J   U  S  T       A       S   H   O  R   T      T   U   R  T  L  E   J  O  U       F  L   U   F   F        C   H  A  P  T  E  R    :D

Turtle thought he knew his sister well. He had lived in the same house as her for 14 years-and he knew very well that she didn't like to be contradicted. But never would he have thought she could go this far.

He rushed out of the school gym after Kinkajou, giving Anemone one last look that said clear as day: I am so disappointed in you. But he was also disappointed in himself. Every day he woke up thinking: this is the day I finally gain some confidence and actually do the things I must do. And during the dance today he finally had. He told Kinkajou how he felt about her-but then it had all gone to ruin. Kinkajou stood up for herself-she had all the confidence and courage that Turtle lacked- and this time he wanted to be there for her. But in reality he hadn't done anything but retreat back into his shell, once again a coward.

Kinkajou was out on the steps of the school, just sitting there-it didn't seem like the cold even bothered her, but as he came closer he could see she was shivering-she was in a strapless dress, after all. "Hey..." he said quietly as he sat down on the stairs covered with a thin sheet of snow. She ignored him. Ok, what do I do now? he thought, panicking. Even though Turtle knew all the lyrics to every song in Hamilton, he knew absolutely nothing about girls. "are you...okay?" he asked. 

Kinkajou sighed. "I guess...Your sister just...upset me. Also, mother is going to have my head" She replied, indicating to her stained dress. He put his arm around her. "It's okay...and, about what my sister said-she's wrong, your family does love you-and so do your friends. We will always be there for you." She looked up at him and smiled slightly. "thanks."  

For a few seconds, the two of them just sat there, barely smiling as snowflakes gathered in their hair-and then the silence was broken by Turtle. "umm...wait here a minute, I'll be back soon." He ran inside and snatched something from the snack table. This should cheer her up, he thought. Turtle returned and sat back down next to her. "want a cinnamon roll?" he asked sheepishly, holding out the pastry. "No, that would be cannibalism" Kinkajou replied. (get it? cAuSe Sh'eS a CiNnAmMoN rOll? 1 AM humour, hehe imma head out now...) 

Turtle smiled wide. Back to her old self. this year was rough so far, but  I'm sure it's all smooth sailing from here!

Or so he thought...

I know this chapter wasn't my best, but I wrote it away from home so everything felt kind of weird. Ok, that makes no sense...also I start online school in 2 days, so my updating schedule might be a bit wacky...bye for now!