Is Your Heart Bound To Me?

and the pendulum swung.

When I woke up I was alone. Feeling a familiar cold. It was normal and yet simultaneously it was worse than it had ever been, almost. I sigh and then notice a note.

Dear Mystery Amalia Wenton,

Duty calls, don't miss me too much. I'm excited about the finished jacket. Also thanks for protecting me from the movie. Though I think a real knight wouldn't fall asleep when they were supposed to be on duty. Let's do this again sometime, I had fun.

Sincerely, Payton

P.S. I'll be waiting for that call from you tonight ;)

I chuckled as I read through his note and then I laid back. I call him that night, and the night after, and for a moment, my life is blissful. My night terrors were on vacation and I didn't feel sick when I looked in the mirror and saw myself and her. So much so that I start to feel guilty. Do I even deserve to be happy? 

I was unsure, but life carried on. I finished Payton's jacket and gave it to him, much to his own pleasure. Then the special night of the dinner arrived. I was almost excited. The whole family together might have seemed like a chore for most of my life but right now I was just glad to see their faces. I dressed up in a nice black dress with blue accents, in the same sort of style as Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's. 

It made me look as grown up as I was and I appreciated that. Pops had paid off most of the paparazzi so they wouldn't show up on my accord. But a few were still bound to try and snap some nice pictures anyhow. I would be wearing a hat and a ponytail to slightly disguise and cover my face so if necessary I could just look down to hide my face. I smiled at myself in the mirror, I really felt beautiful. 

I called Payton from the bathroom and stared as the phone rang, setting it up to get the best possible view of myself in the camera. It rang and rang, and yet he didn't show up. A frown snuck onto my face. My family piled into the car, Ma and Tessa first. Then Pops and Valeria and then me. 

We all looked stunning, wearing my original pieces of course. I looked around. Pops smiled at me and I smiled back. I noticed Valerias shaking hand and held it, and she let out a breath that she seemed to be holding in. I looked at Ma and Tessa who were both on their phones. 

Ma seemed out of it, smelling slightly of alcohol. I shook my head and stared out of the window. The car drove for a while. I thought about the past few days and how happy I'd been and I wondered if that was what it was like to have a friend. Maybe a best friend. 

The sky was dark and if I squinted my eyes the streetlights looked like an evening star. I smiled. When we arrived we were immediately seated. People looked at us and took pictures, I kept my head down, but they all came up to Tessa. She was the only real face everyone knew I guessed. 

We took our seats and ordered and then we waited. After a minute or so of uncomfortable but familiar silence, Valeria's fist softly hit the table and we all looked over. She looked shaky and scared as everyone stared. I looked at her, nodding in solidarity. But as soon as she opened her mouth to speak Ma interjected. 

"Valeria dear, that reminds me." Her words slurred slightly together and she switched to Spanish. "We really do need to talk about you and Diego." Valeria continued speaking in English though. "Why Ma?"