life now. She was so sad when we first met her, not to mention her expression was hollow half of the time, like she wouldn't let herself even feel the basic emotions. I'm still dying to know what happened to her, but it's nice to know at least she's healing now.
She doesn't go back to texting right away, watching the game for a minute. She's trying so hard to seem interested for Alice, but clearly it's not her thing. When I saw her pull open a book, I couldn't help but text her. We don't get a ton of alone time, so I take the opportunities to talk to her when I see them. I really like her, and I need to talk to the others about it. I know I'm not the only one who does, we’ve all joked and danced around it, but I'm not willing to just step aside, either.
Me: We need to talk about Charlie
Cole: Is she ok?
Me: Yeah, I mean we all like her
Abby: Cole and I talked, we were waiting to find a chance to talk to you and Trent.
Trent: I like her, but she keeps pulling away and looking guilty anytime I get close to her.
Me: It's because she has feelings for all four of us.
Abby: She does, she admitted it. She thinks it’s selfish and refuses to date any of us because of it.
Cole: She said that?
Abby: Not exactly, but kind of hinted at it
Me: What do we do?
Cole: I say we date her. It's not exactly the 50s, she can like more than one person.
Abby: If it was anyone else saying it, I'd run. This is our group and Charlie we're talking about, though. That changes things.
Trent: I don't know how I feel about that. I love you guys like family, but I'm not sure I can handle my girl dating other people too. I just can’t picture that.
Me: You want us to have an open relationship?
Abby: Not in the sense that we date other people too. I don't think she'd like that either. I'm just saying that we will all date her so she doesn't have to choose. I'd rather date her and share her time, than miss out on the opportunity. She's special, and I really like her.
Me: Same.
Cole: Same.
Trent: I'm out on that. It won't affect our friendship, I just don't think I can handle all that drama. I’m mature enough to walk away and we get along great, but I don’t think it’s deep enough for all that drama.
Abby: without hurting your feelings, I think she’s picked up on that. It’ll make it easier.
We all stop texting at that. I cringe a little at Trent's reaction. When I glance up, he's not mad, just seems a little sad. It's his choice, and we’re young, so I get his hesitation. I just know she’s worth it and if he doesn’t see that, it’s not the relationship for him. I’m not naive enough to think it’ll be easy, but we can navigate it together and set boundaries, yet another perk of us being lifelong friends. It’s honestly a good thing he’s figuring it out now, I wouldn’t be able to just stand here and watch him break her heart later.
He said it won't affect our friendship, but a part of me wonders if this will be the end of the misfits. We will always be friends, but we won't be this close again. Alice is already drifting away now that she has Andy, so I have a feeling Trent will find someone too. It’s something Mom used to warn me about, that people change and grow and we won’t have this forever, and it makes me sad that it’s a possibility now.
The rest of the game passes without incident. And true to his word, Trent really does act like nothing weird is going on at all, minus he’s toned down his flirting. We want to break it to her and see how she feels, but it's a delicate topic. She's way stronger than anyone gives her credit for, though, so this should be interesting.
Either way, I’m making her mine.
Wednesday
Morning
Charlie
The sun streams through my curtains waking me up, and I realize that for the first time in a long time, I got a full night’s sleep without a nightmare. I’m sure Sophia is just as happy as I am with the change. She's been running in here every night without complaint, but her willingness doesn’t make me feel any less guilty.
When I walk into the kitchen, Sophia looks up with a huge smile. She's making pancakes and dancing to pop music, looking about as well rested as I feel, and I can’t help but smile at her good mood. Honestly, I haven’t felt this chipper in way too long. It's a brand-new feeling for me.
Before I can dance along, I hear my phone buzz in my pocket. We don’t have plans until tonight, so I'm hoping someone is making plans for the day. It's so nice that I feel like being outside. Despite it being November, it's a sunny day and not too cool.
Cole: Morning, Charlie girl. Want to go with me on a hike?
Me: YES! It’s too pretty to stay inside.
I show the text to Sophia for her approval. “Sounds like fun; I need to dive back into my cases unfortunately, so I certainly won’t be much fun today,” she says with an exaggerated pout. She loves her cases.
With the prospect of hanging out with Cole, I finish breakfast quickly and run upstairs to change before texting him back to come get me. Too impatient to wait elsewhere, I stand at the front window watching for him while Sophia gives me her normal speech about staying together and being careful. As soon as I see Cole’s parents’ car, I wave and run outside and jump in.
Cole’s eyebrows are raised in an exaggerated manner as I buckle in, and I give him a questioning look. He shoots me his half grin.
“You just look happy today. It looks good on you,” he says softly, and my cheeks flare with heat. He doesn’t say anything
else as we drive to the outskirts of town, but his hand finds mine.
Not that I've had a lot of chances, but I never realized that we live this close to a state park. It's absolutely beautiful. The map near the information center lists all of the hiking trails, marking how long each one is. And there are several overlooks and even a waterfall. Cole points to the one he wants to take. It's the longest one, which makes me thankful that I'm not too out of shape, plus it hits quite a few markers. The trail is the only one that makes a big circle, exiting on the opposite side of where it starts to give hikers all of the scenic views in one trail.
He grabs a map from the pamphlet container on the side of the main map and tucks it into his backpack. Turning to me with a smile, he grabs my hand and leads me down the trail.
It's a peaceful walk, not many out this early to disturb it. I'm enjoying the spots of sun that stream through the trees, stopping in each one for a moment to let the heat warm my face before moving on. By the time I open my eyes to walk away from the last one, Cole has another smile on his face. He's always sneaking looks at me, and I love it. He makes me feel things I haven’t wanted to feel, worried it wasn’t fair to my family’s memories, but I know deep down they’d never have wanted that for me.
The trail is marked halfway through with a huge sign. It opens into a clearing and the biggest scenic overlook at the park. My breath catches as I walk up to the safety fence. The view is breathtaking. I feel so small as I look at the hills and fields that are in the distance. I can’t tear my gaze away. I’m not sure how long I stay there, just staring, when I feel Cole walk up behind me and wrap his arms around my waist, resting his chin on my shoulder.