Angie rushed into her closet and searched for something somewhat respectable to wear. She ignored the shouts of her father and even dared to completely turn her phone off. She wouldn't initiate contact with her opponent until she had her foundations firmly laid out.
Based on Angie's fuzzy memory, or recollection of her character profile of Angelica, she knew that Angelica was always up to date on the latest designs released by Channel. As she went through the racks of clothing, it seemed to Angie that Angelica only bought the most revealing pieces. She frowned deeply and passed over the various dresses and was in search of something reasonable. She felt like a mother raiding her teenage daughter's closest and finding nothing acceptable.
Angie eventually settled on an oversized white alpaca sweater and a pair of leather shorts. She had to dig deep into the back of the walk-in closest to find a pair of modest Channel goatskin boots. She pulled her long hair into an untidy ponytail and wished she had the time to style it. Angie shook her head and rushed out of the closest.
She heard the pounding at the door grow a bit louder before it stopped. "Angelica Yang, stop this immature behavior this instance!" A slightly aged masculine voice exclaimed, weighed down by exasperation. "Open this door now! We have to talk."
Angie paused before the bedroom door and pursed her lips. She mentally calculated her chances of reasoning with her father, but given his currently worked-up state, she quickly discarded the idea. She would have to have some backup. She, unintentionally, gained the assistance of Elli and she would need the majority of the afternoon to convince her brother and grandparents to her scheme. Angie wouldn't attempt to confront her father until she had a winning hand.
She didn't bother to respond as she approached her large window and pushed back the rest of the linen drapes. There was a small ledge outside the window as well as a makeshift ladder she'd secretly prodded up against the house which laid a couple feet to her right. She opened the window as quietly as she could and breathed in the scent of the air. It was mid-September and the weather was still relatively warm, though the cool breeze off Lake Michigan allowed the use of her sweater. She climbed out onto the ledge and felt a sense of familiarity as she inched over to the ladder. Angie made it to the ladder and was about halfway down when she glanced to her left and met the stunned face of her mother standing in the living room.
Angie felt a surge of emotion as she met her mother's eyes. It was a combination of embarrassment and longing as she watched her mother exit the living room and, assumedly, going up the stairs to inform her father. She shook off the emotions and slid the rest of the way down to the ground. She wasn't sure of how much time it would take for her mother and father to rush to the back garden, so she didn't hesitate as she lifted herself partially over their privacy fence and flipped to the other side. It took her a second to regain her balance as she mentally praised herself for choosing shorts. A sneaky voice in her head reminded her she'd done that jump multiple times in all manner of skirts and dresses.
Angie shook it off as she looked around. It felt like she was waking once more, as bits and pieces of the past asserted themselves in her memory. The shock from earlier began to feel like a distant memory as she walked down the street to the corner of West Burton Place and North State Parkway. It wasn't long before Elli's silver Porsche Cayenne pulled up to the corner. She rolled down the window and smirked at her. "You looked winded."
Angie sent her friend a glare before she got into the passenger seat. "My mother caught me climbing out of the window. I had to book it before she got hold of my father," she explained with a sniff.
"You're already sounded ten times more mature. You'd usually just snap at me for mentioning something like that," Elli remarked with a small smile.
"Does it bother you?" Angie raised a brow as she made an act of primly sitting in her seat.
"Nah," Elli remarked and rounded the corner. "Where to?"
"The Westfield Old Orchard. There's a shop there I've had my eye on for a while," she informed. "Plus the sooner we get on the highway the less of a chance my parents have of catching us."
Elli snorted as she glanced down at her rearview mirror. "I do believe I see your father's car behind ours."
Angie looked as well and frowned. "They were quicker than I assumed," she sighed and remembered something. "Do you know how to lose a tail?"
"And you do?" she remarked as slowed the car at a stop sign.
"I may have developed a few contingency plans for the nights we snuck out and I was grounded," Angie informed with a grin. "Don't overreact to them, but get us on the highway as soon as possible."
In reality, she knew how to lose a tail because she was severely paranoid whenever she went out alone after her accident. She consulted a friend from the FBI in regards to her paranoia. The agent told Angie to see a therapist. Angie didn't react to that and instead asked how to lose a tail. The agent blew out a breath and explained a method that was reasonable for a civilian to utilize.
"Already doing that," Elli observed. "What next?" There was a hint of humor in her tone though her face remained completely serious.
"Slowly weave yourself through traffic once we're further down the highway. If we're able to find a larger vehicle to get in front of then we'll be able to lose my parents," she explained with a knowing smirk. It worked for her whenever a certain Audi seemed to be behind her.
Elli grinned and glanced down at her phone. "Should we?"
Angie didn't even reply as she completely shut off the phone. "Let's see if local radio is tolerable this morning."
Elli looked satisfied as she allowed Angie to fiddle with the radio. Angie wasn't completely certain, but she felt like she passed some unspoken test from her best friend. However, if Elli still thought of her as someone dense enough to not realize she wasn't wanted then she supposed the test to pick up on her unspoken intentions was deserved.
It didn't take them long to get on the ramp to I-90 where they would drive towards Skokie. Angie looked back and noted the presence of her parents with a car between them. She gave Elli another reminder about getting more cars between them. Elli waved her off though as they eased into the traffic, she made sure to weave between lanes.
Angie glanced once more behind them and sent her parents an apologetic smile. "You'll soon see the order behind my chaos."