Restart. || DNF ; ENEMIES TO LOVERS.

13 - Boys Night Out! - CLAY WAKES

     "Karl wants me to go to Italy with him this next summer." I mentioned offhandedly, August and my mom both snapping their heads to look at me. I slowly look back at them, my eyebrows furrowing. They look like they have some sort of an issue with it. "What?"

     "Italy? Next summer? For how long?" Mom asks, her eyebrows furrowing too, like she's thinking. I take a sip of my water casually.

     "Three weeks. Like three weeks into summer is when we'd get back I think. He has family in Italy and they have a beautiful Victorian home I suppose." I say, glancing away. I'm honestly just preparing for a no, very much down playing my excitement even at the idea.

     "Just you and Karl?" My mom asks, still kind of worried at the idea. I shake my head.

     "Nick and someone else were invited." I say, avoiding her ever boring stare. She sighs.

     "I'll have to talk to your father about it. You know you have baseball in the summer, honey." Mom says with a sigh. I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding in, with my dad being in the picture there was no way that I would be able to go.

     "Don't ask him. You're my full time mom, just— why can't I go?" I say with an exasperated sigh, sort of urging forward. My mom huffs, crossing her arms.

"I never said you couldn't, Clay. I said I'd ask your father! Italy with someone who you've been friends with for five or so months is a big jump!" She exclaims. I bite my lip and think for a moment, it's not like I'm gone for that long anyways..

     "Saying you'll ask Stephen is basically him saying no, mom." August says, sipping his Doctor Pepper. I silently agree with him, nodding and raising my eyebrows. "C'est une salope !" He says in a sing-song voice.

     I giggle at that, but mom doesn't think it's very funny. She sighs and rolls her eyes, shaking her head in a disgraced way. "Et une suceuse de bite.."

     "Clay!" My mom shrieks, but August is laughing, hard. I giggle slightly as my mom glares and begins to berate me. "Ne parle pas cette langue! You know better. Gosh, Clay."

     "Oh my god, Clay, you're so— god.." August says through a giggle fit. Charlie is now in the kitchen, confused at what mom is mad about and what me and August are laughing at.

     "What's so funny?" Little Charles asks, pouring himself a glass of orange juice. That just makes August and I laugh harder. "What!"

     "P-Papa est un suceur de bite!" August says through laughter, making me outright wheeze. Mom's face is red with anger, almost out of words to say to us. 

     "Daddy sucks?" Charlie says, tilting his head slightly. I can't help it, I burst into laughter again. "What?!"

"Char, don't worry about it, honey. Are you all still going out to eat? I've gotta go now." My mom says, standing up and stretching her arms. "Here's some money," she hands August a hundred dollar bill, he's visibly taken aback, "you boys have fun."

     "Oh my god, mom, I don't need this, that's a lot of money!" August says, pushing her hand away. Mom laughs heartily at that.

     "Oh no, this is your dad's, hon." My mom says with the biggest grin on her face. August's jaw drops, a smile forming on his face. "Yep. Have fun! Where's Chris?"

     "Right here."  A smooth, deep voice say behind me. It almost startles me. August smiles at him, his gaze boring right behind me at Chris. "Are we ready to go? Charlie, you got your stuff?"

     "Mhm!" Charlie says. Chris ruffles his hair, which was blonde and curly like mine. A little darker though, but still more like mine than August's.