Fallin' For Fitz

7

Saying goodbye was hard.

I hated goodbyes.

I cried when Lydia left for college thirty-two hours away. Who was going to drive me around town? Who was going to help me pick out dresses for school dances? Our Sunday fro-yo ritual was no more.

I cried when my guinea pig died when I was in the fourth grade. I still remembered Parker and Asher helping me bury it in a tiny box they built.

But my least favorite goodbye to summer.

Goodbye to sleeping in late, running on your own schedule, and parties almost every day. It was hello to uniforms, crying over tests, and staying up late to study.

This summer was definitely the most memorable one of all.

I slipped the white polo-styled shirt with the yellow and black plaid skirt. Maybe I did get an eleventh-grade body as Alena said. My skirt had gotten shorter, but not short enough to get me in trouble. 

I washed my face, straightened my blonde hair, put on mascara and lip balm. 

Junior year or "the year from hell" as Lydia would say, let's do this.

I walked downstairs with my things and dropped them by the garage door before I walked into the kitchen.

My whole family was sitting at the breakfast table and I sat down and joined them.

Yeah, this was something that only happened on the first and last day of school. Normally everyone was too busy doing their own thing to sit down.

"Good morning Elizabeth!" My Mom chirped, "My baby looks so old."

I started eating the breakfast my Mom cooked every year on the first day of school, bacon, eggs, and fresh-cut fruit. 

"Are you excited, Zibby?" My Dad asked, smoothing out his suit

Zibby one of my tens of thousands of nicknames.

The stupid childhood nickname that my Dad gave to me. Even though I hated the nickname, it always somehow made me feel safe and secure.

The difference was only my dad called me Zibby.

I shrugged, "Kinda nervous since Asher, Parker, and Lydia talked about how much they hated junior year."

Asher gave me a reassuring smile, "You'll be fine, you're one of those people who are smart without trying."

"Thanks, Ash, I wish." I said as I started to be eat

God, he really was sleep-deprived if he was being this nice.

"Excited for our visit to Vanderbilt?" My parents asked Asher

Vanderbilt was his dream college.

They had an amazing baseball team and academics. It was the only college that Asher wanted to go to.

'You know it." my brother responded. 

All of a sudden someone waltzed into our living room holding a box of donuts.

"I knew you were gonna show up sooner or later!" My Dad started as he jumped up

My Dad loved Parker like he was his second son. He kind of was since he was over here so much.

"I know Mr. Vinny, that's why I bought your favorite donuts. Don't worry, Ellie, they put chocolate in here for you." He assured me

I gave him a small smile, "You're such a saint, Parker."

He gave me a wink in return as he talked to my parents. Apparently, his parents had a big gala coming up the weekend that Asher and my parents would be in Nashville.