Aria Matthews is in love with her best friend, Lucas Miller. It is the best kept secret since Area 51 and she knows she would take it to the grave. But things start changing in her senior year of high school when another of her friends takes it upon...
At school the next day, Cam and Mason cornered me to ask me about the family get-together. They had texted me the previous night but I had turned my phone off because I just wanted to rest. My body and mind were exhausted by the events of the day. Instead, I had instructed Luke to fill them in on the drama.
Poor Cam looked like she hadn't slept much as she fussed over me. Even Mason had new worry lines on his forehead. I felt a wave of tenderness towards my friends. I never got the feeling that they were pitying me but that they genuinely cared.
That evening, my mom drove me to a local Lebanese restaurant that I loved. I was dressed in a soft, comfortable t-shirt with my favorite jeans. Not once did my mother criticize me for it. It was like the woman had transformed overnight into a new person. She still wasn't warm and friendly like Luke's mother, Emily. But even then, it wasn't a small change.
During dinner, we talked like we hadn't talked before. The conversation was awkward and stunted, accompanied with instances of uncomfortable silence but my heart still soared. My mom wasn't perfect but she was trying. Better late than never.
Despite my high spirits, undesirable thoughts tried to invade my mind as I bit into my shawarma. Like did our relationship get better only because I was abused and my mom witnessed Brad's sleaziness? Was my mom trying to mend our relationship because she felt sorry for me?
I tried hard not to dwell on the negative aspects of our new bond. I will do everything on my part to keep us going strong.
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"Doll?"
I hummed in contentment. Luke and I were cuddling on the bed, my head on his arm as he hugged me close. The day was uncharacteristically cold but Luke's embrace was cozy and warm. He should think about moonlighting as a heating blanket. But then I would have to hire him full-time.
He didn't reply immediately. I looked up at his face but the angle was such that I couldn't see his eyes. "What's up?" My mother had flown back to Chicago for the day to move all her stuff back into the house. She said she was going to do most of her work from home because she wanted to spend more time with me.
And as much as I loved this new closeness with my mom, I couldn't help wishing that she'd stayed away for like a month or something. I mean, what were the odds that she announced she was returning home two days after Luke and I became a couple? Coincidence? Mom instinct? I had no idea. But then thoughts like these would make me feel guilty, especially when I knew how much my mom was trying.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Of course." I pushed away to lean on my elbow so I could look into his somber eyes. "What is it?"
He paused for a bit, his throat working. "Are you sure you don't want to report Brad? I know your mother didn't believe you. But now she does. My family would have believed you way back then. A jury would definitely have. You know he deserves to be behind bars."
