Out of My League

Chapter 20 (Noah)

I realize, almost as soon as I make it back to my house, that I overreacted on my girlfriend.

She was only trying to let me know what her opinion on the topic was and I got a little angrier than I should've.

Okay, a lot more angry than I should've.

I think about calling her to apologize, but decide against it. If I'm going to apologize, I'm going to do it in person where I'll be able to see the look on her face, give her a hug, and let her know how wrong I was for the things that I said.

And to bring her mom into the conversation? That was an extremely low blow and something that she deserves a major apology for.

And, beyond that, I know that she was right.

I need to give my parents the benefit of the doubt. What if they had a really good reason for what they said?

Sighing, knowing that before I fix things with Bella, I need her to know that she was right, I pull my phone from my pocket and dial Asher.

***

Settling my car in one of the small parking spaces outside of my childhood home, I very nearly back out and drive home.

It feels wrong to be here and even more wrong to soon be walking through the front door.

I don't belong here anymore.

Nonetheless, I steel my nerves before killing the car's engine, opening my door, and stepping out into the street.

It smells the same here - like the rosebushes at our neighbor's house with a tang of orange, probably from the orange tree down the street.

The only thing that's changed since I was here last is the shutters on the front of the house. Mom had been begging dad for years before I left to get new ones, so I'm glad she finally got her way with that.

In the bay window, where she probably thinks I won't notice, my mother peers through the cracked blinds, watching me make my way up the long, patchy sidewalk.

When she sees me glance towards the window, the blinds shut on a phantom wind.

Would it be entirely wrong for me to turn around and go home now that she knows I'm here?

Probably.

Do I want to do it anyway?

Yes.

When I reach the door, I barely have time to knock once before the door is thrown open, revealing, to no one's surprise, my mom standing on the other side, her eyes wide and filled with an innumerable amount of emotion.

I don't say anything and, to her credit, neither does she. All she does is step to the side to allow me entrance into the house.

Inside, unlike the outside, everything has changed.

The wall that had once separated the kitchen and the dining room is completely knocked out, combining the two into one, large room.

The kitchen countertops are different. Even the kitchen table looks to be a newer, less worn down version than the one I used to eat dinner on every night.

I don't get to look much further than that, though, because, sitting in one of the chairs, looking as gruff as ever, is my dad.

He doesn't say anything, but then again, he doesn't really have the opportunity before my mom gestures for me to take a seat across from him.

Asher, smart is ever, is no where to be found. He can probably sense how awkward this conversation is going to be.

Anybody in their right mind could tell that.