Learning Together

8 ¤ A Night Alone

Violet had watched her dad leave the house, dressed up and, in what appeared to be, a chipper mood. She knew he was going to see her. She snorted in annoyance as the door closed. He hadn't even said anything to her.
          
Trying not to dwell on it, because it would just infuriate her, Violet got off of the couch and went to the kitchen, not sure if she was even hungry. It looked like she was fending for herself tonight even if she wasn't ready to eat.
          
After checking the refrigerator and freezer, she turned to the pantry just to be disappointed. There was food, but nothing she wanted. She entertained the idea of creating something before deciding she didn't want to cook.
          
After a few seconds, she remembered that her dad had his card information already saved on the Papa John's website. It took her ten minutes of debating between a papadia and a zesty Italian trio to make her decision. She grabbed her phone and ordered her the pizza for tonight and the papadia for tomorrow. 
          
Afraid she wouldn't hear if someone came to the door if she was upstairs, Violet plopped down on the couch again. After a few minutes of scrolling through the menu, she picked a movie she hadn't watched in a long while. 
          
Her heart wasn't in it though. She picked a random channel and felt nothing. This happened several more times before she realized that she didn't want to watch anything. She wasn't even sure what she wanted to do.
          
Trying to occupy her wait time and keep her mind off of her dad, she grabbed her phone again. She was about to start a text to Hannah when she changed her mind. She knew she wouldn't be focused, so there was no point.
          
Just then, the doorbell rang. She jumped up, ran to the door, and gave the delivery girl a huge smile. After signing for the food, she accepted the boxes and locked the door. She made her way to the kitchen to put her papadia in the fridge and then went straight to her room.
          
The smell of the pizza made her mouth water. She couldn't wait to eat. She opened the box to see the best looking blend of cheese, meats, and banana peppers she'd ever seen. 
          
After taking her first bite, she remembered two things - her phone was still downstairs and she needed a drink. 
          
Groaning, Violet turned, with her slice of pizza in her hand and made her way down the stairs to the kitchen. She was chomping on the slice as she grabbed the phone off of the couch. 
          
As she made her way to the refrigerator to grab a canned soda, she saw that someone had sent her a text. 

Hey honey. Why don't you treat yourself and order a pizza? I love you. 
         

Violet rolled her eyes. Kinda late, dad. She didn't even bother sending him a reply. It wasn't like he'd notice anyway.
          
Popping the last bite of the slice of pizza into her mouth, she bounded upstairs and made a b-line for the food. Grabbing another slice, Violet grabbed the box and moved everything to her desk. 
          
In between bites of food and sips of drink, Violet typed away, determined to get her story perfect. 

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Writer's block was getting to be a real pain in the butt. 
          
Violet groaned in frustration. Her latest chapter just wasn't going the way she'd wanted it to go and she wasn't sure how to fix it. She wasn't even sure she liked the original idea she'd had. 
          
Smashing the backspace, Violet got rid of it all. And then had a mini panic attack.

What if it was good? What if you're just paranoid? Maybe you just need a quick break.

She clicked on the backward arrow to retrieve the work, just in case.

Violet rolled herself back and stretched. She decided that a shower might help. 
          
She took her time. She shaved, washed her hair, cleaned her body. As she dried herself off, she struggled to figure out how to move her story to the next part. But nothing was coming to her. 

The whole night just made her feel blah.
          
Violet traipsed back into her room, took one look at the computer and decided to call it a night on writing. She saved her work, shut down the computer, and sprawled across her bed. 
          
She remembered after a few minutes, there was a book she needed to read for her literature class. She knew they'd have a quiz on it soon and she was a few chapters behind. 
          
Letting out a heavy sigh, Violet rolled to the end of her bed and reached down for her backpack. Trying to put as little effort into finding the book as possible, Violet felt around for a few minutes. 
          
She wasn't having any luck and it was irritating her. Groaning, Violet gave in and hefted the bag onto her bed; the book was right on top. She gave the book an annoyed look and sighed.
          
Once she had the book, she leaned against the headboard and began to read. Or tried to at least.
          
She couldn’t focus on the words and reread the same sentence several times. Frustration overwhelmed her and she felt her temper starting to get out of hand.
         
"What is wrong with me?" Violet tossed the book down and got up. She grabbed her phone and just stared at it. She really had no idea what she wanted to do. 

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There was a loud thumping sound that reverberated through her body and lights flashed all around. He smiled down at her with his eyes twinkling.

She felt content and this was the only place in the world she wanted to be. Sighing, she laid her head against his chest and felt his hands glide across her back until his arms had tightened around her, shielding her from everything.

She lost track of time as they swayed to the music. At some point, he whisked her away to take a commemorative picture of their first school dance as a couple instead of just friends.

A loud thud made Violet jerk away from Damien, her eyes fluttering as she realized that it had been a dream. She lay still as she heard her father come up the stairs.

After a few moments, her door opened only for it to close.

He couldn't be bothered to actually come check on me?

Violet let out an aggravated huff before beating her pillow to a lumpy puff and going back to sleep.

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