Lie of My Life

12 Serenity

I slipped out of his room the next morning before anyone else was awake, being careful not to make any noise at all on my way back to my own. I had just enough time to go inside and change into my clothes for the day before someone was knocking on my door. I opened it to see Emma, cheery and smiling as always. I stifled a yawn as she pushed her way into the room and plopped onto my bed.

"Hey, I just wanted to swing by and say sorry if you heard us last night. I didn't realize our rooms would be so close and- is this bed still made?" she asked, looking around at the perfectly in tact comforter beneath her.

"Oh, I uh- I've been up for a bit so I already made it," I lied.

"Really?" she looked up at me, eyebrows creased. "You don't usually wake up this early."

"I guess Vacation Ava is more excited to start the day than regular Ava."

She laughed at that and stood back to her feet.

"Anyway, you and I have breakfast duty this morning. I thought we could make pancakes," she told me, headed for the door.

"Pancakes sound great," I replied, following after her.

A few minutes later, Emma and I were in the kitchen. I was cracking eggs into the batter while she was frying some separately to eat on the side. I was heavily focused on my mixing when someone entered the kitchen and ran a hand along my spine as they passed for the coffee machine. I stiffened instantly, breath hitching as I watched Carter pour a cup of coffee with a smile beside me. He leaned in when Emma crossed the room to the refrigerator so that his lips were only millimeters from my earlobe.

"I could get used to waking up to you in the kitchen, making me pancakes in the morning," he whispered and I blushed furiously, knocking over the bag of flour in my haste to scramble away from him.

"Oh shoot," I exclaimed, jumping to lift the bag back up before too much of it could fall out. I could see Carter's smirk over the rim of his coffee mug as Emma ran over to help me contain the spill.

"You okay, Ava? What happened?" Emma was saying.

"I just- I forgot it was there and hit it with my elbow. Sorry, Em."

"No worries," Emma assured me and the two of us grabbed some wet paper towels to clean the mess as I did my best to ignore the sensation of Carter's eyes on my ass as I leaned across the counter.

"What's on the agenda today?" Wesley asked as he approached, grabbing an apple from the fruit basket and biting into it as Emma took the soiled napkins to the trash on the opposite side of the room.

"Hiking!" she squealed excitedly which earned her an eye roll from Wesley and an audible groan from my brother.

"Ugh. Physical activity," Aaron sighed and Shane chuckled as Carter clapped him on the back.

"Cheer up man, it might be fun," Carter told him and Aaron narrowed his eyes at one of his oldest friends in response.

"What's gotten into you, man? You're never this cheery in the morning."

I bit back my smile as Carter gave an easy shrug and held up his coffee mug, "Must be the mountain brew."

I turned my attention back to the pancakes and spent the morning flipping and dishing them out before settling in on the porch with a stack of my own and a moment of woodsy peace and quiet. Carter and Aaron had disappeared to prepare the gear for our hike, Wesley was on an unapproved phone call in the driveway, the only place he could find service, and Emma and Shane had disappeared for a few morning activities of their own, leaving me blissfully alone for just a few minutes.