Chapter 50: Chapter 50

Rylie's POV

This was it. School was over, at least for now. And all that was left to do was enjoy the winter break. Sounded like a good idea but now as I stared at my calendar, I realized I had no idea what to spend the next few weeks doing.

Christmas and New Year were already certain but other than that, what in the world was I to do for the rest of the break?

"Ugh! This is hard," I thought to myself, plonking on my bed. I stared at the ceiling and even without realizing it, my mind wandered back to the times Blake and I spent in my room, on this bed, doing nothing but staring at the ceiling in silence.

Words might have not been spoken but in those times, they weren't needed. We were alone, we were together and strangely, that was okay for me. It was, in a word, perfect.

I pushed those memories back into the dark recesses of my mind where they belonged and sat up.

I couldn't just spend all my time, reliving the past. I WAS in love with Blake but just like Asher, that was over and he belonged in the past as well. It was time to move on.

And to start moving on, I was going down to the arcade at Jefferson Heights to play all the games there by myself. If I met Sky, then so be it. But for now, I was done being defined by a guy. This was Rylie's time to shine.

With that thought settled, I stood from my bed and walked over to my closet to pick the perfect clothes. Once I was dressed, I checked myself out in the window, walked downstairs, told my mom goodbye, got in my car and got on the road to Jefferson Heights, all without glancing at Blake's house.

Yup, this girl was moving on!

***

After having quite a time at the arcade and beating quite a few high scores, I met up with Olivia for what I called a Girls' Day Out. It basically included shopping, manicures and pedicures, a day at the spa... Not necessarily in that order but I was determined to have as much fun as possible.

"So- what do you wanna do first?" I asked excitedly as Olivia got in the car.

"Well someone seems excited," she smiled, buckling her seatbelt.

"Of course I am. I get to spend all day with you," I sang, reaching over to hug her.

"Okay okay. Calm down crazy. How about we start with some ice cream and less hugging, okay?" she said, getting out of my grip.

"Oh fine. I'll keep my hands to myself but this is gonna be the best day ever!" I cheered, starting the car and heading in the direction of the ice cream parlor.

After the ice cream parlor, it was off to the spa to spend a relaxing afternoon then over to the mall to window shop and do a little shopping.

"Oh my gosh Olivia! You should totally get this," I held up a peach knee-length butterfly style dress. "It'll totally fit you."

"You sure?" she asked, taking the dress from me.

"Definitely. Go try it on," I pushed her in the direction of the changing room and waited for her to get dressed. She did and stepped out and just like I said, the dress was a total fit.

"Oh my gosh! Liv, you look so pretty. You should get it. You should totally get it!" I squealed.

"Yeah. I think I will," she mumbled, looking at her reflection in the mirror.

"Yeah and I bet a certain someone will appreciate seeing you in it. Wink. Wink." I nudged her shoulder suggestively.

"What? Who?"

"I dunno. Myles? Mason? Whoever you pick. I know both of them will really love seeing you in it."

"Yeah..." she trailed off, looking at me and then down at the floor, looking deep in thought.

"What is it?" I asked, drawing her attention back to me.

"Oh, it's nothing," she waved it off.

"Olivia! You don't have to lie to me. I know something's up. You can tell me."

She looked away at first, then sighed and looked back at me. "Rylie, are you sure you're okay?"

"What? What do you mean?"

"I mean, you're being so preppy and you know, you're not acting like yourself or like someone who just got broken up with."

"I thought you knew this by now, Olivia. What's the use of mourning something that's over? I'm done with Blake so why let him stop him from living my life? I'm fine, Livvie, really," I affirmed, my hand on her shoulder.

The look on showed that she'd didn't believe me but she nodded still and let me pull her into a hug. When we pulled apart, I and Olivia returned back to shopping. Despite trying desperately to keep my mind off him, I found myself relapsing back into my old habit.

Olivia's words kept coming back to me throughout the rest of our day together and even after I dropped her off at home. I got home and stepped into the house, less cheerful than when I left, wanting nothing more than to fall face first in my really comfy bed. Unfortunately, it was not to be.

As soon as I stepped into the living room, my eyes fell on everyone seated in the dining room. And by everyone, I mean my family and Blake's. Yup, the one and only.

Before I could make a quick escape, my mom sighted me and called me over to join them. I didn't want to but it didn't look like I had any choice in the matter so I trudged over to them and took the only available seat which happened to be right beside Blake. Just my luck, you would say.

"Glad you could join us, Rylie. Nina and I thought a little dinner slash game night with our neighbors was in order after everything, you know," my mom said, looking around. Her eyes fell on me and Blake and she looked kinda sad. She seemed to be urging me to stay so I just nodded. She smiled again and returned back to her meal.

Despite not wanting to, I glanced at Blake and it was almost hard to look away. Family dinner and game night with my ex and his family. What could possibly go wrong?