“Fuck.A boy?” Jules looked like he was one wrong word away from going on a rampage. There was a reason I hadn’t said Alek’s name yet—so Jules wouldn’t do something stupid like trying to kill him.
“Yes,” I whispered.
“No. No way,” Jules said, shaking his head vehemently. “Not a chance, Evangeline. You’re not going to date anyone for alongtime. Maybe never. I don’t care if this man is Jesus fucking Christ himself. You are not seeing him anymore.”
My lips parted, eyes stinging with tears that began to blur my vision. “That’s not fair! You have Elsie. How come you can date, and I can’t?”
"Elsie and I arenotdating, and even if we were, it’s because I'm..." But he trailed off.
And it hurt. Because I knew exactly what he was going to say.
Because I'm me. Because you're you. Because you're weak. Because you're not strong enough. You never have been.
I ripped my arm from his grasp and took a few steps backward. My whole body trembled. For once, I didn’t feel the need to mend the cracks I had created. The urge to apologize, to make myself small again, didn’t appear. Even my voice was silent.
I took a few deep breaths before I said in a shaking voice. “I’m twenty-one years old, Jules. I have hardly any friends. I haven’t been out of state since I was four. And I’ve never dated anyone. I’m kept in a cage while you have the freedom to do anything you want. You lock me up and dangle the key in front of me like it’snothing.And now, when I’ve finally met someone who makes me feel free for the first time in my life, you want to take that away from me? You want me to give it up becauseyouaren't ready, even though I am? How does that seem fair?"
His face fell. "Annie, I?—"
“Don’t call me that. I don’t want to hear any more from you,” I whispered, my voice cracking at the end as I did the one thing I never thought I would do.
I began to build a wall between us. The only family I had left. My brother. My closest friend. The one person I trusted tobe there for me no matter what. The one person I’dneverkept anything from.
But if he forced me to pick between him and Alek, I was beginning to think he wouldn’t like the choice I would make.
A lone tear fell down my cheek, and I hurriedly wiped it away. I began to stalk out of the room only for a hand to grab my own and pull me back. I refused to look at my brother, even while he tried to wrap his arms around me in a tight hug.
“Annie, please. Listen to me.”
Sighing, I turned to face him. Jules was looking at me, his brown eyes filled with concern. All of the anger was gone. That was the thing about having a hotheaded older brother. Yes, he lost his temper sometimes, but he gained control back quickly.
"I'm listening," I muttered.
"I will meet the boy," Jules said in a tight voice that showed how truly painful it was for him to say it.
My hopeful heart skipped a beat. "Really?"
"Really. I can't promise that I'll like him, but if he's nice and he treats you well, then?—"
Jules broke off when I threw my arms around his neck and squeezed him tightly, cutting off the circulation to his head. “Thank you, Jules! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
He chuckled and hugged me back, picking me up off the ground as he spun me around. "You're welcome, Annie. I willtry.But that’s all I can promise."
“That’s more than enough,” I said, squeezing his hand.
I could hardly contain the excitement radiating through my pores. What if this went really, really well? What if Alek and Jules became friends? What if our relationship could bereal?
Somewhere deep in my chest, a strange, fluttering feeling bloomed—like standing on the edge of something enormous, something inevitable. I told myself it was excitement. Romeo and Juliet finally getting their happy ending.
After all, what could go wrong with a simple dinner?
I had no idea I was standing at the precipice of something major, smiling like a girl who forgot therealending toRomeo and Juliet.
A girl who forgot it was a tragedy.
January 12th
Evangeline
