"Mom... Alex, what are you doing here?" Blake stumbled over his words, completely shocked to see his mother and little brother. "I'll ask the questions around here, young man! And if you must know, your brother had a doctor's appointment today, so I let him come home early," his mom said as Blake bent down, helping Emma up.
Emma stood awkwardly beside Blake, shifting from side to side. She was mortified that this was her first impression on Blake's mother and Alex. Blake's mom looked down at Alex. "How do you know this girl, Alex?"
Alex looked at Emma, who was wearing his brother's clothes, her face as red as a tomato. He pulled the lollipop from his mouth before speaking. "Um, she's my after-school tutor," he said softly, putting the candy back into his mouth. Their mom quickly glanced at Blake, who simply shrugged.
She slowly knelt in front of her youngest. "Why don't you go upstairs and show Miss..." She glanced over at Emma for her to speak"Pear, ma'am," Emma whispered "Yes, go show her your new Minecraft toys while I talk to Blake down here." She smiled as she stood back up. Alex grinned with excitement, lollipop stick sticking out of his mouth. He walked up to Emma, taking her hand and leading her up to his room, already chattering about his new toy set from a few days ago. Emma looked back at Blake hesitantly before she was pulled out of sight.
As soon as they were out of sight, Blake flopped back onto the couch, looking up at his angry mom, who stood with her hands on her hips. Frustration and anger clouded her eyes. "Care to explain why I come home to find you and a girl I've never met here at home alone instead of school?" she asked, tapping her foot, waiting for him to say something.
Blake sighed, looking to the side. "It's a long story, Mom." she threw her hands up in annoyance. "And I have plenty of time, Blake!" he rolled his eyes, crossing his arms. "Well, that's a first," he whispered, making her huff "Care to repeat that, Blake?" she said in a warning voice, pointing a finger at him.
He stood up slowly, wanting more than anything for this conversation to be over. "No, Mom, just let me explain. A girl threw a drink on her at school, and I'll just go ahead and tell you, you may or may not be getting a call from the principal in the next few days. Um, I may get suspended." He pressed his eyes tight, cringing at his own words, but in his mind, telling his mom straight like this was better than her or his dad randomly getting a call from the school.
His mom shook her head, sighing. "Oh, Lake, what did you do? You know what... don't even tell me." She rubbed her temples, feeling a migraine coming on. "Why did you have to get involved? It's so unlike you to... well, to help people like that." His mom had a point; this was very unlike him. He didn't know why he had just jumped to help Emma. Maybe it was because she was nice to him... maybe it was because she was too good to be treated that way. He didn't know why he did it. Maybe he just liked her; she was pretty nice.
But he was definitely not about to tell his mom that "Um, I don't know, I just felt like it, I guess." He crossed his arms, looking down. His mother looked him over intensely for a moment. Her eyes suddenly widened with realization. "Is she the girl from the dance?" she asked, pointing upstairs.
His eyes slightly widened for a moment before he looked up at his mother's smiling face. "Oh my goodness, it is... it is her! Don't get me wrong, I'm still mad you ditched school and that you'll probably be suspended, but that's the girl? The reason you came home looking so happy the other day?" She said the words too fast and full of excitement; he could barely understand her.
He looked into her eyes, could already see the gears turning in her brain. "No, Mom, n..." she abruptly cut him off. "We should have her for dinner! Your dad will be home soon for lunch break."
Blake frantically shook his head side to side in disapproval. Emma couldn't stay for dinner; his family would embarrass the hell out of him around her. But he knew it was too late when his mom yelled, "Miss Pear, please come down here a moment!"
Emma came from Alex's room, standing at the top of the stairs. His mom smiled widely, hands on her hips. "Would you like to stay for dinner, dear? We would love to have you." Blake stood behind his mother, shaking his head no quickly. A little grin spread on Emma's lips. His mom turned her head, looking back at him. He abruptly stopped shaking his head, pretending to pick at his red nail polish.
"I would... love to," Emma said.
Blake gave her a dumbfounded look while his mom smiled, excited. "Great, dear! I hope you like seafood."
Emma shrugged, grinning as Alex came out of his room, pouting. "Love it," she replied. Alex pulled on Emma's hand while waving an action figure around with the other. He began pulling her back to his room. "Miss Pear, the androids are attacking! I need your help!" he said dramatically, making Emma and his mom laugh.
"Go ahead, don't keep the kid waiting." Emma let herself get dragged off by Alex. Blake let out a sigh as his mother started to make her way to the kitchen. "Oh, and Blake... you're grounded for ditching school." He rolled his eyes as she walked into the kitchen to prepare dinner, while Blake quickly made a call to cancel the pizza he'd ordered. He didn't need his mom getting mad at him for anything else.
YOU ARE READING
It Started With Hello
Romance***** Emma Pear knew she wasn't the most popular girl in high school. Her nose was usually buried in a textbook, and her grades were as spotless as her reputation for always following the rules. "Nerd" was a label she'd long since embraced. Her pare...
