RAIN WAS HARSHLY TAPPING on leonora's roof as she tried to concentrate on writing in her journal, her only sources of light being her candles and salt lamp. leonora valentine continuously chewed on her bottom lip as she mindlessly scribbled down her thoughts. 

she felt oddly anxious about something, she just couldn't put her finger on what. it had been a couple of days since she had last seen her friends and she was beginning to grow bored of laying in bed with a sore throat and headache. 

leonora huffed as she shut her journal and picked her phone up. the girl unlocked the device and pressed on the familiar facetime contact that she had constantly been calling over the past two days. 

"yes, jules?" 

the valentine girl felt a small smile creep onto her face at the nickname, as it had started to grow on her. she propped her phone up on her mirror and stared at the camera. 

"what are you guys up to?" leonora questioned the brunette boy. 

elliot mayz bit his lip as he attempted to flip the camera around, when he did leonora saw the smiling faces of her friends all engaged in a conversation. 

leonora pouted at what she was missing out on while elliot flipped the camera back to his face. 

"ew," she immediately joked, elliot poked his tongue out childishly in response. leonora stayed quiet, listening to the conversation the mayz boy had joined in on. 

if she was being honest, she really missed her friends. they were some of the first people who genuinely liked being around her, even if it took a bit of warming up, they were her people and she wouldn't trade them for the world.

"nora, when will you be back? we miss you tons!" the sweet voice of isabelle spoke through the speakers. leonora smiled and waved at the younger girl.

"hopefully tomorrow, iz! i'm feeling much better though," leonora gave a thumbs up to her camera, earning one back from isabelle. 

elliot barely glanced at his phone as he was mid debate about why setting number twenty-three of fire was a good idea. leonora softly laughed at how passionate he was about committing a crime. 

"any words for our lovely lady leo?" isabelle questioned the group, stealing the phone from elliot. 

paloma instantly raised her hand, waiting for the younger girl to make her way over. 

"hi, leo," paloma grinned, waving into the camera. 

"hi, lola," leonora waved back, reaching out of the frame to place her olive green yankee's cap on her head. 

"how are you feeling, babe?" armani called from across the room.

isabelle flipped the camera to where armani was laying, his legs across athena's stomach. 

"much better thank you, mani," leonora smiled gratefully. 

armani cheered happily and isabelle turned the camera back to paloma who was laughing at armani's childishness. 

"do you think your dads would let you out tonight instead of tomorrow? we need your brains," paloma commented which earned her a few yells of objection from elliot who had taken over for the time being. 

"i can ask," leonora shrugged, she definitely wouldn't mind getting out of her 'three-day isolation' a few hours early. 

leonora valentine picked up her phone and walked down the stairs of her house, walking to where jesse was. 

"dad?" she questioned.

jesse glanced up from his book and nodded, waiting for his daughter to continue speaking.

"would i be able to be let out of my jail cell a few hours early tonight?"

the ginger man laughed at her use of words and pulled his glasses off of his eyes. 

"how many hours earlier are we talking?" jesse asked, willing to negotiate with her. 

leonora showed the man her phone screen, revealing the faces of isabelle and paloma. 

"we were thinking leo could be let out at eight tonight? so in three hours," isabelle politely asked. 

jesse thought for a moment before agreeing. the three girls celebrated excitedly, leonora squealed and hugged her dad before sprinting back upstairs.

❀⊱┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄⊰❀

it was finally eight in the evening and leonora was throwing her beige carhartt coat with a fluffy inside over her tank top and pajama pants. 

she kissed her dad's goodbye and darted down the street to elliot's house. the girl excitedly knocked on the door, she stood quietly with her hands behind her back. the door was swung open by an ecstatic armani and before she knew it, leonora was being tackled in a hug.

"can't. breathe." 

armani chuckled at her unfinished sentences and let go of his tight hug. isabelle was next to attack the girl in a bear hug and then everyone else piled onto her. 

"gosh, you guys are happy to see her," elliot spoke sarcastically from the door. 

leonora shrugged at his comment, a small smile playing on each of their lips. 

"i guess i'm just better than you," she winked.

"nobody can top leo!" AJ whooped, picking leonora up and carrying her inside.

the eight teenagers walked upstairs and sat in elliots, finally clean, room. elliot opened his arms with a stubborn smile.

"i guess you are better than me, or whatever," he sighed into leonora's hair as she accepted his hug. 

"let's stick with 'or whatever' for now, yeah?"

the boy chuckled at her joking tone and let go of her, the two of them following everyone into the mayz boys' room. 

NOTES:

→ OH MY GOODNESS, HELLO!!!
my, i've missed you all so so much!
i am so sorry for not updating in
over five months?! i'm so unmotivated :/

→ however, i have missed you lot a bunch
and i am willing to try and keep this story alive
for as long as i can!

→ how have you all been? tell me about your
day so far!! catch me up on EVERYTHING!!!

→ thank you for being so patient with me
and thank you to kj for consistently commenting
'ellionora' on my MB because that was my main
motivation!!

→ have an incredible day, my loves. drink some
water and eat something yum! (i'm having feijoa's
rn and they're bussin'). i love you all <333