Chapter XVII

A Chapter by Calypso

Chapter XVII

“Is there anywhere you want to stop on the ride back to school?” Celia asked. She took the bag from January and sat it in her trunk.

“I can’t think of anything.”

Celia bit her lips “We’re leaving early so that we could do some shopping. Why not at least stop at Starbucks?”

January felt cornered so she responded. “What ever you want. I don’t care if she shop.”

Celia’s face lit up as if January had granted her something wonderful. “Good, there are has to amazing shops between Virginia and New York.”

January finished putting her bags in the trunk and said. “Could we stop by the Starbucks by the intersection before we take Nonna and Nonno to the airport? I need a big cup of love.” To January a ‘cup of love’ is coffee.

Celia began to squeeze Nonno and Nonna’s large suitcase behind January things when she answered. “I’m sure they won’t kind. In fact Nonna may want a cup of coffee to help her sober up. Right Nonna?”

Nonna had just stepped outside and has walked outside when Celia said her last sentence.

“Che cosa?”

“I was just telling January that I’d bet you’d like a cup of coffee before going back to Chicago.”

The night before Nonna had drunk one too many glasses of wine, which she may do twice a year, one on Christmas and the other time at New Year’s Eve.

Nonna waved to dismiss the idea but when they came to Starbucks she ordered a coffee with two shots of espresso. Nonno has skipped on the coffee but was kind enough to pick up the bill for Nonna, Celia and January.

After dropping Noon and Nonna at the airport January tried to read a Manga but she would have rather watch the shining snow pass by.

January noticed that Celia had placed a car scent on her mirror to mace the scent of stake cigarettes. You could still smell them in the interior, which she noticed when she laid down in the back.

Celia was trying to have a conversation but January kept saying that she wanted to sleep or that she had a headache.

They passed by the cafes and shops that Celia had raved about; they passed by ski resorts and museums Celia was dying to visit. They did stop three times though. Twice was for a bathroom break and the other time they were near New York and Celia said that she wasn’t going to let January ruin her good time and she went to a mall. January laid in the backseat, sleeping until her sister came back and turned on the heat for January.

Celia came back in hour later with bags on her arms and a coffee in one hand. It was a good thing she had come too because she only had enough gas to drive to the nearest gas station and fill up.

She said she had bought something for January but after filling up her car she forgot to tell her what it was.

It took them an hour to come to NYC.

“So what now January? We’re back a day early. Do you want to go to your school or mine?”

When she left for Christmas Break she never realized that there was a dread buried deep inside of her. ABAU is where Jared would be when she came back; he would still be a student. She found herself trying to think of reasons to stay away from school but she never had the energy to propose anything.

“Sure.”

Naturally Jamie was more then welcome to have January for the night. They pulled a thick sleeping bag from under Celia bed and they managed to deform and squeeze her luggage until they where neatly under Jamie’s bed.

Again Celia wanted to do something but January tucked herself into the sleeping bag and slept for three hours.

When she woke the sun had set and the streetlamp’s orange light came though the open venation blind.

Her feet like they would burst open. Jamie was mumbling something off into the distance. January groped the bag until she ripped if off herself. Her feet looked like sweet potatoes and her fingers looked like sausages.

Her socks were cutting deep into her skin and she almost cried out but instead her ripped them too off.

“Celia January’s up.” Jamie whispered.

Celia looked up from her e-reader and asked. “Are you okay? All you’ve been going lately is sleeping.”

January realized she was crying when she touched her face to see if it was swollen. Her fingers and feet hurt.

“January.” Celia said loudly. “January! Are you okay?”

Celia keeled down onto the floor to look January in the face. Jamie sat her laptop on her bed and tired to fit in the floor but couldn’t.

“Are you…okay?”

January’s mind was blank but she tried to fight though the fog to talk. “Never better.”

“Aww Sweetie…” Jamie cooed. She began to press a tissue against her face. “Is there anything you want to talk about?”

She felt embarrassed almost ashamed for crying. Under the sadness she had been trying to suppress was the desire to tell someone about the rape and almost abortion.

She knew that if she said anything everyone would disown her and think of her as a s**t, w***e or worse. January couldn’t think up on the spot all the horrible things that could happen if she told but she knew that keeping everything a secret was rule number 1 in her life now.

“No, nothing.” January hit the tissue from her face.

Jamie retracted back as if her ego was injured too.

Rule number 2 telling the truth would hurt more then anything else.

Celia had tried to get January to speak many times during the night. She had offered to buy ice cream to make her hurt less but January ended up throwing that up.

The night came and January sat up the whole night reading from Celia’s e-reader and once dawn was upon them she crawled back to the safety of her sleeping bag. If she wasn’t struggling with the question of wither God was real or not she would have prayed to be left alone from the whole world for the next year.

Jamie drove January to ABAU and tried again to find out what had upset January the night before but everyone she choose to be quiet because to be frank she too had no clue as to way she just broke out into tears.

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