Dance With Me In the Pouring Rain

The sunlight streaming in from the window woke me, prising my eyelids open and shooing away the last of sleep. Muttering to myself, I threw off the covers, frowning at the empty space next to me. It was early, very early - seven o'clock according to the clock hanging on the wall.

Pulling on yesterday's clothes, I headed out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind me. I padded softly downstairs, peering down the hall through the open door to the kitchen.

Tory was sitting on the counter by the window, her knees up and her arms resting on top of them. She was staring out at the garden, her head cocked to one side. She was clearly deep in thought, but as I approached the kitchen cautiously, her hand snapped round in shock. Seeing that it was just me, she smiled, beckoning me forward with her index finger.

"Hi," she whispered, beaming at me.

"Hi," I whispered back. "Why are we whispering?"

"Everyone else is asleep, idiot," she informed me, smiling. "Did I wake you?"

"The curtains were open," I replied.

"Ah," she grimaced. "Sorry. I didn't mean to. Reflex."

"It's fine," I assured her, pulling myself up to sit on the counter opposite her. "So... you got a reason to be up this early or are you just plain weird?"

She rolled her eyes at me. "I like being up when no one else is. It's quiet. Peaceful."

"Yep, you're just plain weird," I teased.

She narrowed her eyes at me. "Oi. You have to be nice to me or I'll throw you out on the street."

I clutched my chest in mock-horror. "Oh, dear lord, not that! How on earth would I survive?"

She leaned over and whacked me on the arm. "So what are you doing today?"

"Um, not much I don't think," I replied. "Probably just lazing around, doing whatever."

"Well, I think you should see your dad," Tory informed me bluntly.

I stared at her, my mouth hanging open. "What, don't you want me here any more?"

"No, it's not that," she assured me hurriedly. "I love having you stay. But it's not permanent; it was never meant to be."

"Tory, I've only been here a couple of days," I muttered.

"I know, and you're welcome to stay as long as you like. But you have to sort things out between you as soon as you can because the longer you leave it, the harder it gets."

I sighed. I could hardly argue with that logic. "Yeah, I suppose you're right."

"Of course I am," she replied confidently.

I rolled my eyes at her to cover my nervousness. "Yeah, yeah. I'll do it soon. Couple of days, tops."

Tory nodded, smoothing her hair behind her ear. Taking my hand in hers, she jumped down from the counter, pulling me down with her.

"What do you want for breakfast, then?" she asked brightly. "We've got cereal, cereal and... more cereal."

I chuckled at her. "I guess I'll have cereal, then. Cheerios, if you will."

"Me? Who said anything about me?" she teased. "You can make your own breakfast."

"Charming," I muttered, glaring at her. "So much for being a good hostess."

She stuck her tongue out at me. "And while you're at it, make me a bowl, why don't you?"

She danced off out of the kitchen, leaving me standing in the kitchen, staring wordlessly after her.

---

The rest of the week went by in a similar fashion. Mostly, Tory and I either hung out around the house watching movies or whatever, or when the weather wasn't too bad we'd go out to the park. I felt like I was neglecting my mates a little, though, so when the weekend rolled around and Tory went to town with her friends, I decided to go to Kyle's.

Pressing the doorbell, I shifted impatiently from foot to foot, humming absentmindedly under my breath. Kyle opened the door a couple of minutes later, a frown knitting his eyebrows together.

"Well, look who it is," he said sarcastically. "The prodigal best friend."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Nice to see you too, Kyle. Is Jordan here?"

"Yep, and Hassan," he replied. "He got back a little while ago and he's been at mine ever since to avoid his parents."

"Why?" I asked curiously.

Kyle stifled a laugh, looking highly amused. "Come inside, Fletchy, and all will be revealed."

He shut the door behind me and led me up to his room. Hassan and Jordan were lying on their stomachs opposite the TV, watching a film of some kind. It looked suspiciously like one of the Terminator films, though I couldn't tell which.

"Hey," I greeted them, plonking myself down next to them. Yep, Terminator. The second one, by the looks of it. "How was your holiday, Hassan?"

He merely grunted, not taking his eyes off the screen. Kyle rolled his eyes, joining us on the floor.

"Come on," he reasoned, stifling his smile, "it wasn't that bad."

"What?" I asked, feeling more lost than ever.

Hassan sighed and, with great effort, tore his eyes away from the TV to look at me. "My brother's getting married."

My eyes widened. "Whoa. Really?"

He nodded glumly. "My parents found him a bride while we were in Iraq. Her name's Huda and she seems pretty decent, I guess."

"So it's an arranged marriage?" He nodded again. "And he's happy with it?"

"Amir's proper religious," Hassan informed me. "He doesn't want to have a girlfriend or anything before he gets married."

"Right," I said slowly. "That's good, isn't it?"

He shrugged. "I guess. It's just weird."

"But that isn't the best part," Kyle chuckled. "Tell him, Hassan."

"I’m glad you’re finding this funny,” Hassan retorted. He turned back to me. “Huda has a sister the same age as us.”

I frowned, clueless, but then it hit me. "Oh. Right." I bit back a smile. "Well, that kind of... sucks. Do you think they’re going to try and get you together?"

"I wouldn’t put it past them," he said grimly. "So, how have your holidays been so far?"

"Well, I'm grounded, Jordan's dad is back and Fletch is living with Tory 'cause his dad hit him," Kyle replied nonchalantly.

Hassan's eyes widened. "Whoa. That must be pretty harsh, Fletch."

"Hello, did you miss the fact that I'm grounded?" Kyle exclaimed.

Jordan rolled his eyes. "Kyle, you can be a right insensitive prick sometimes."

Kyle smiled sardonically. "Thanks for the sometimes, Jordan. How's things with your dad?"

He winced. "I wish I could believe that he's changed, but sometimes, I catch him with this look in his eyes. It scares the crap out of me."

We sat there in solemn silence for a few long, drawn-out seconds, avoiding each others' eyes.

"So," Kyle said suddenly, "that was sufficiently awkward. Who's up for a Halo tournament?"