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Eventually, exhaustion pulls me under, dragging me down into fitful sleep filled with images of Dahlia and Gauge at the party, haunting me as I toss and turn.
I wake up early the next morning, before the sun has even risen. That uneasiness in my gut that I can’t shake off because I know I hurt her yesterday is back, gnawing at me with full force.
Unable to resume sleeping, I grab my sneakers and go for a run around the block to clear my head. As my feet pound against the pavement, I can’t stop recalling the heated conversation I had out here yesterday with Dahlia. I keep seeing her hurt expression. That lost look in her eyes killed me and still, all I wanted to do was make her hurt like I do.
Will she keep her mouth shut about what I told her, or will she use it against me when the time comes that she has to make a choice.
She has no idea how deep this shit goes and how involved our families are.
Chapter Nineteen
Breakfast at Lauren’s differs greatly than at my uncle’s house other than the fact that I didn’t sleep here either. Her house is cozy and welcoming and I don’t have to worry about Kyson trying to cop a feel under the table. Lauren’s mom is as bubbly as she is round. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone as sweet as she is. I’ve barely sat down and she’s greeting me with a plate piled high with pancakes and bacon. I can’t help but notice the pictures on their fridge as I dig in. Most of them are of Lauren with her brothers and sisters, along with various drawings and awards they’ve brought home from school. She’s the oldest of seven.
I can’t wrap my mind around having so many kids.
Lauren’s youngest sister slides into a chair next to me at the table, her hair still messy from sleep. She grins at me, grabbing a piece of bacon from my plate.
“Hey now.” Her mom taps her hands lightly. “You’ll get your own.”
“It’s fine.”
“Enjoying your stay, or are you ready to run home screaming from being terrorized by my siblings?” Lauren asks, with a bit of syrup dripping down her chin.
“It’s different, but in a good way. I swear,” I reply, cutting into my pancakes and taking a big bite. “These are so good.”
Lauren smirks, wiping her mouth with a napkin. “Mom’s a superb cook. She always wanted to open her own bakery, but her and my dad couldn’t keep their hands off one another and she traded that dream for being a stay-at-home mom.
Her mom smiles, her pride in her family obvious.
“What about you, Dahlia? What do your parents do?” her mom questions having no way of knowing the circumstances of my home life.
My stomach drops, but I’ve got to get used to this reality. “Well, my birth mom left when I was younger, and my father passed away. My Uncle John and his wife, Helen, were kind enough to take me in.”
“Oh dear, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
She busies herself cleaning up and Lauren shoots me a sympathetic smile.
There’s silence for a while as we both focus on devouring our breakfast before the rest of her siblings enter the room and chaos ensues as her brothers argue over who can eat more pancakes and who will get the last piece of bacon.
We go back up to her room once food starts flying across the table. It doesn’t take long for her to bring up everything that happened last night at the party.
“So now that you’ve slept on things,” Lauren begins, her tone serious, “what are you thinking about Gauge?”
I groan and flop backwards on her bed. “No boy talk. It’s way too early.” The last thing I want to do right now is dissect what Gauge’s intentions are or what I’m going to do about Kyson.
Thankfully, she doesn’t press any further on the subject, and we discuss her plans for college and my lack of them. She’s been saving the small amount of revenue the school gossip site generates toward her college fund, hoping it will be enough to supplement what she doesn’t receive in scholarships and loans. Her going to college is a big deal not only for her but for her parents as they never attended themselves. Lauren’s dad owns his own construction business, but with seven kids, things are stretched thin. Now that all her siblings are in school, her mom wants to at least get a part-time job.
As much fun as I’m having hanging out with her family, I need to get back to my own life. I can’t hide away here forever, though I’m not sure anyone would care if I tried. If Helen opened my text last night she didn’t reply.
Lauren drops me at home, and I have my answer when I come in.
“Oh, there you are. I was going to make breakfast, but you weren’t in your room, and I have no idea where my son disappeared to.” She sips her coffee.
“No worries. I already ate at Lauren’s. I stayed over last night.”
“It must have slipped my mind.” She waves her hand in a dismissive fashion.
