On the way out, Evan calls up the hospital again, and is informed that her dad’s still asleep, and so is her mom, who’s gotten out of surgery herself sometime in the last couple of hours - or however long it’s been since we left for Elena’s house. That changes by the time we reach the hospital - the male nurse tells us that Mrs. Michaelsen is awake now, and the girls (except Michelle, of course) go see her immediately. This leaves the rest of us hanging around awkwardly for a while, before Evan returns and says that her mom’s fine, except for the fact that both her arms have been broken.
“You guys don’t need to stay here anymore,” she says. “Thanks for the support, but I think I got it from here.”
“You sure?” I ask. “I dunno ‘bout the others, but I got nothin’ else to do. I can stay here with you if-”
“No, really, it’s okay,” Evan says. “Thanks for the offer, though.”
“We don’t have to go straight home,” Harris says. “There’s a Chipotle down the street. I’m kinda starving right now.”
“I second that,” Michelle says.
“Me too,” I say.
We look at Kevin, but he shrugs and mutters something about having to go back to work.
“It’s okay,” Harris says. “We get it.”
“Can I come with you guys?” Rachel asks, poking her head around Evan with a sad look on her face.
“She needs fuel, desperately,” Evan says. “Something a bit more substantial than vending-machine sweets.”
“I guess that makes four of us,” I say. “If that’s okay with your babysitter, that is.”
“Of course,” Evan says. “I trust you to feed her right now, ‘cause I’m not capable of doing so myself at the moment.”
I smile lightly, then the smile slides away as I give Evan a hug. “I hope your ‘rents get out soon,” I say.
Evan’s hands press against my shoulders and her thumb brushes the back of my neck, sending tiny pinpricks of energy into my skin. “Me too, Jason. Me too.”
The others say their own goodbyes, and then we head out, Kevin going down the street back towards the Spellman Center, while Harris, Rachel, Michelle and I make tracks for the nearby Chipotle. We all get roughly the same burrito - just with steak for me, chicken for Rachel and Michelle, and braised carnitas for Harris. Everyone pays for their own, even Rachel, who insists on doing so herself despite the fact that she barely has enough money.
“Well, isn’t this an odd setup,” Harris says when we find ourselves a table. “Two North Spellman boys, two South Spellman girls.”
Michelle looks at Harris. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means we’re a couple of odd couples, any way you slice it,” Harris says.
Rachel unwraps her burrito with shaking hands, then tears into it, making a huge mess as rice and chunks of chicken fly all around her, getting into Harris’s space as well because she’s sitting directly across the table from him.
“Sorry,” she says, grinning sheepishly - except I’m pretty sure sheep never have pieces of burrito stuck in their teeth.
“Relax,” I say, passing Rachel a napkin. “You’re among friends.”
She gathers up the fallen crumbs and scarfs those down too. “Thanks.”
Michelle rolls her eyes, then starts eating her own burrito as daintily and politely as possible. Finally, she gives up trying to feign her cultured air when Harris and I start chuckling.
YOU ARE READING
The Dark Ice Chronicles - The Magi
ParanormalDark warlock Jason Cross is quite the lonely boy - until the girl he likes takes the time to get to know him. Evan Michaelsen's presence leads to a string of major changes in Jason's life - not the least of which is the development of Ice powers he...
