Feeling the exhaustion of her lack of sleep, her eyes eventually closed and Valerie found herself in a slumber. Her mind still running through various thoughts and situations about going to the Lakehouse. Part of her was telling her to go to the old hang-out spot. But another part of her was resisting and feeling sceptical about it. Unsure if going to the lake house would be a good idea. It wouldn't feel the same...for many reasons. Would everyone end up depressed? Thinking of old memories, when life felt so much simpler? When the gang was complete? Valerie couldn't imagine of feeling that same old comfort at the lake house with Austin gone. Knowing that if he was still alive, that he would try and convince her to come along, to enjoy a week-end of bonding and 'fun'. Like the good old days. Was she over-thinking things? It was possible that she was. Something that Val was known to do so. No doubt Jimmy and Leigh would somehow try and convince her too; if the pair were up for it.

The next morning, Valerie was woken up with the sound of her phone ringing. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she stretched out on her bed with a light yawn. Picking up the phone, she answered when she saw Ryleigh's name on the caller Id. [Color=Teal] "You picked an interesting time to call Leigh." [/Color] It was still fairly early. And Val hadn't realised how tired she truly felt, until she got some sleep. [Color=Teal] "What's up?" [/Color] Propping herself up on her bed, she leaned against the pillows.

Ryleigh on the other hand sounded more awake, than the brunette. The blonde was always an earlier riser and had a habit of waking the rest up; even as kids when they spent time at the lake-house. [Color=Crimson] "Jimmy is hosting a little get-together at the bar. There will be burgers, apparently." [/Color] She told Valerie. Not sure if she should mention the fact that Raymond was coming or not. Honestly, Leigh was surprised when Jimmy mentioned that Ray was back. Not sure that anyone of them would be prepared for his return to Rhodes. But if she mentioned Ray's name, chances were that Valerie would be reluctant to show up. But it was clear that Austin's death had brought back their former member back home. Austin had impacted on everyone's lives; not just the group of friends. But the whole town. Everyone would miss him.

Making a slight face, at the mention of Burgers. Valerie knew how Jimmy's cooking skills were. So the thought scared her a little bit; either the place would burn down, or they'd end up with food poisoning. [Color=Teal] "Let's hope, he's not the one cooking them." [/Color] Val joked. Glancing towards the clock on the wall, she then spoke again into the phone [Color=Teal] "What time is it? I suppose, I can spare an hour or two." [/Color] Her day was looking pretty free of commitments otherwise. So it's not like going to the bar would be a bad thing. [Color=Teal] "Why did Jimmy plan the sudden get-together anyways?" [/Color] There it was, the question that Leigh had been dreading to hear. As Valerie had a way of getting information out of people, to a degree. Hearing the weird awkward silence on the other line, Val furrowed her brows slightly. [Color=Teal] "Leigh? What's going on?" [/Color] Clearly something didn't feel right about her friends radio silence. She could tell that something was up. It was clear as day.

[Color=Crimson] "Urgh......Raymond's back in town." [/Color] Ryleigh told Valerie. [Color=Crimson] "I wasn't sure, that I should tell you. But Jimmy thought it'd be a nice surprise for him, to see us all." [/Color] 

Swallowing at the mention of Raymond, Valerie shook her head slightly. [Color=Teal] "If he wanted to see us, he would have kept in touch. Or visited at least once." [/Color] Val wasn't so sure that Ray would even want to see her, of all people. Or maybe she was the one, that wasn't ready to face Raymond after 10 years. 10 years of guilt, and trying to forget about the pain that came with him leaving Rhodes. Valerie's comment however caused a heated discussion between the two girls over the phone. Ryleigh hated to admit that Valerie had a good point; despite always being bitter towards her after Raymond had left. The chances that anyone forgot, what happened 10 years ago was very slim indeed. So it took a while for Valerie to feel even close to being convinced about going to Jimmy's bar. But eventually she gave in. Wishing that Austin was still here, to keep everything from falling apart once they'd all be in the same room together. But she was a big girl; she had to face Raymond eventually. The sooner the better.
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[Center][h3][Color=Gold]Later that day:[/Color][/h3]
[img]https://img.wattpad.com/99f73a162b304f2528bb8f08ca33b1f0263ec410/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f48394974363757454671505f32773d3d2d3639363630383936392e313561353664636666336465633931343139323837363939393131352e676966[/img][img]https://i.gifer.com/3l90.gif[/img][/Center]
Standing in front of the mirror, Valerie sighed as she glanced at herself. Debating if she should just forget about going to the bar, as she felt the nerves starting to settle in. But the truth was, she couldn't avoid seeing Ray forever. She would see him at the funeral and at the lake-house if everyone decided to go. So best get the awkwardness out of the way. She kept her brown locks loose, but had a small scrunchie in her bag; like always in case she needed to pull her hair up. Valerie didn't want to seem like she was making massive effort to look nice for anyone's benefit. So she opted for something safe; jeans and a top that was comfortable. Along with a pair of boots. She then made her way to Jimmy's bar. The journey not taking her too long, considering she lived close by anyways. It was a 15 minute walk, at most.

Out of the girls, she was the last to arrive; already hearing Jimmy and Leigh laughing about something. Along with smelling the burgers cooking. [Color=Teal] "I hope you're not burning anything." [/Color] Val teased Jim, as she announced her arrival. Giving the pair a soft, albeit a nervous smile.

Leigh had arrived few moments prior to Valerie, her blonde hair resting over her shoulders. Like Val, she was dressed casually; Jeans with a top. Nothing too fancy. Ryleigh was never one for fancy outfits; the fanciest she had ever been, was during prom with her dress. Giving Val a slight smile. Still feeling bit awkward after their phone conversation earlier that morning. Hopefully, they can put it past them. Right? [Color=Crimson] "Anyone feel like having a drink, for the nerves?" [/Color] All they had to do, was wait for Ray to arrive and see how things would unfold.