Bruised (Jack Barakat)

Chapter 11

I didn't know what they meant by 'sudden departure' until early Sunday morning I was awoken by a call from Oli saying I have an hour to clean up, pack, and talk to my mom about leaving. "Uh, an hour? Why is this so soon? I thought they didn't have to leave until Monday" All I wanted was a simple answer, but instead I got, "Quit talking to me, and let's go" And a click of the phone. 

Despite being sleepy and confused, I decided to go along with it, because Oli usually doesn't call at 5:30 in the morning telling me I have an hour to get my shit together. 

I got out of bed and stretched a little, trying to get some energy flowing into me before a stressful morning. I decided to pack first, then get ready and talk to my mom. She would be more accepting of me going if she saw how dedicated I was to going, was my logic. 

I opened up my closet and yawned, then tried to rub the tiredness from my eyes. I reached up on my tip-toes to grab my old suitcase on the top shelf, that was covered in bumper stickers that I collected over the years. I always loved the sayings on bumper stickers as a kid. My brother Ryan and I would play a game called, 'Find that Sticker' and waste time reading stickers on cars. 

It was one of the good memories that I had with my brother before he died. 

I layed the suitcase on my bed and started to pack up my clothes and essentials for my hygiene. When I finally finished, I checked the clock and noticed a good twenty minutes passed by. 

"Bullocks" I muttered, zipping up my suitcase and going back to my closet. I ran a hand through my hair and decided to grab my old Foo Fighters shirt and a pair of jeans. I slipped on my clothes, mentally thanking myself for taking a shower last night, and put on my black TOMS. I had already put my hair in a braid up-do, to keep it out of my face when I was packing, so I didn't have to do much for my hair.

I decided that I would do my makeup in the car, since I still had to go eat breakfast, hear a long lecture from my mother, and brush my teeth in a matter of thirty something minutes. 

I quickly grabbed my suit case, and hurried downstairs. Despite the heaviness of the suitcase and the constant 'almost dropping', I finally was able to make it downstairs to see my mom sitting on island, drinking coffee and flipping through a magazine. From all the bags on the counter, I was guessing she got up early this morning to get her coupons and a few groceries. 

I blew the lose hair that fell from my up-do to brush my nose, and rolled my suitcase over to the island. Here goes nothing..

"So, mother.." I started, as I watched her look up at me and raise an eyebrow. 

"Yes, Scarlett" She put down her magazine and took a sip from her coffee.

"You know how I went to that concert on Friday?" 

She nodded, and waved me on to continue.

"Well, those boys invited me over yesterday to have Chinese food. Surprising, I know. I still don't know how in the world this happened in a matter of one day, but I'm sorta friends with my favorite band. Like I seriously don't know how this happened.. I-" 

"You're rambling, Scarlett. You know how I feel when you ramble"

"I know, sorry. I guess what I'm trying to tell you is that these same boys invited me to go touring with them for the rest of the tour. That's crazy, right? Well, I already called my boss yesterday and said I quit-"

"Scarlett Wonders!"

"But wait- mom, it gets better let me finish" She sighed, but nodded again, which surprised me a little that she was letting me continue without a lecture.