Dangerous Daydreams

Chapter 3- Life's Not Picture Perfect

It had been about two hours. Two hours since Ellie had arrived at a sold out show and two hours since Ryder met a girl named Stella. Now that her voice was hoarse and her ears were ringing- she had no idea what she'd tell her husband about that- Ellie was on her way home, going at least twenty over the speed limit- trying to beat Chase home. There was no need in rushing, but he could always come home early, and she had told him that she was spending the night in, reading or watching a movie. But the clock on the dashboard assured her that there was plenty of time to get home, change into pajamas, and take her makeup off.

After he watched Stella dance off into the crowd of people waiting to see One Direction, Ryder stood there amazed. She looked like a girl that would go to his school, but by her voice, it was clear that she didn't. Ryder smiled to himself and went back to Ethan. But throughout the night, his uncle never mentioned the girl. And that was a good thing; Ryder was coming to meet her here tomorrow, and he didn't need any company tagging along.

"Mom... I'm home!" Ryder said, shutting the front door and walking into the living room, following the glow of the lamp. Ellie looked up from her book and smiled. By the look on her son's face, she could tell he hadn't seen her at the show. She had rushed home, threw on some pajamas, took off her makeup, put her hair into a bun, and grabbed a book from her nightstand drawer... and now here she sat.

"How was the show? Was the band any good?" Ellie asked.

"I guess they were okay... not my type of music, but I met this really sweet girl, and I'm going to meet her downtown tomorrow. Is that okay?"

Ellie smiled to herself. Ryder's last girlfriend had dumped him for a reason that no one really knew, and left him heartbroken. He might only be seventeen, but she was glad he might've found someone to make him a tad less moody. "That's fine, sweetie. Just remember, we're having a family cookout tomorrow. Your grandparents are coming over, and they expect you to be here... You could always invite the girl if you wanted to... what's her name?"

"Stella... but I didn't catch her last name, Ethan ruined the moment. She said she'd meet me tomorrow at that exact place, so I guess we'll see..." Ryder blurted all of this out without hesitation. He had always confided in his mom. He told Ellie everything, which was strange because he never had one-on-one talks with his dad... He was always spilling stuff to Ellie, but never Chase. Sometimes she would slip and tell Chase something Ryder had told her not to tell him, but Ryder always forgave her, and always came back to her with interesting stories of his life adventures.

"Just like Ethan to ruin the moment...." Ellie laughed.

"I doubt she'll want to come, but you never know... Goodnight, mom. Love you." the seventeen year old said, hugging his mom before retreating upstairs to his room. Ellie listened to his bedroom door shut- there were no locks in the house. The one rule that she was forced to abide by growing up was going to be the one rule that her kids had to deal with. If there are no locks, you can't get into any trouble...

About an hour later, Ellie was asleep on the couch, a blanket draped over her and the lamp still on; the book that she was reading lay open across her chest. She sighed in her sleep and rolled over, curling deeper into the warm fabric of the couch. Then Chase walked in, trying to shut the front door ever so gently, sensing that everyone was long gone into their slumbers. He walked around the corner and saw his wife sleeping peacefully- or at least that's what he thought. But what he didn't know wouldn't kill him, because once more, Ellie was being sucked into the life of Mrs. Malik.

Chase smiled, loving the fact that she was so content on staying home on a Saturday night in her pajamas, with a good book. He walked over to her and turned the lamp off before removing the blanket and scooping his wife into his arms. Ellie stirred but didn't wake up. He carried her to their bed and pulled the thick comforter and silk sheets over her. It was funny, when he looked around at the beautifully decorated room. When he bought her this house, he assumed she had no designing skills at all. But she proved him wrong, decorating the whole house to perfection. Sighing, he pulled the blankets over himself, and drifted off to a dream land way different than his wife's.

"Hello princess!" Ellie heard herself in her dream, but she couldn't quite make out the figure that she was supposed to be talking to. Would tonight be any different? Would Kennedy walk around the corner in her dreams, or would it be Scarlett yet again? To no surprise, a dark-skinned, dark-haired little girl with hazel eyes came running towards her. "Mommy!" Scarlett said. She had just gotten home from school. Her hair that was perfectly straight when she left that morning was now messy and full of tangles. "Guess what mommy?" the seven year old said, grinning from ear to ear. "What?" Ellie responded, playing the role of an involved mother quite well. And that was the rest of her dream... seeing Scarlett when she got home from school, and watching her children do their homework at the kitchen table while she cooked dinner. And in her dreams, she smiled when her loving husband walked through the door. Zayn slipped his hands around her waist as she stirred through a sauce pan.

Her dream family was picture perfect..... If only that dream could turn into reality.

The next day was hectic. Ellie was running around the house trying to do a quick cleaning. Her mom had always instructed her to keep a clean house- it said a lot about people- and she didn't want to hear her complain later. Chase was gone to the store to buy last minute items needed for the family gathering. Ryder had just left to meet the mysterious Stella, and Ellie was waiting on Kennedy's friend to drop her off. Once more it was quiet in the house.

But back downtown, Ryder was walking the streets. It was so crowded last night- and dark- that he had no clue where he had met Stella. Maybe she wouldn't show and he could just pretend nothing had ever happened. He took his phone out to check the time, and as if it was meant to be, he bumped into a girl who was also looking at her phone. "Oh my god... I'm so-" he began, seeing that it was Stella.

"Oh my! I was just thinking that if I would've given you my number, you might would have found me a little quicker..." her high pitched, British accent floated through the air. When she smiled at Ryder, his heart nearly stopped. Stella was even prettier with the bright sun shining down... and he didn't hesitate to tell her.

"You look gorgeous by the way." He said, suddenly thinking that his generosity might be taken the wrong way. But when she smiled in return, he sighed with relief.

"So Ryder..." Stella began saying. "What's it like living here? I mean I assume you live here- you seem so comfortable with this heat. Ya know, my dad warned me about it... he's been here lots of times before, but it's like hot."

Ryder couldn't help but laugh, just now noticing that the gorgeous Stella was in jeans. "So do you want to get some ice cream?" he said, and she nodded in agreement.

Thirty minutes later they both sat inside an ice cream parlor, enjoying a tasty treat after the long, hot walk here. They had talked and talked and talked, but Ryder still hadn't asked for her last name. There was something about her that looked familiar and he didn't know why. "Stella? Do you mind me asking what your last name is?"

She shook her head. "Not at all... it's Malik. Why do you ask?" she instantly got paler, wondering why it had taken this really handsome boy so long to figure out who she was. Because if he didn't know, then he probably had a mom who did...

"Oh no big deal. I'm just curious."