Invisible String (w|w high school romance)

Forgive and Forget

Harper POV:

I was beyond tired the next morning. Riley and I had decided to go to Josh's prom after party and we stayed out pretty late. I rolled over in the bed to see that Riley wasn't there next to me. I heard some talking from downstairs and I assumed she was down there with her dad.

I rolled out of bed and tiredly shuffled my way down the stairs. When I got to the bottom, I could see Riley and her dad laughing and flipping pancakes. Riley noticed that I was awake and offered me a smile. She handed her dad the spatula that she was flipping pancakes with before walking over to me.

I smiled as she wrapped her arms around my neck and stood up on her toes to give me a kiss. "Good morning beautiful." She said. I pulled her into a hug, resting my chin on her head as her arms wrapped around my waist. "Good morning." I replied.

We stood there for a few minutes in each others arms. I didn't want to ever let go of her. "Food is ready." Riley's dad said. We both reluctantly pulled out of each others embrace as Riley's dad placed stacks of pancakes on the table. 

We walked over to the table and took our seats next to each other with Riley's dad seated across from us. "How was prom?" He asked before taking a bite of his stack of pancakes.

"It was a lot of fun. We won prom queens." Riley said with a smile.

"Prom queens?" Her dad asked.

"Yeah we both won. Josh and Drew had some sort of scheme and they managed to pull it off." Riley explained.

"Of course they did." Riley's dad said with a laugh.

"Want to see all the pictures?" I asked. Riley's dad broke into a huge smile. "Absolutely!" He replied. I unlocked my phone and handed it over to him. I had pulled up my instagram post from the night and he took his time looking over every photo. He seemed to smile brighter at every single one.

"You girls look so beautiful." He said as he inspected another photo.

"Thanks Dad." Riley replied.

I felt a slight pang of sadness in my heart. I couldn't help but compare my parents to Riley's dad in this moment. From what I know, Riley's dad has always supported her and accepted her for who she is. My parents never made an effort. They just kicked me out of the house without hesitation. Hopefully things would start to get better with my parents. My dad had already started making an effort last night.

After breakfast I helped Riley and her dad clear the table and wash dishes. Riley and I then went up to her room, fully planning to spend the day relaxing and cuddling in each others arms. My plan was foiled when my phone rang.

"Could you see who it is?" I asked Riley. My phone was on the night stand and she just happened to be closer to it.

"Its your dad." Riley said hesitantly. 

I walked over to her and gently took the phone from her. I stared at the screen, just watching it ring over and over again.

"Are you going to answer?" Riley asked.

"Yeah I am." I said unconvincingly. 

I stood there with the phone in my hand as it continued to ring. I knew that I needed to pick up and talk to my dad but I couldn't bring myself to do it. It's like I was frozen. Riley noticed what was going on and she sighed before reaching out and clicking the accept call button for me.

"Thank you." I whispered to her and she just nodded.

"Hello?" My dad's voice said from over the phone.

"Hi Dad." I replied as I sat down on Riley's bed. She came and sat beside me, placing her hand on my thigh to comfort me.

"Um how are you?" He asked. It was like he didn't know how to talk to me.