Friendly Dating - Kira

Chapter 38 - Greeting Amber

Ethan was gone when I woke up this morning, and I was utterly baffled and startled by just how disappointed I was about that.

My life is fast spiralling into a warped alternative reality, where I miss Ethan when he's not around to pester me, and I cannot wait for him to open his curtains to see his face. I even long to hear his voice.

"Dell, did you see Ethan this morning?"

Delia and I are walking to school, and the sun is already trying to fry us to a crisp; there are no signs left over of the rain we had on Tuesday: no clouds, barely a breeze, just sun, sun, and more sun.

Something in the tone of my voice seems to make Delia suspicious; she is narrowing her eyes, giving me one of her Detective Barbie looks, which I dodge... expertly as usual.

"I'm just wondering," is all I can think of to say, and she shrugs in reply. Okay, "expertly" might've been the wrong word.

"He had a fight with Dad again last night, and Ethan had a slight bruise and a scratch on his face at breakfast. I thought he'd probably just been rough again; he's always bruised, after all." That is very true. Ethan is a hurricane that gathers bruises and abrasions as though they were prizes. Most of them are self-inflicted.

"But then Dad got all upset about it, asking him if he did that to him with the door last night, and Ethe denied it, but... you know... He was lying. Ethe's not all that great at lying, and Dad kept apologising; Ethan kept saying it was nothing, and they almost had another fight. Honestly, those two are exhausting."

I'm relieved about this confirmation of how Ethan was injured.

"Why are they fighting so much lately?"

"Dad is very touchy, as you know. He's extremely stressed, and Ethan is... well... Ethan. But most of their fights are about next year. Dad wants Ethe to go to the university in Hummelton instead of the one in Silverview."

My heart lurches at those words. I cannot imagine not having Ethan go to Silverview University with Delia and me.

"But he has a rugby scholarship for Silverview."

"He was also offered one for Hummelton," Delia says, and I know that she hates the idea of being separated from her brother as much as I do. "Their rugby teams are in the top league. Ethe will have a better chance of getting into professional rugby if he's on one of Hummelton Varsity's teams."

"But Ethan doesn't want to be a professional rugby player; he wants to join your dad's construction company!" How can I know that and Mr Fletcher doesn't?

"For some reason, Dad has issues with that," Delia sighs, and I want to talk about it some more, but Simon joins us, grabbing her bag, and the subject of our conversation shifts to the weekend and all our plans.

Why would Uncle Ian not want Ethan to join him at his firm? Most fathers would love it if their children were interested in their companies. Yes, Ethan can be a pest, but he can also be very hard-working and resourceful when required. Tomorrow morning, he is going to the city centre - temporarily turned into fairgrounds - with his dad to help with last-minute construction work for the festival. Uncle Ian is taking Ethan because he knows he can depend on him. So, why?

Does he think that Ethan will fail and not be able to complete the degree in architectural engineering he wants to enrol for? Ethan struggles with academic activities because he sometimes has trouble staying focused, but he has proven so many times that when he is motivated, he can get the job done and done well. Ethan might have to work harder at it than most people, but he has the ability and aptitude to complete the degree. I know he does. His parents know that as well, so why?