"I think that's a good idea. I know everyone thinks our heads are in the clouds already, but if something serious is going on Renee and I just want to help you Sarah." Julie had a worried look on her face.
"Really, I'm fine girls." Sarah didn't want their pity.
She had been Sarah McMillan! The undisputed queen of the school. She may not know who she was right now, but the last thing she wanted was people looking down on her.
"I wasn't trying to break into Sabrina's house. I just got rattled by something and got down on myself. Let's just go to Julie's house." Sarah wasn't sure how good an actress she was, but knew if she spoke with confidence most people would believe her.
"Well, I don't really think you should be alone right now. I'd feel better if we could keep an eye on you for a while anyway." The redhead apparently named Renee put a hand on Sarah's shoulder. "At least until I'm sure your brain isn't actually broken."
"C'mon, don't tease her too much." Julie rolled her eyes. "We're trying to make her feel better, not have a panic attack."
Sarah followed as Julie began leading the way to the Gibson household. Sarah stayed mostly quiet as she tried to think on everything that had happened since cheer practice ended.
Julie and Renee noticed Sarah still acting off. The friends shared a look, both still concerned for Sarah.
"Have you been writing anything new Sarah?" Julie asked out of the blue.
"Writing?" Sarah raised an eyebrow at the question. "Well, I thought of some new ideas, but it's been more brainstorming than writing an actual plot."
Where had that come from? Sarah had never written any kinds of stories. Sure, she had read a wide array of books, but...
"Oh, anything you want to share?" Renee could tell they had her attention now.
"I started thinking of some short story ideas for what life would be like for fantasy races in the modern world. Things like a mermaid acting as a lifeguard, or a Minotaur firefighter." Sarah began explaining the concepts happily.
"Have you shared any of it with Mrs. Getherd? I know she's really been encouraging your goal to be a writer." Julie inquired.
Sarah thought happily of her conversations with the English teacher. It was a shame she'd be out of school for a while when she had her most recent baby, but it was well known the teacher had a thing for raising a big family. Luckily she had said Sarah could stop by anytime if she went on maternity leave.
Mrs. Getherd had quickly become her favorite teacher after taking an interest in Sarah's writing after a short story assignment. She had even started helping Sarah reach out to publishers in hopes of getting the young talent recognized.
Sarah knew in her mind this wasn't right. She had never obsessed about this fantasy stuff. She'd never thought this much on how a native magic system should work for a world. She'd never written a story for anything but school assignments.
Yet she couldn't stop gushing about this stuff with her friends. She couldn't stop the flow of words coming from her mouth, or the feeling of excitement she had speaking them.
Before she knew it they arrived at Julie's house.
"Hey mom, we're going up to my room. Can you keep Mikey and Jon out?" Julie greeted her mother Linda.
"Jon's a little preoccupied, but I'll make sure Mikey doesn't bother you before dinner. Are Sarah and Renee staying to eat?" Linda asked.
"I can't say no to your cooking Mrs. Gibson." Renee chuckled.
"Yeah, that would be nice." Sarah found herself agreeing.
Now that she had been stopped from talking about what she was writing and the books they were reading Sarah felt dazed. What was all that?
"I'll call your parents and ask them if it's alright. You girls go do your homework." Linda told them before heading to the kitchen.
"You girls head up to my room. I just need to tell my mom something." Julie instructed her friends.
"We know the way." Renee rolled her eyes. "Just don't be long."
Sarah followed Renee as Julie joined her mother in the kitchen.
"Mom, when you talk to Sarah's mom can you tell her about something? Sarah was acting kind of weird earlier, and I just want to make sure things are alright." Julie felt bad about going behind Sarah's back, but if something was wrong she couldn't just do nothing.
"Weird how?" Linda asked before Julie gave her a rundown of Sarah leaving them at school and going to Sabrina's house. "Don't worry, I'll make sure everything is okay."
"Thanks mom. I better go meet with the girls." Julie gave her mom a hug before hurrying toward her room.
