Returning Shadows

(9) Overthinking

CHAPTER 9

Overthinking

I stiffened at the harsh tone and slowly turned around.

"Shut up, Shawn," I said under my breath in relief, seeing the cheeky grin on his face. For a second, I thought it was Danny, mad at me for some reason.

I need to loosen up a bit. He's not that bad.

I thought maybe Shawn might know what the score is with Snow White in the photograph. I turned around and picked up the picture frame again.

"Shaaaaawn?" I called, drawing out the "A" in his name.

"Mmhmmm?" he mumbled right next to my ear. I jumped in shock. How did he get there so fast?

He snickered.

"Who is this?" I asked, holding out the picture.

I studied his face as he looked at the photograph, and saw his smile falter briefly before he composed himself. "Just one of his old girlfriends."

"They're not still together?" I pressed.

He turned away and went to sit back down. "No," he responded simply, switching the TV onto the music channel. "Oh, I love this song!" He closed his eyes and mouthed the lyrics, moving his head with the beat.

I glanced at him and then back at the picture. Shawn was definitely hiding something, and I wasn't about to let it drop. "Why not?" I demanded.

He sighed and pressed mute on the remote before dragging his fingers through his shaggy head of hair. "It's not up to me to tell you. I'm sorry."

Oh. It's personal. Of course. "Sorry, I shouldn't have asked, it's none of my business," I said, plopping down next to Shawn on the seat. "It's not like it matters to me anyway."

He wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into a rough bear hug. "Don't feel bad, buddy," he mumbled through the fabric of my sweater.

I sat there awkwardly, not knowing what to do with my hands. Should I hug him back? I'm not really a huggy person. I couldn't even remember the last time I hugged someone.

I settled on awkwardly patting his back a couple of times until he released me.

He gave me a weird look, probably due to my lame attempt of returning a hug.

"So what was all that about earlier with Danny? Are you two okay?"

"Yeah, it's nothing really."

"Was it because you told me about his parents? Did he overhear?" I asked coyly.

His eyebrows knitted together in confusion and then relaxed as he seemingly realised what I was talking about. "No, no. It wasn't anything to do with that." He raked a hand through his hair again. "He just freaked out when he heard you scream, and then the way I was on top of you," he mumbled quietly.

I made a face, but decided to let the matter drop.

"Hey, where's Danny's dog?" I asked. I'd been meaning to ask pretty much since the minute I entered the apartment, but didn't really get a chance.

"Oh, it's out in the kitchen."

I wrinkled my nose. "Does he always cook food with animals in the same room?"

"Yip," he replied, grinning.

"I want to see him!" I whined, feeling every bit like a child. I giggled when Shawn gave me a funny look.

"Fine," he sighed, rolling his eyes.

He opened the kitchen door and called out the dog's name, "Rambo!"