“Keep some room in your heart for the unimaginable, Nick,” I say quietly. “For the sake of your daughter.”
I whip my arm out of his grip, and I jog down the stairs and out into the backyard. Before he can chase me, I run into my kitchen and grab my purse. I go out to the driveway and walks towards my car. Tears are running down my face, and I’m not sure why. I just know that I have to leave.
Twentythree.
Nick
I walk back into Bria’s room, and she’s watching me intently. I’ve never been good at hiding my feelings around her. Or perhaps she’s just perceptive.
“Why were you and Evi fighting?” she asks nervously.
“We weren’t fighting, sweetie. We just had a disagreement.”
“Like when you and Mommy used to yell?”
I laugh.
“Yes, like when me and Mommy used to yell.”
When someone dies, you forget about all of the unsavory times. You forget about all of the disagreements and fights over the stupid shit. You think they’re the most perfect person after they’re gone, and you fail to remember the hard times.
Isabel and I used to fight over stupid shit all the time.
I was just lucky because we used to love each other so much more to make up for it.
“Why were you disagreeing?”
I look down at her, and she’s looking at me knowingly. I swallow my pride and look down at her, smiling.
“Evianna was just teaching me an important lesson.”
“What lethon?”
“Something I stopped believing in a long time ago.”
“What’s that?”
Damn. She’s genuinely curious. She definitely inherited Isabel’s inquisitiveness.
“True love.”
Twentyfour.
Evianna
I show up at my parents’ house twenty minutes later, and I fix myself up a bit before heading inside. As I open the front door, something small and hard hits me.
A nerf dart.
“Elijah!” I yell, looking around for the little monster. I hear giggling from the corner of the living room, and I tiptoe over, ready to pounce. “Rawr!” I yell just as my eyes lock on his.
He leaps up and tackles me, and we both fall to the floor. I bring him in for a bear hug.
“Missed you, bugger,” I say.
“Missed you, too,” he groans reluctantly before squirming out from underneath me. “Mom’s making lasagna,” he adds before walking out of the room.
I smile and sit on the floor, taking in my surroundings. I really miss it here. I didn’t expect to. I never missed it when I was in college, but my three months here after the breakup really brought me closer to my family.
“Evianna? Is that you?” I hear my mom shout from the kitchen.
“Yeah,” I yell back, standing up.
My mother comes around the corner with oven mitts on her hands and stares at me.
“You’re early,” she scolds. “I just put the lasagna in. It won’t be ready for another hour.”
“That’s okay,” I say, and much to my displeasure, my lip starts to tremble.
“Sweetie, what’s wrong?” she says softly as she walks over. “Do you want to talk?” I nod my head quickly, reverting back to a child, clearly.
“I don’t know. Maybe.”
“Okay. Give me a minute.” She scurries off, and I sit down on the sofa—the same one we’ve had since I was a baby. It’s light blue, and it has all sorts of stains on it, but I swear it’s the comfiest couch ever. She scuttles back in and brushes her hands together, ready to get down to business. “So, tell me what’s wrong.”
I groan. “That’s the thing. I don’t even know.”
“Dan? Violet?”
“No, not them. It’s Nick.” She doesn’t say anything. She just watches me and nods. “I don’t… I just… I’m confused.”
“Mmm.” That’s all she says.
“What?” I ask.
“Nothing,” she replies, and her mouth slowly forms a small smile.
“What?” I repeat, this time a little louder. “Go on, lay it on me.”
“Honey, I’m not going to lay anything on you. It’s just… I told you so.”
I swat her arm. “Your favorite four words,” I say snarkily. “I told you so,” I mock.