I Need You // A Choni Love Story

4) A Life Threatening Situation

The next morning Cheryl woke up refreshed. She headed downstairs, hoping to see her family members packing their things and heading out of the door. Unfortunately, everyone was still eating breakfast. Cheryl sat down next to Penelope and began to eat.

"Sleep well dear?" Penelope asks Cheryl.

"Yeah," Cheryl replies as she takes a bite of a strawberry.

"Good."

They eat breakfast quietly with only a bit of chit-chat here and there.

Once everyone finished, Aunt Linda pulled Penelope aside to talk to her. Cheryl was unable to hear them as they were too far away.

Penelope walked back to the table and sat down next to Cheryl with a look of horror in her eyes.

"What's wrong?" Cheryl whispers to Penelope.

"They've decided to stay," Penelope says, trying to stay calm.

"What?" Cheryl asks. "Like here, in our house?"

"Some of them, yes. Others are getting their own hotel rooms," Penelope responds.

"Fantastic," Cheryl says with a sigh as she takes one more bite of her French toast, stands up, and goes upstairs to her room.

She gets dressed for the day and texts Veronica, her best friend, to make some plans to destress.

After Cheryl is finished getting ready she head down stairs.

"Mother, I'm leaving," she calls throughout the house.

Penelope comes walking around the corner. "Where are you going, dear?" she asks.

"Veronica and I are going to get mani-pedis and shop around the mall. I'll see you this afternoon, bye," she says as she walks out the door and hops into her cherry red convertible.

Cheryl arrives at the mall and noticed Veronica waiting on a bench inside.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," Cheryl says as Veronica stands up.

"No, you're fine I just got here," Veronica says.

"Oh, okay," Cheryl says as she link her arm with Veronica's. "Shall we."

They start walking down the mall to the nail salon. Within minutes they get seated and the nail technicians begins working wonders on their delicate fingertips.

"So," Veronica says, "what's new. What's the hot gossip?"

Cheryl smiles. "Well, my mother has stopped being such a witchy witch about Toni and I's relationship."

"Cheryl, that's fantastic. I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks. It's been nice to be able to be open about our relationship. I feel like we deserve it, ya know," Cheryl explains.

"Your mother sounds like a stickler about relationships," the nail lady interjects. "Don't worry, my mother was like that too when I got my first boyfriend."

Cheryl awkwardly laughs and Veronica looks back and forth from the nail technician and Cheryl.

"Actually," Cheryl says, "Toni is my girlfriend. Toni is short for Antionette."

"Oh," the lady says, obviously embarrassed, "my bad, I just assumed."

"It's fine," Cheryl says with a lighthearted laugh this time. "Anyway, Veronica, how have things been with you and Archie?"

"Things are great, actually. We're in a really good place now that my father has gone back to jail," Veronica says and Cheryl half smiles.

"I'm glad," she replies.