Despicable Desires

Episode 19

Adeline

"Aren't we waiting for Mia?" my sister asks as we sit down at the table.

"She's still at work, we'll start without her," my father replies, placing the bowl of tomato salad on the tablecloth.

As I stood up to serve everyone, I felt a slight dizziness that forced me to stop moving for a second. The table fell silent and all eyes were on me.

"Are you all right, Adeline?" my father worries.

"Just a little dizzy, nothing serious. I just got up too fast."

"Maybe you should have taken a few days off."

He straightens up to take the salad spoons out of my hands and continues serving in my place.

"It's okay, Dad, I'm not fragile. It has absolutely nothing to do with what happened... at the campfire," I add in a lower voice.

Resigned, he sits down again and lets me continue. It's been over ten days since the incident at Tyler's party, but my father is still worried about my health. I have to admit that I panicked a little when I woke up. First because I didn't remember the end of the evening, but also because I didn't know why I was in Cameron's bed... half-naked. I think if I could have passed out to avoid hearing the details of what I had missed, I would have. I was drugged. I kissed Tyler. I ruined Tyler's night. I threw up in front of Jayden. I was rescued by Jayden. I got undressed by Jayden. In short, I think I destroyed all my chances of being attractive to him and being seen as a mature and responsible girl. I'll forever be his half-sister, the drugged one he helped vomit. I was so embarrassed when Cameron told me about my misadventures that I didn't leave my room all day. Well, except to see a doctor who made things worse. My father's panic didn't help either. I'm alive, nothing "bad" happened to me, and yet he's been hovering over me for ten days, as if I were Astrid's age. No, like I was five years younger. The worst part is that no one has mentioned this episode since. I tried to find out more about the person who drugged me, but Cameron just said that we didn't know the guy and that the problem had been taken care of. Nothing more, nothing less. And now, in addition to being in the dark, I'm banned from going out for the rest of my life. A real disaster.

"I'm really sorry," Mia announces like a whirlwind as she steps through the glass door. "I've been so busy this afternoon."

She leans over to my father and returns his kiss before going around the table to kiss everyone.

"What did I miss?" she asks, a broad smile on her face as she sits down in the empty chair.

"The start of the meal," Jayden reproaches her in a sharp tone.

She glances at her son, who can't help but stare at his mother. However, she completely ignores his comment and continues talking to my father as if nothing had happened. Even though she is doing her best to make the meal enjoyable, the atmosphere around the table is deteriorating.

"Jayden, please, can you stop pouting?" Mia finally says to her son, who hasn't said a word for several minutes.

Annoyed, he just forces a smile, the most forced one he can muster, which in turn makes Cameron laugh.

"If you want to act like an idiot, there's no need to stay here."

"Leave me alone," he adds coldly. "Just because you got off work early tonight doesn't mean we have to play the perfect family."

Surprised by her son's attitude, Mia turns to my father for support.

"Calm down, son, your mother's had a long day."