Ethan Adams

Chapter 29

I think I'd like the whole idea of Valentine's Day more if it didn't fall on my birthday. Honestly, nobody wants to hear sentimental birth stories from their kooky, overprotective mother who-swears-she's-liberal because she whispers the word sex in my direction once a day. Not even my dad wants to hear it again, but my mom is adamant that everyone in the immediate family knows how I was supposed to born on February 15th but came 'three minutes early' because I was – and I quote – a child full of love. I can't make this stuff up.

I'd probably also like it more if I wasn't chronically single. However, this is my first Valentine's Day in which I have a significant other who plays a very big part in my daily life and I still don't know what to make of it.

"You aren't wearing that." My mom says when I descend the steps in the morning. "Oh no."

I look down at my holey sweater and ripped jeans. "What's wrong with my outfit?"

She shakes her head. "Alisa, you wear the same thing every day! It's your birthday! Your last Valentine's Day in school! At least wear a skirt!"

"Mom it's like seventy degrees out, I'm gonna freeze."

"Freeze?! Seventy is perfect weather! Right now in Michigan it's probably in the high thirties!" My dad says, coming out of the kitchen with a cup of coffee. He's wearing khaki shorts. "This is amazing weather!"

I look between the two of them, the smug expression on my mom's face and my dad's slight frown at his coffee and sigh. "Fine."

After (several) trips upstairs to change into something more 'birthday appropriate', my mom lets me eat breakfast. It's still kinda early, and I'm not expecting Ethan to come knocking for a while; he likes sleep. I sit down at the island counter and try not to mess up my nice blue sweater.

"You're so pretty!" My mom gushes. "Look at you, my little baby at eighteen."

Despite all the trauma she's already put me through this morning, I smile at her. "Thanks mom."

She beams. "Your brother's driving up after his class this afternoon, we're going to get sushi at that new place for dinner."

"Nice. When do I have to be home? Ethan wanted to –"

"Oh don't worry, Ethan knows our plans already." My dad interrupts.

I raise my eyebrows. "He does?"

"Yeah of course. We invited him to come tonight too." Mom explains. "Family dinner and all, we figured he should know."

I wait for them to explain but they just start talking about stocks like they didn't imply something super-duper weird. I guess that's the way we're going now anyway.

Ethan knocks on the door while I finish breakfast and I go to open it for him. He's leaning against the door frame, his cheeks flushed and one arm behind his back.

"Ew, have you been running?" I greet him. He grins.

"Happy birthday, Alisa." He says, then reveals a bunch of pink flowers. "And happy Valentine's Day."

I gasp, pleasantly surprised. Then I take pause. "There's no poison ivy in this, right?"

"Oh-ha-ha." He says. I chuckle and take the flowers from him, grinning. "This time I laced them in stinging– No, I can't even joke like that."

I turn my grin to him. "Thank you."

"No problem." He says, smiling back at me. We just smile at each other, like we usually do and then he leans in and hugs me tightly. "I gotta go say hi to your parents before we leave, okay?"