Sunday, June 30.
"DADDY!" Arabella yelled, walking to her bedroom door and looking down the stairs. "Have you seen my black Jimmy Choos?"
"What the hell is a Jimmy Choo?" Her father's voice floated up from the second floor and Arabella groaned.
"Never mind!" She called back to him, turning back into her bedroom and letting out a sigh. Arabella walked around her room, tossing a few things onto her bed as she went. The year was already coming to an end and she would be going back to camp in the morning. Her exctiment was almost impossible to contain. It had been the longest that she had ever been away from camp and she had to get back. She needed it. Arabella could feel it in her soul. She took a little breath before padding over to her bed and flopping down so that she could start folding her stuff and tucking it into her bag. Arabella didn't have to pack as much, since she was going to be coming home again when the summer was over. But she was worried about being under packed and the last thing she wanted was to forget something important.
Arabella couldn't wait to see Daniel again and gossip with him. She was looking forward to spending time with her friends again, hanging out with Ethan, seeing Hunter again. Arabella let out a little sigh and she slipped a pair of flip flops into her bag. The wait was the worst. All she could do was sit and wait and think about what the next day would hold. She was looking forward to seeing everyone again but she was nervous, too. Arabella had sent a letter to Hunter, confessing all of her feelings, and he never replied to it. She was with Ethan now and she loved him, but she didn't want to mess up her friendship with Hunter and she certainly didn't want there to be any awkwardness.
There was a little yip from the ground and Arabella looked over the edge of her bed, smiling a little bit when she saw Gracie. She picked up the small puppy, placing her on the bed. "Hello, pretty girl" She said softly, scratching the top of her head. Gracie barked, spun around in a circle then jumped up at Arabella. Laughing, Arabella picked her up around her middle and placed her in her bag. "You fit into my luggage perfectly, Gracie" Arabella laughed as Gracie popped her head out. Arabella helped her out of the bag and placed her down on the pillow, where she ran in a circle before flopping down and closing her eyes.
Arabella slid off of her bed and she started walking around, looking for anything that she might have missed. As she moved around her bedroom, Arabella thought about the past few months. 9 months. 9 months away from camp. 9 months with a boyfriend. 9 months at a mortal school. Already, it was starting to feel like a dream. Like it didn't really happen. Arabella couldn't believe that she had been able to spend so much time away from camp and around her family.
But she was eager to get back. Her father was working a lot, reminding Arabella of why she left in the first place. Mortal school had been difficult, too. Arabella had made friends, kind of, and she had worked her way into the group of popular girls but it still wasn't easy. She had to work so hard everyday to keep herself in that little group. If she had done anything wrong, anything at all, they could ruin her. The school work felt nearly impossible. She had trouble focusing and keeping the information in her mind. Most of what she had been learning felt useless. When was she going to need algebra in real life? She would much rather be working on her archery skills.
Arabella grabbed a couple issues of Vogue, slipping it into her bag along with the journal she had gotten for her birthday. She just had a little bit of packing left but it was already late in the evening. Arabella wanted to get her packing done as soon as possible so that she could go to bed early and get up in time for tomorrow morning. They were going to have to get up really early and then they were meeting Ethan. Together, they were going to drive back out to camp and try to get there before lunch time. Ethan had told her that he was looking forward to going back to camp, too. He missed his siblings and he missed the camp. Of course, he wouldn't actually tell her that he missed it but she could tell.
With a little sigh, Arabella pulled off the jeans that she had been wearing then slipped into a pair of yoga shorts. She yawned as she put a bag full of shampoo, conditioner, body wash, face wash, sunscreen and other toiletries she had bought earlier that day into her bag. Arabella glanced around her room, figuring that she had pretty much packed everything that she needed. There was only one thing that she was missing.
Arabella knelt down and she pulled a shoe box out from under her bed. She opened it and started flipping through the envelopes that were stuffed inside. It was all of her letters to Hunter. Letters that she had written to him almost every day that she was gone. They held everything she had been thinking and feeling this whole time. How she had let go of her feelings for Hunter, how she felt after Ethan tried to sleep with her, how much she missed Hunter. Everything was in those letters. They were more like a diary than actual letters. With a little sigh, Arabella shoved the box into her bag and zipped it closed. She knew that it was silly, but she didn't want to leave them at her house. If they were with her, they would feel a lot more protected and she needed to keep them safe.
She placed her bag on the floor and walked over to her doorway. "I'm going to bed, Daddy! Good night!"
"Good night, sweetheart! See you in the morning. I love you!" Her father's voice called and she smiled a little bit.
"Love you, too!" Arabella called back then walked over to her bed, nudging Gracie off of the pillow. She laid down and took a deep breat before turning off the light. Gracie whimpered a little before stumbling over to Arabella's side and curling up.
As Arabella fell asleep, she smiled a little bit, excited for the next day.