Forevermore

Forty One

Indi

My heart races for hours after waking up on Sunday.

Ezra hasn't called me since Friday. Not even after his games yesterday. Lucas won't pick up either. He won't even reply to my texts.

He knows about us. I can just feel it. But I have no clue why that means Ezra won't call me.

And a horrific thought has been stirring through my mind, leaving me with a tense and achy feeling all throughout my body.

Is Ezra going to break up with me?

We haven't even been official for a whole week. If he broke up with me now, that would not only be heartbreaking, but absolutely humiliating.

I know him and Lucas are close, but I can't help the selfish hope that Ezra would choose me over him. Which is awful, I know it is. I've always wanted the best for Lucas. Yet, just this once, I hope I get to keep something that he thinks I 'stole' from him.

Around lunch time, my dad knocks on my door, interrupting a study session that I've started in order to distract myself.

"Hey, kid," he says and I turn around to face him. "I'm going to lunch with a friend–" By friend, I think he means Carrie, who he always has lunch with on Sundays, be it here or somewhere else. "Do you want me to pick something up on the way back?"

I shake my head since I don't have much of an appetite.

Dad's eyebrows pinch together. "Are you okay?"

A soft sigh escapes through my nose before I finally shake my head. "I think Lucas found out about me and Ezra."

He's silent for a moment, pressing his lips into a flat line. "Oh, kid, I'm sorry."

"Do you think he's going to break up with me?" My voice is hushed from how tight my throat feels.

Dad instantly starts shaking his head, walking further into my room. "Listen, I can already see that he loves you a lot."

"Loves?"

He sits on my bed, right next to my desk, and nods. "You already know he has a lot of it in his heart. Especially towards you now."

"How do you know?"

"The eyes never lie, for one," he says. "And I think he's always loved you. First as a friend, in the same way he loves Lucas and all the guys on the team. But he's definitely falling in love with you, Indi, and he's not gonna throw it all away just because your brother's got some anger issues."

His words are a great relief to me, but I still feel the bundle of nerves wrapped tightly in my chest. "But he's acting so weird, Dad."

"Here's my advice," he says. "See him in person a little after his flight and don't come to any conclusions until you can communicate, alright?"

I inhale one deep breath before letting the air out. "Alright," I answer. "Thank you."

He grins before standing up and ruffling my hair up. "I love you, kid. Don't get so worked up over some guy."

"I love you too, Dad."

Then he leaves my room and I'm left to my own devices once again.

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

I'm in the kitchen when Dad finally gets back from picking Lucas up from the airport. I hop off one of the barstools at the island and anxiously walk into the kitchen.

My brother shoots me a glare before focusing on the stairs.

"Lucas–"

"I don't want to hear it."