Pretty Pheonix

Chapter 12 | The Royals at Home

Thank goodness I didn't hang any clothes out on the line. I think to myself as I stare out the window of Olivia's bedroom, eyeing the gloomy looking collection of vapor covering the sky. It's dark, grey mass is hovering over the entire town, no doubt anxious to let out a heavy downpour.

"Well that doesn't look too promising." Olivia comments sarcastically from her desk, taking a glance at the weather outside. She decides to set her pen down, from which I had told her to take notes, and says in a prudent manner, "maybe we should cut today's session short. The storm looks like it might pull an all nighter and my parents don't let me drive while the storms are in full swing. How will we get you home?"

I raise a brow at her before looking out the window again. The storm hasn't started yet, but there's already something dull and despicable about them.

Olivia is right. If I stay here any longer and the storm starts, we'd have no choice but to wait it out before she can drop me off and who knows how long the weather plans to stay like this? I have no plans in sleeping over in my uncomfortable disguise either.

Better to strike the iron now while it's still hot Blair.

"Okay, let's go before it gets worse." I agree and stand up, slipping my arms into the straps of my bag. Olivia nods and raises from her desk, tucking her chair in and we walk out of her room, down the stairs and she lets her mom know she's dropping me off before we head out the front door.

It starts to rain when we get into her car and reverse out of her driveway, and little raindrops break on the hood and body of her jeep. It's small at first, but as we continue the rain becomes heavier and heavier.

By the time we're halfway through, the time on the radio says it's six forty-five but the sky resembles that of midnight, giving off a bad vibe.

Olivia's headlights only show the falling of rain as we move forward at the legal speed, unlike the hordes of other vehicles speeding past us, people eager to get home and out of this torrential weather. I'll consider myself one of them tonight — a casual civilian just trying to get under the protection of the most familiar place they know; their home.

I check my bag to make sure I didn't leave anything behind in Olivia's room and catch sight of my consent form for the excursion to Bentwood Park that's tomorrow. I pull it out and read through the contents of it using the light coming from the various streetlights we pass and huff. Typical.

"What's that? Your permission slip?" Olivia asks curiously.

"Yep." I nod and put it back into the safety of my bag.

"Are you going?" She asks, keeping her eyes trained on the road ahead.

"It's not like I have much of a choice." I shrug coolly, "it's for our microbiology assignment, isn't your biology class going as well? Actually, aren't all biology students going tomorrow?"

She sighs, "yeah. Honestly, I don't want to go. It's not that I have a thing against the class, it's just my partner."

I cock a brow at her, "you dread it because of your partner? That's silly."

"Easy for you to say. Who's your partner?"

"I don't have a partner." I say, feeling somewhat content. Yep, I was finally graced with the opportunity of not being paired.

"Lucky you, I'm stuck with Tom Hornet." She says with an annoyed tone.

I grimace, hearing the name of my arrogant chemistry partner. "Yikes. I sympathize with you, but at least it's only for one assignment. He's my chemistry partner til the end of senior year." I tell her.