Growing Up

“Are you sure you want us to come with you guys?” Dallon asked.

Tori nodded, “yeah of course you guys are awesome. Besides we have to win you over so you don’t hog our precious little Spencey-poo.”

“Besides, Zack makes me feel like we have a body guard” Claudia added quietly.

Zack laughed and patted her shoulder, “Don’t worry miss, I’ll keep ya safe.”

She blushed, “I didn’t mean to say that out loud, I’m sorry.”

He smiled and waved it off, “wait where did I put my sunglasses,” he sighed and once more walked back into the house to retrieve his sunglasses.

Ryan watched Ian help Spencer load things into the back of Zack’s truck.

Zack emerged from the house, “Okay let’s go.”

“Hey, Breezy said she wanted to come is that okay?”

Ryan was about to ask who Breezy was but Tori cut him off, “God yes, yes bring her!”
Dallon blushed and walked out of earshot to call Breezy.

Ryan assumed Breezy was a girl Dallon was interested in, and had been stupid enough to mention this to Tori. Tori had always had the annoying trait of meddling in other people’s love life. He watched Tori follow Dallon. She was obviously trying to make him tell the Breezy chick that he was interested. Ryan could actually find the humor in Tori’s meddling, when it wasn't directed towards him.

“He must really like her, if he’s willing to take Tori’s advice.”

Ryan smiled at Claudia’s words, “does that mean I’ve never liked anyone that much?”

“No! I didn’t mean that. I just meant he hardly knows her and is willing to take her advice, and I kn-” she paused and let out a sigh, “you’re messing with me aren’t you?”

Ryan snickered. She rolled her eyes and climbed into the van.

“Not it!” Ian called following Claudia into the van.

“Not it.”

“Not it.”

“Well I’m not driving I drove here.”

“Damn it” Tori reluctantly sat in the driver’s seat.

Ryan finally climbed into the seat furthest back and waited for spencer and Brendon to get in the van. He watched Tori fix her lip gloss in the rearview mirror. Eventually she put the lip gloss away and began to apply mascara, by then Ryan had lost interest and was instead watching Claudia text while Ian fumbled through his backpack.

“Alright I have arrived, we may now leave” Spencer announced climbing into the van and shutting the door.

“Can we? I wouldn’t mind leaving Bren behind,” Claudia replied not looking up from her phone.

“Hey. I get that you’re angry at us but why are you taking it out on Brendon. It’s not like he had sex with himself on your bed,” Tori questioned.

Claudia tore her eyes away from her phone, “I’m not angry. Maybe really really grossed out, but I’m not angry.”

Brendon finally got into the passenger seat and shut the door.

“Why would you think I’m angry?”

Tori followed Zack’s truck and gave a small sigh before replying with, “I don’t know.”

“There has to be a reason? Or maybe you’re angry at me. Is it all the things I say about Brendon? He says mean things to me and I say mean things to him that’s how our friendship works, you know that.” Claudia reached over and placed a hand on Brendon’s shoulder, “You know I love you, right fish lips?”

“Yeah of course four-eyes,” Brendon replied with a toothy grin, “but I think we should just be friends.”

Spencer chuckled at Brendon’s comment, “Four-eyes seriously? You wear glasses too.”

“Yeah but I actually look good in mine”

Spencer laughed and shook his head.

Claudia gave Brendon the finger and turned her attention back to Tori, “well did I say or do something to you?”

“I’m not angry at you I just- this would be so much easier if,” Tori sighed, “never mind let’s just drop it.”

Brendon took one of her hands off the steering wheel and laced their fingers together.

“Yeah fine, whatever,” Claudia replied sticking her ear buds in and focusing on her phone.

“Was it like this the whole way here?” Spencer asked quietly.

Ryan shook his head, “nah it was actually really quiet.”

Spencer nodded and rested his head on Ryan’s shoulder, “I’m still sleepy.”

Ryan smiled; he’d missed having Spencer around. Especially with him falling asleep on his shoulder, it reminded him of when they were kids. Spencer asked Ryan questions about the trip, and Ryan asked Spencer about living in California. The van was silent except for the occasional question Spencer asked, and the whispered conversation between Brendon and Tori.

Ryan had begun to doze off, when a sudden noise startled him.

“Oh my god, Ian you’re so cute!” Claudia exclaimed

“Huh?” Ian seemed confused; Ryan figured that he’d been thinking about something else.

Claudia handed her phone to Spencer. Ryan peeked at the phone and smiled at the picture of Ian dressed as Peter pan. Eventually she took the phone back and handed it up to Brendon. He made a joke and handed it back to her.

She smiled at Ian, “I am using it as my background.”

Ian blushed, “where’d you get that?”

“Your mom sent it to me.”

“My mom? Wha- how do you even have her number?”

She gave a small shrug, “when I went to pick you up and you decided that right when we were about to leave was a good time to pack. As if I hadn’t been reminding you to pack all week,” She gave him an ‘I told you so’ look, he rolled his eyes.

She shook her head and continued, “You left me alone with your mom and I’d never met her before; so I had no clue how to act around her. So umm I didn’t know what to say so I told her she was cool for letting you come with us. She talked about how you didn’t want her calling you the whole time, and ya know she loves you and well she’s your mom so it’s natural for her to worry. So anyway I told her she could text me for updates on you . . . and yeah”

Ian shook his head, “so she’s been checking up on me the whole time? I thought she trusted me.”

Claudia glanced back at Spencer and Ryan unsure of what she should say.

“I’m sure she trusts you, she probably doesn’t trust us because we’re all older than you by a
few years,” Ryan offered.

Claudia gave a small nod, “yeah that’s true because I mean she mostly asked questions about the rest of us, when it came to you all she asked were things like ‘is he having fun?’”

Ian gave a slight shrug. He didn’t seem too convinced but smiled, “I was pretty cute as a kid huh?”

Claudia beamed, “the cutest.”

“I don’t know about that I mean he’s pretty cute, but have you seen the picture of Spence in nothing but a snorkel?” Ryan asked with a laugh in his voice.

Brendon clapped his hands together, “that exists?”

Tori giggled, “wait you guys have been friends since you were really young right?”

“Yeah,” Spencer gave her a suspicious look, “why?”

“Then you guys must have pictures of the two of you in a bathtub or something like that.”

Claudia squealed, “oh my god! Dude, dude this is epic. If you guys love me you will dig up that photo and blow it up so I can hang it over the couch.”

Ian laughed, “That is so fucking stupid, and I love it. It needs to happen.”

“I sleep on that couch!” Brendon exclaimed.

“C’mon Bren wouldn’t you like to sleep knowing that Little Spin and Ry are in a bubble bath watching over you?” Claudia said placing a hand on Brendon’s shoulder.

“I for one fully endorse this idea,” Spencer grinned.

“Yeah that’s because you don’t have to live there,” Ryan groaned.

“Exactly,” he replied with a smug look.

“Don’t worry Spin we can always send you a copy for your room; Oh or maybe the snorkel picture blown up for your living room.” Tori laughed.