Midterms come and go and so does my tolerance level. Sebastian has done well to avoid me for the rest of October, not that I was exactly searching him out. The boat is just about getting ready to sail because I'm getting tired of this constant run around. After his confession, my mind has been filled with loads of questions and thoughts. He's all I can think about and I feel like all the work I had done to distance myself, has inevitably come tumbling down.

October was really just a bust. Halloween passed with m doing nothing but handing out candy to the little kitties, orchildren, if you will. This has been the first Halloween that I've felt so lonely. Since elementary school, Jenny and I have been going trick or treating together before Micah joined us in middle school. As we got older, we stopped hunting for candy, instead having movie nights or just hanging out.

Since we are no friends, per se, my Halloween was spent by my lonesome. Even my parents had plans, some costume party they had been invited to. It made me wonder what Jenny and Micah had done that night too.

The shift into November was a lot more smooth, to say the least. I can't say the same for the weather. Though October had been pretty chilly, November was a whole new cold. While I was able to get away with wearing sweaters for warmth a week ago, now I'm bound by a thick jacket to keep the cold at bay. It doesn't help that it's also been raining frequently which isn't extraordinary for Elderwood.

But with rain and wind comes sickness. It's finally hit me as I lay on my bed sniffling and coughing. This could also be an extremely late reaction to helping Sebastian a couple weeks ago. But my house seems to be a thousand degrees and below freezing at the same time. Amy right leg is sitting outside of the covers while the left is nestling safely in the warmth. It only works to have half of my body out so I can be cool and warm at the same time. Flu season is really the worst season.

"Emie, baby, I know this cold is leaving you without an appetite, but you need to eat something." My mom comes into my room, a bowl held in her hands. She has a long dish rag wrapped around the curve of the bowl so her hands don't burn.

"My stomach is in shambles, mom," I say, shaking my head as she holds the bowl out to me. She gives me a small look before setting the bowl on my nightstand.

"Okay, let's see." She bends slightly and places her hand on my forehead, quickly moving to my cheeks and down my neck. "Well, you definitely have a fever. Do you feel nauseous?"

I nod my head because it's the truth. I haven't felt this terrible in a while, save for the common cold, but can I really count that?

"Stomach virus?" I question because that's what I'm thinking it is.

"Maybe, I'd have to take you to the doctor to really see," she gives me an apologetic look, knowing how much I hat the doctors. "Do you want to go or do you want to wait this out? I highly suggest we go, Em."

With my mom working at the local doctors office, she's a bit on the safer side. That's understandable seeing as she is a nurse and she knows how not washing your hands could cause a fatal disease to ravage your body. She's never want that to happen to her child so she naturally would suggest I get a checkup for even a simple cough.

"Yeah," I sigh, resigned because now I'll inevitably have to pee in a cup them get one of those butterfly shots. "I'll go. We can just go for a sick visit, right?"

"Of course, baby." My mom nods.

I'm happy to say that I'm still part of my parents insurance. This is why I still go to a pediatrician though I'm coming up on eighteen years old. As part of her insurance, I'll be covered even when I reach adulthood, but it does stop once I turn twenty-one.

"Up and at em', Emie." My mom claps. She looks around my room before reaching down for a pair of worn out Vans.

* * *

Turns out, I did have a stomach virus. Even after the appointment, I still wasn't sure until I had to roll down the window to vomit. It had caused me to stay out of school for a good two weeks. That meant two weeks of stomach pains and terrible, terrible bodily fluids constantly leaving my body. When I finally got better and only had minor pains, I could tell I had dropped at least one pound during those two weeks.

Thinking about the excess school work gave me hives because I know that it'll be treacherous trying to get it all complete before Thanksgiving break began.

"Pay attention!" I feel a playful slap on my hand. From the shock, I rub it though it didn't hurt, not at all.

Miguel looks at me in askance, his eyes moving between the school work and my face. I give him a pout, silently asking for a break from all of this work. Miguel had been nice enough to collect the two weeks worth of work and bring it over to me. He had actually been the only person to check on me, which is understandable since he's currently my only friend.

"No, Emerson," he shakes his head, curling his lip in disapproval. "Everyone is going to give a test before Thanksgiving break. If you bomb those tests, your grades will plummet. At least you'll have done the work to break the fall."

"What an odd metaphor. You have a way with words, Mister Patel." I smile, trying to break the tension that had started. I'm aware that my grades might not make it after this.

Miguel sihs and shakes his head. He places his hand on the papers, tapping it with his black, mechanical pencil.

"Fine." I glower at him before picking up my notebook and scribbling down answers.

After an hour of working, we finally do decide to take a break. A heavenly smell had started to filter through the crack of my slightly opened door. Smells like my mom had decided to make shrimp alfredo. Now that I could keep food down, I've decided that I'm going to eat my weight in whatever my kitchen holds.

As we begin to make our way to my kitchen, Miguel turns to me, a sheepish smile on his face. "So..." he starts, awkwardly fiddling his thumbs. "Have you decided."

His words make me confused. We haven't exactly talked in two weeks since I had ignored most of his texts until recently. That is until it dawns on me.

"You mean meeting your family?" I question, even though I know that's exactly what he's talking about. Miguel confirms my question with a nod. "I don't know, Miguel, that seems too intimate."

He rolls his eyes and shakes his head as I step off the stairs first, him following. "It's not a date, Emerson, just a friend coming-"

"You guys are dating?" My father calls from his place in the kitchen. My head snaps over to him, my mouth agape.

Since my father had been working on his promotion, this is the first time he's had a chance to eat dinner with us in a while. I'm not sure how his progress has come along, but this must be good or bad if he's here.

"Dad?" I quickly walk over to him, my arms wide for a hug. "Did you get it?"

"Not yet, sweetheart, but I've got it in the bag." My dad places a kiss on my forehead, a small smile on his face. His eyes shoot over to Miguel, his eyebrow raising in confusion. "I'm sorry, you and your mother have failed to keep me up to date with your lives. Who is this and where's Sebastian?"

"Well...about that..." I start, a grimace on my face.

"You know what, I don't want to know," My dad says, causing me to breathe out in relief.

My mom comes up and wraps an arm around my dads waist. She had just cut off the stove and moved the pot onto a cold aisle. She looks up at my dad, rolling her eyes.

"This is Miguel, Emie's new friend," She informs before she turns away to start grabbing plates. "He brought over her school work."

"Well, in that case, welcome to the family." He walks over and pats Miguel on the back who had been silent this whole time.

Looks like I'll need to meet his family to even the score.

*Oh, wow! We're at twenty-one chapters already. I can't even believe it. I'll tell you what, I didn't think we'd come through with this chapter. It's clearly a filler, but I had thought I'd need to scrap the whole beginning because it was slow moving. Anyways, do you guys think Miguel likes Emie? Can you see them together? How did you like this chapter? Please let me know with a comment and don't forget to vote. Thanks for reading.*