STILL

Chapter Twenty-two

"C'mon say, Emma." Emma sat in the living room with her brother on her lap.

It's been a month of constantly trying to make him say her name with no progress.
"C'mon," she said. "Em," she paused "Ma," she continued. "Ehhm," he muttered as he tried to grab couch. "Ma," she mimed the rest of her name.

"Dada!" He said. his little toy on the

"Oh, really now! He's not even here." She rolled her eyes as she rested her back on the couch.

"What do you mean? I'm right here," her father said standing right behind her.
"I am trying to make him say my name but he isn't doing it,"

"Hey, that's normal," he paused. "He's only one," he continued.

"And five months," she corrected her father.
"Don't worry Em, he's gonna say it a lot at some point," he paused. "Hell, you'll want him to shut up," he said as he walked to the kitchen.

"I would never." she said, she placed her hand on her chest in shock. "I'm highly offended by what you just said," she said sarcastically.

"Next thing you know you'll be asking for the manager!" His comment made her laugh out loud. Dad knows what a Karen is? Who woulda thought! She thought between the laughs.

"Whatever." She rolled her eyes before looking back at her brother.

"He'll always love me more than you," she closed her eyes and pulled out her tongue, she teased her brother, only for him to smile and grab her cheeks

"Sometimes I wonder how you're twenty years old." He shook his head. "I know, I still look eighteen." She got off the couch with her brother in her arms.

"And act like you're ten." He said as he sat on the couch and turned on the Tv.

"I'm gonna go upstairs." She said as she walked away.

"Give me El-"
"No," she interrupted her father. "He's mine," She muttered as she heard him sigh.

Emma sat on her bed and grabbed her phone from her pocket. She opened her chats.

Sent 4w ago Was written underneath Tom's name. He's been online everyday yet never opened any of her messages.
She opened the chat and called him.

Ringing...
Ringing...
Ringing...

No answer. Just like the last twenty calls. She thought to herself.

"Doesn't look like he's answering anytime soon," she mumbled.

Elli looked down at the phone, and then back at Emma. He grabbed her phone with his little hands.

"AGGH!" He started yelling at the phone. She couldn't help but laugh at his face as it turned to red from yelling at the phone.

"Spirit, lifted." She laughed as she took the phone from his hand and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Why was he yelling?" Emma's mom walked in her bedroom, without knocking of course.

"He was yelling at my phone, it's fine." She shrugged, "Also, Mom." Emma knocked on her nightstand a few times, she looked up and tilted her head to the side, she hoped her mother would understand what she meant. Her mom rolled her eyes and let out a sigh, which was more than enough of an indication to show that she understood but simply didn't care.

"For that attitude you lose your Elli privileges." Her mom said as she grabbed her brother off the bed.

Emma watched them both walk out of her room; she laid her head on her pillow and shut her eyes closed. She sat in silence for a while, she tried not to think about her best friend who now ghosted her. And just when she tried to get him off her mind, her phone buzzed on her nightstand.