He groans. “Fine, but just so you know, you’re playing next time. I don’t care what you say.”
“Right. Oh, and by the way, your mom wants us over for dinner soon.”
He nods and waves a hand at me. My eyes travel to Violet one last time, catching her gaze on her bowl of popcorn before I head for my bedroom.
A soft knock sounds at my door as I’m collecting a pair of boxers for after my shower. I toss them onto the bathroom counter and wait to start the water.
Violet’s standing there with her popcorn bowl when I open the door. Her hair is down today, sprawled out over her shoulder in a wavy, attractive mess. She looks fan-fucking-tastic, so effortlessly pretty that I want to grab her waist and pull her into my arms just so I can breathe her in.
I bet it’d calm me down instantly.
She picks up a piece of popcorn and tosses it into her mouth. I can’t help but watch her as she chews, that smile still toying with her lips, and softly says, “Hi.”
A measly greeting is all she has for me? I give her one back. “Hey.”
She pushes into my room, and in my head, I punch the air out of satisfaction. I let the door close behind her as she turns and takes in the room. It’s bare compared to the decorations she has on her walls. The bulletin board of pictures with her friends andfamily. The sparkly lights strung around her desk that caught my attention when she went looking for an ice pack for me.
We’re silent for a moment. Now that she’s in front of me, I realize just how much I’ve missed seeing her.
“You look good as new.”
“I’m almost there.”
“Are your ribs still worse for wear?”
I quirk a smile, though I don’t know where it comes from. Spending the last few hours in Harrison Heights, I’m not exactly overflowing with happiness, but she pulls me back from images of Mom and the lifelessness inside of her.
She gives me a reason to smile, to forget, to live in the moment.
“You want to come and check?” I tease.
She chews, but I see the glimmer in her eye at the memory of tugging my shirt up that night. She liked what she saw. I know she did. “I trust your word.”
“What about you?” I nod at her. “Things with your dad still…tense?”
She shrugs a shoulder. “You could say that. The holidays are coming, and I know I’m going to have to go home and endure sitting across from him while choking down food I’m not hungry for when all I’ll be thinking about is his unfaithfulness.”
“Maybe you should tell them.”
She makes herself at home by sitting on the edge of my bed. I trail over to sit next to her.
“I can’t.” It comes out as a strained whisper, and more than her telling me how she doesn’t want to be the one to break the news to her family, I can feel it. Her heart breaks just thinking about telling them. Just like mine did when I saw Mom worse for wear tonight.
“You shouldn’t have to keep his secret.”
“I know.”
“The only person you’re protecting by not telling them is him.”
She looks over, licking the saltiness of the popcorn off her lips. “I never thought about it like that.”
“It’s true.”
She looks forward. Another minute passes.
“I’m glad you’re doing better.”
“Me too.”
