Between the Words

2- Exasperated

       My summer has been uneventful since that day in the book store. Besides the fact that my best friend Lillie had come back from China. I have spent my days reading and hanging out with my two friends. I haven't seen Gabriel around, not that I looked. I sigh and get up from my bed with a jump.

"Lila, dinner!" My dad yells. As I am walking down the stairs of my smallish house my brother, Will races down the stairs before I can make it to the bottom. He turns around sticks out his tongue at me. I roll my eyes and flip him off.
"Kids! No shenanigans until after dinner, I am hungry!" My dad yells from the kitchen

My little sister Gemma and my dad were seated. As I am just sitting down, Will is already digging in. While Will and I may look alike with our brown hair and light greenish blue eyes, our personality couldn't be more different. Three years ago my family was fractured when my mom and my brother were hit by a drunk driver. The driver hit the car on the drivers side so my mom took the brunt of the hit. My brother only had minor injuries, he twisted his ankle when he was thrown around from the impact, but he was conscious enough to call 911. By the time me and my dad had arrived at the hospital, my mom had been put in a medically induced coma to reduce the brain swelling. I had been at a soccer tournament with my dad which was an hour away when the accident happened. I have never forgiven myself for not being there before they put my mom in a coma. She stayed in that state for about two days before she died to a heart complication from the crash. Me and my brother dealt with her death in different ways. While Will threw himself into soccer and getting ready for the next high school season. I withdrew from everyone except my dad, Gemma and Lillie. I found solace in my books, when I read I feel removed from the pain. I can focus on the problems of the characters in my books instead of my own. Gemma was only 9 when she died, she seems to be doing fine now, though you can never be sure with her. Sometimes I feel like Will has been able to fully move on from Mom's death because he was able to say goodbye.

"LILA!" I jerk out of my thoughts with a start. I glance at my dad with wide eyes.
"What?" I say in exasperation. He just rolls his eyes at me.
"Sometimes I wonder where you go, and if it's warm there, please take me with you." This conversation tends to happen a lot as I am pretty spacey.
" I was just thinking" I say, not wanting to let on to what I was daydreaming about.
"Whatever you say honey"

I look away and begin scarfing down the lasagna, one thing that everyone in my family has in common is that we know how to eat. Gemma starts talking about how much fun she had at soccer camp. That is another thing about our family, we are soccer crazy. When I was younger I used to be playing soccer all the time.. But after the accident, i didn't feel like playing anymore when I knew that my mom would never be in the stands cheering me on again. But that didn't mean my soccer career was over, I still help out my brother with practicing in the off season. He plays for the varsity team at our high school. He may claim to be the best, and that may be what the rest of the school thinks. But we both know that I could take him any day. That reminds me, I want to practice some drills with Will before school starts in a couple of weeks.

Before I can bring it up to him the front door opens with a bang. The only person who would barge into my house like that is Lillie. As she comes into the kitchen I glance at my dad with a pleading expression. He raises an eyebrow before nodding. I grin at him a jump up from the table. While I am clearing my place Lillie strolls in.
"Hey Mr. Shaw, hey dork 1, and dork 2." My dad, brother and sister greet her back respectively. They don't find it unusual for Lillie to come strolling in. We have been best friends since diapers, because our moms were really close.

Once I am finished we race out of the house and head to her new car, an adorable Mini Cooper. I sigh in jealousy, my dad couldn't afford to buy me and Will a car since we were only a year apart so we had to share a used Nissan. Which is a pretty nice car, but sharing with Will is a nightmare as he is a selfish git.
"Lila!" Lillie says, snapping her fingers in front of my face. I turn toward her and cock my head to the side in question.
"So I was thinking we could go to the diner, I haven't seen Drew since I got back from China."
Drew was our other best friend, he also plays for the high school soccer team. Lillie and I had met Drew in six grade when some kid was making fun of Drew for being half Japanese. Middle schoolers tend to be assholes so this was nothing new for him. But Lillie and I didn't like it one bit, so, in normal Lillie fashion, she went up to the kid and kicked him where the sun don't shine. And we have all been best friends ever since.

I nod my head. I have only hung out with Drew twice since Lillie has been away. I have been meaning to talk to him soon anyway. For a while now, I have had the sneaking suspicion that Drew likes Lillie. Today was the day to ask him about it. I look out the window and smirk evilly.