Borrowed Time

Chapter 104

Juliette knew that Esme wasn't super happy to be going to Christmas with her, but she was glad that they were there... The last thing that she wanted was to spend time with her father after the shit that she'd learned last night, and having Esme there gave her a great chance to get away from all of that...

Except Esme hadn't moved off the front steps or knocked on the door... They were frozen, and Juliette didn't have the heart to push them... But she could... Help, right?

"Hey." Juliette rubbed her hand across Esme's upper back, giving them a half smile as she rested her head against their shoulder... They were gonna be fine, they had no reason to worry about anything. "I've gotcha, I'm right here." She insisted, and Esme sighed, straightening out their blazer that they'd clearly borrowed from Francesca... She'd seen her wearing it the night that she'd come into the diner.

It looked even better on Esme.

"I know." Esme let out a shaky breath and smiled at her. "Just wanna make a good impression." They said, and Juliette nodded, pushing up on her toes just a bit to press a kiss to their cheekbone... They were too precious to not make a good impression, anyone who didn't love them on instinct was a fucking asshole.

"You will." Juliette reached past them and pushed open the door, waiting for them to walk in before she took their hand and followed, clearing her throat. "Hey, we're here!" She called, and she was surprised that her grandfather was the first one to greet her, his eyes sparkling as he smiled... Her father was nowhere to be seen, she wouldn't be surprised if he was hiding.

She hoped that he was so consumed with his own guilt that he didn't want to show his face at his own party... That would be the perfect fucking punishment for what he'd done, even if it wasn't nearly enough.

"Esme! So great to see you, kid." He embraced Esme fully before turning to Juliette and doing the same... Little odd that he'd picked them first, but she wasn't going to internalize it too much... Probably. "You too, Junebug." He said, and she smiled... It was nice to see him again.

"Hi grandpa." Her heart did drop a bit when she saw her grandmother, who looked like she was moments away from saying something that would utterly destroy her self esteem for the entire evening. "Grandma." She said, and her grandmother looked at her with scrutiny.

"Hm." Her grandmother went to prod at her stomach, but Esme stepped in front of her, using their hand to guide Juliette behind them slightly, leaving her just out of reach. "You've gained some weight, haven't you? God, you're putting it on fast." Her grandmother said, and Juliette sighed, flinching away from the comment as she felt her stomach drop.

God, she wanted to eat today... Comments like that made it a lot harder for her to do that.

She heard someone clear their throat behind her grandmother and she saw someone lean around her, a glass of red wine in one hand and she simply grinned.

Dakota.

"Actually mom, Jules looks healthier than I've seen her look in years... I think you should be applauding your granddaughter for healing her body, and if you can't do it... I'd quiet down." She said, winking at Juliette... Dakota was everything that she wanted to be - successful, self confident, beautiful... She had a smile that could light up the world... She hardly looked anything like her brother, aside from faintly in their smile, and they had the same nose... Otherwise, she looked so unique.

Her grandmother sighed and shook her head, giving her daughter a look.

"Such an attitude." She muttered, and Juliette watched her grandfather clear his throat as he straightened up, looping his thumbs on his belt.