Blackbird

Chapter 37

It was Lorie's screeching that finally cut through the silence.

"The next time we all decide to play the quiet game, I demand at least 24 hours notice." She glared between Liv and Ted, the main silent offenders. Under different circumstances Ted would have laughed, but he just shrugged. On his other side, Liv did the same.

Lorie through her hands up in a huff, while Jake placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. He glanced between Liv and Ted with a worried frown on his face. When he finally caught Ted's eyes he raised an eyebrow, but Ted shook his head. Neither Liv nor him knew how to act around each other now. He'd thought they'd managed to end their fight on good terms last night, or at least on a note of understanding, but that wasn't enough to bridge the awkward tension between them. Liv must still be mad at him, and he supposed he couldn't blame her. He'd lied to her for months, and she wasn't the type to forget that in a hurry. At least they seemed to be in agreement that Jake and Lorie didn't need to know about this. But the weight of such a big secret between the two of them made it hard to talk with Jake and Lorie as well.

Lorie eventually gave up on them and started talking to Jake only, and soon the two of them were chortling. At least someone in their group was happy.

Ted sighed. He'd thought he'd feel liberated now that everything with Andromeda was officially behind him, but instead he just felt drained. Like all his energy had been sucked away, and he wasn't sure how to get it back.

He leaned back against grass beneath him in another futile attempt to relax.They were outside, standing under the tree by the lake. Usually Potter and his gang were here, but both he and Sirius had gotten detention, again. Andromeda had always been so prudish about their frequent detentions, but Ted loved it. The moment he or his friends heard about it they would race out to the tree before anyone could beat them too it.

And now he was thinking about Andromeda again.

He couldn't sigh again, or Lorie would start to think something really was wrong with him, so instead he gazed out across the field. If being outdoors couldn't put him in a better mood, then maybe people-watching would. If it didn't he was completely out of ideas. But no sooner he had started scanning the crowds his eyes landed on Teresa.

He felt another stab of guilt in his chest. He still hadn't spoken to her, not since Valentine's Day. She still smiled at him in the hallways like nothing had happened, but that only made him feel worse. He owed her an apology, big time. It was no one never.

"Be right back," he grunted as he pulled himself up from the lawn. Liv raised an eyebrow, until she saw Teresa, and then she gave him a look. He didn't bother to return it as he marched over to Teresa. Of course she smiled when she saw him.

"Ted!" she said brightly, "I've been wondering where you've been hiding yourself." She didn't say it unkindly, but he flinched anyway.

"Sorry, I've been meaning to talk to you." His sober tone pulled the smile from her face as she stared at him in concern.

"Is everything all right?" she asked, biting her lip nervously.

"I just wanted to apologize, for my behavior, during... during Valentine's Day," he wasn't sure why he avoided using the word date, it just felt weird.

Teresa breathed out a sigh of relief, and then smiled. "For what's it worth, I still had fun. You are an entertaining drunk."

Ted turned bright red. "What did I do?" He searched his mind to think of what had happened, but his memory of the end of the night was too blurry. Well, he had been trying to forget something.