11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Stella

“What am I going to do without you?” Lou sighs, tugging the ends of her baggy t-shirt past anything considered to be fashionable or flattering.

“Oh, Lou. It’s just three weeks, we will be back in this cramped living space before you know it.” I’m throwing the last of my clothes into the open suitcase lying on the ground, my other two already zipped up and ready to go by the door.

Hey, it’s still three weeks. A girl needs to have options when it comes to attire.

“I know but I’m going to miss you.” Lou sniffs slightly, her downcast eyes looking at my dorm’s slightly-cleaner-but-still-unfortunate floor.

“I’m going to miss you too, hon. Come here.” I walk over and wrap my arms tightly around my best friend, “I’ll Facetime you every day, okay? Plus, I can’t wait to hear how meeting the parents go.”

Lou squeezes me back with a groan, “I can’t believe Wes talked me into spending a whole week at his house.”

I pat her back in reassurance, “The good news is he gets to suffer the same treatment for the last week of break.”

“That is true.” Lou’s face brightens, “And my dad is supposed to be home for a couple of days this time, so he’ll get to meet Wes too.”

Poor guy. From what I’ve heard of Lou’s ecologist father, the man spends most his time talking about work even on the rare occasion he isn’t at work. Hope Wes has brushed up on Canadian ecological systems.

“This will be a good test for you two. If you don’t hate each other after spending a whole week with each other’s family, you two can get through anything.”

Lou sighs, “I hope so. Do you need help with that?”

The question catches me mid-grunt, while I’m trying to use my body weight to get the zipper of my suitcase to close. This is probably why most people don’t bring alltheir clothes home over break, but I’ve already committed.

The O’Brien’s are stubborn, remember?

“Could you just…” I gesture wildly to the other side of the suitcase and by some miracle Lou gets my message. She walks over and climbs aboard, the two of us barely managing to stay on top of a wobbling suitcase.

“I’ve almost got it!” I tug painfully at the small zipper, the piece of metal cutting into my fingers as I heave it forward, barely moving it an inch.

“Don’t think I want to know what’s going on right now.”

The sound of a male’s voice fills the room and Lou immediately stops squirming beside me. She snaps upright in a way that tells me exactly who has found his way to our dorm.

I huff, not bothering to look at my brother as the zipper teasingly shifts forward, “Feel free to take the other suitcases to the car. I’ll be out in a sec.”

Mo chuckles, the familiar sound making me smile, “And miss the show? Hell, no. Nice to see you again, Lou.”

I’m almost completely upside down at this point but I still manage to see my roommate blush at the friendly nod my brother gives her.

Even with Wes on the scene, I can’t blame the girl. My older brother has a certain aura that commands attention. And when he chooses to bestow that attention on to you, you feel like the most special person on this planet. Doesn’t help that he looks like a character from a gladiator movie.

You know the movie where shirtless guys fight to death? Gerard Butler in all his glory? Yeah, Mo didn’t get his nickname Mighty just for his moves on the lacrosse field.

“Nice to see you too, Mo.” Lou squeaks out the words, her fingers nervously fiddling with the daisy charm on her necklace.

Thank God blood relation and sibling bickering made me immune to his charms.

“Done!”

After forever and a day, the zipper finally gives way and my third suitcase zips itself closed. I hop off the pink material without an ounce of elegance or grace and go charging towards my brother.

“Hey, stranger.” He chuckles as I tackle him in a hug.

“Hey, yourself. You ready to go?” His pale blue eyes do a sweep of my room, a smirk tugging at his mouth when his eyes flick past my closet that is almost completely empty.

“Give me a few minutes to say goodbye and then I’ll be ready to go.”

He nods, shooting Lou a smile before ducking out of the room. I turn back towards my roommate, the girl who has slowly become a permanent fixture in my life and in my heart.

My bravado from earlier starts to wear off and I feel my lips tremble as I hug her one last time, “We’ll talk every day, okay?”

Lou isn’t that tall, but I still have to go on my tiptoes to whisper in her ear. Short people really aren’t built for sentimental moments.

“Okay.” Her voice trembles like she’s also struggling to keep the emotions at bay.

“Oh! I almost forgot.” I scurry over to my nightstand and pull out an artfully wrapped box that I spent way too long perfecting weeks ago.

“Merry Christmas, Sis.” I go to pass her the gift, but Lou bolts from the room, leaving me standing there awkwardly with the gift dangling from my fingertips.

At least the wrapping looks amazing.

Lou reappears two minutes later, huffing from her 10-meter sprint. She’s also clutching something in her hands, making my heart pound with excitement. I can’t remember the last time someone who wasn’t my brother bought me something.

“Merry Christmas, Stella. Thank you for always being there for me.” She’s still panting from the short burst of cardio, and I almost laugh when we make the trade.

If I live for cardio circuits, Lou lives to avoid them.

Lou gingerly pokes the pristine white bow decorating her box, a crease appearing between her brows, “It looks too pretty to open.”

I shake my head with a smile, “Go on, I’ve been waiting for you to tear that apart.”

Okay, that may have been a lie.

But I am excited to see her reaction for what lies inside.

Carefully pulling at the bow, Lou slowly peels back the paper and gasps when she lifts the lid, “Oh, Stella. It’s lovely.”

She holds up a silver bracelet with a single guitar-shaped charm hanging off the end. Her boyfriend stole my mojo with the cutesy initial and flower necklace, so I had to go for her other passion: alternative rock music.

“Now you’ll always have something to remember our Punk Rockers Event by.”

Lou beams as she slides the delicate chain around her wrist, “I love it. This is so much better than those leather pantsuits. Thank you, Stella.”

She shoots a quick look at the gift still untouched in my hands and blushes deeply, “I’m sorry about the wrapping paper. It was a bit of a last-minute situation.”

I laugh, waving away her concerns, “The obituary section from last week’s newspaper is all I’ve ever wanted for Christmas.”

Lou gasps, “It’s not the obituary section, is it? Oh, Stella, I’m so sorry. I thought I used the weather segment.”

The seriousness in her expression only makes me laugh harder.

“Cheers to making it another year!” My hilarity is contagious and soon we are both cracking up, tears running down our faces as I gasp for air.

“I’m just joking, Lou. You didn’t have to get me anything. This means… This means a lot.”

Still giggling uncontrollably, Lou gestures towards the gift, “Don’t thank me yet. It could be last year’s obituary hidden in there.”

I grin, tearing into the clumsily wrapped gift. A simple black frame tumbles into my hands, a roommate selfie Lou and I took during one of our many outings this semester. We are smiling cheek-to-cheek, friendship and happiness overflowing from the captured moment.

My breath catches as I read the sparkly sticker letters added to the bottom of the frame.

Roommates for now, Sisters for life.

“I, uh, noticed you didn’t have any pictures in your room, so I though this could be the first.” Lou nervously tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, my silence doing nothing to help her discomfort.

Truth is, I’m speechless.

“No, it’s just…” I trail off, unsure how to explain the love and gratitude flowing through my veins. “It’s just so thoughtful. Thank you, Lou.” Emotions clog my throat as I pull her back for yet another hug.

“I know exactly where to put it.”

Cody

“But like, what if her parents don’t like me?”

Wes pales, his characteristic confidence nowhere in sight, “Oh God. What if her dad doesn’t like me?”

I hold back a laugh, clapping the rookie on the back.

“You’re overthinking this, man. Just be yourself.” I pause before adding, “But maybe don’t flirt with the mom this time.”

Wes groans, “I can’t help it. That woman is like fine wine.”

Walking by with a dissembled lacrosse net thrown over his shoulder, Nico snorts, “Please. You’re so whipped at this point the MILF won’t get a second thought.”

Hunter quips up from his position on the ground, “Wes finally found a girl to carry his balls around.”

“I’ll have you know,” Using one hand to grab his junk, Wes uses the other to flip Hunter the bird. “My balls are exactly where Trip likes them.”

“I can attest to that fact.” Nico holds up his hand and earns himself a high five from his best friend, the junk holder.

I call for attention with a clap of my hands, “That was a good last practice, team. I’ve got to run but I hope everyone has a good break. Make decently smart decisions!”

“Who said anything about being decent?”

Nico’s voice fades as I exit the gym, taking a quick detour to the locker room to grab my bag and change into some weather-appropriate clothes.

Now all that’s left to do is appease a furious 4’11 platinum blonde for a 13-hour car drive.

“What the hell is he doing here?” Stella’s long braid whips back and forth as her head swivels between her brother and me.

It’s safe to say I forgot to tell her about my new plans for the break.

“Ellsworth is joining us this year!” Mo cheerily shouts the words from inside the popped trunk, his wide frame all but disappearing into the back of the Cadillac with a large, bright pink suitcase.

“And you didn’t think to clear that with me?” Stella’s eyes flash angrily, her temper visibly rising behind the not-so-cool façade.

“Since when do you care if I bring friends home?”

Stella huffs, “When it happens to coincide with my break and the time I get to spend with my brother, I think I’m allowed to have an opinion on the topic.”

Mo emerges from the trunk, his pressed pants and dress shirt completely crease-free from the action. His perfectly styled, light brown hair looks equally untouched.

Sometimes I wonder if he’s photoshopped.

“I thought you and Ellsworth were tight. You talk about him all the time.” Mo gestures towards my small duffel bag, “You want that in the back?”

“Nah, I’m good.”

Sneaking a glance at Stella, I bite my cheek to keep from laughing at her pinkening face. At this point, I can’t tell if it’s from anger, embarrassment, or simply being in my presence.

“I don’t talk about him all the time.” She growls the words, climbs into the passenger seat, and slams the door shut.

Mo smirks, “She’ll get over it. You talk about her just as much.”

And there goes the smile from my face.

“Looks like you’ve got the back. It’s good to see you, man.” A charming smile and a hard back slap are all I get before Mo climbs into the driver’s seat and starts the engine.

Here goes nothing.

Taking one last breath of sanity, I open the door and clamber in behind Stella.

The second my seatbelt clicks into place, her seat cranks back as far as possible, almost disabling me in the process. Within seconds, my leg space goes from comfortable to nonexistent, forcing me to shift sideways so I don’t spend the entire drive kneeing Stella in the spine.

As tempting as that may be.

A young Justin Bieber starts crooning out of the speakers, the repetitive tune of my childhood only slightly less painful than my leg situation. An evil grin flashes at me through the side mirror and I sigh, leaning my head back and closing my eyes with defeat.

This is going to be a long drive.