High Tide

Chapter 27 [I'm Feeling 42]

Chapter 27

I'm Feeling 42

December was a crazy month for everyone.

After losing the semifinals on Saturday, the season for the girls' varsity volleyball team was officially over, and while she did kind of feel bad, Avery wasn't actually too disappointed. Sure, it would've been nice to go all the way to the state championships, but at the same time they'd done a good job, it was a lot of fun to get to play, and now she could focus entirely on finals... which by the way were kicking her butt.

She was studying a few hours each night by the time finals came around halfway through the month, and when came her first exam she was hyperventilating a little.

"You'll be fine, you're smart, you'll kick English's ass," Lily grinned, giving her friend a quick half-hug before they entered through big metal doors and found their assigned seats located in neat rows based on the exam in question. Lily was writing another exam that day, so they were all the way at different ends of the gym.

At the end of the week Avery was pretty confident she'd get good results; in fact, she was pretty sure she over-studied for some subjects – especially music.

The last week before the start of the winter break was a lot less stressful; Avery only had one final left and it was on Tuesday, so she had the second half of the week to unwind and do absolutely nothing useful with her life.

Well, mostly.

"We have to plan something really special for Charlie's birthday on Saturday!" Marissa announced one evening when Charlie was out of the house, crossing her arms over her chest and sitting down rather purposefully on her older sister's bed.

"Okay," Avery chuckled, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and setting her phone down on her desk. "Got anything in mind?" she wondered, amusement on her face.

"As a matter of fact, I do," Marissa beamed and she gently placed her brand new video camera on the bed.

Avery bit down on her lower lip; ever since her YouTube video – the one she showed her teammates while slightly intoxicated – had been plastered all over Facebook by Tasha and Vanessa, Marissa had been all over her for never showing them to her, and never asking her to sing in her videos too.

Avery was embarrassed, not necessarily because the videos were of her singing... but because she used the name Tanner on all of them, including the ones she uploaded well before adoption was even a thought in her head.

When Charlie and Lydia discovered her channel – she had them both on Facebook, so it was pretty much inevitable – she hid in her bedroom for hours. She was especially nervous to face Charlie, since he was the one that influenced her to make a channel in the first place...

She shouldn't have felt so embarrassed or guilty; the grin on his face when she went to see him warmed her heart. He was proud of her, and he actually liked her songs.

"We can do a cover of one of dad's songs," Marissa went on, bringing Avery back to her bedroom, and back to planning Charlie's birthday present. "Go on his YouTube, we can pick one he wrote himself and do it for him," she went on, motioning for Avery to go on her lap top and start searching.

"I have them on my iPod too, as MP3s," Avery admitted sheepishly.

"You can do that? Can you put them on mine too?" Marissa asked excitedly.