Finding Adelina

11

**ADELINA**

My mother continues to make small talk with me for thirty minutes before the door opens and my father walks in. "We can go now."

     "Great!" My mother exclaims. She stands up and walks over to my father. He leans down and presses a short kiss on her lips, and she smiles up at him. "Come on, Adelina."

     I follow them back the way we came, down to the car park. I get into the back seat and cross my knees. I go on my phone on the way back, willing a message back from one of my friends to pop up. It wouldn't be night time in England. It'd be, what? Seven o'clock?

"Are you okay, honey?" My mother asks.

For a moment I think she's talking to my father. When I see her looking at me in the rear view mirror, concern plaguing her features, I nod. "Yeah."

My father glances back at me too, but doesn't say anything. We get back to the building, and my father carries the bags up to the top floor. As I walk through the front door, my nerves return. I look around, hoping that Layla isn't here. But the door beside us opens and she walks through.

     "Hey, I thought you guys would never be back." She says, with a glance my way.

     "We had to stop by your dad's office." My mother tells her.

     I look up at my father. "Do.. do you need any help putting everything away?"

     His lips tilt upwards a little bit—likely the first hint of a smile he's ever shown to me. "No, it's okay. I'll do it." He walks through to the kitchen.

     Layla follows him and I exhale a breath of relief I didn't know I was holding. My mother looks down at me. "You can go back to your room now, if you'd like."

"Okay." I whisper. I begin to make the long journey back to my bedroom, and when I get there I close myself inside of it and push my shoes off. I change into my pyjamas and sit on my bed.

My phone starts to vibrate with a call, and I grab it out of my pocket quickly. Elizabeth's name shines on my phone. I answer it.

"Adelina!" She exclaims.

I grin. "Hi!"

"Sorry I've not been able to call! How are things going? Is America amazing?"

     No. It's not. I don't say that, and I don't tell her about Layla or anything because I know she'd probably tell her mum or something and it'd turn into something I don't want it to turn into.

     Bedsides, when Wendy gets here I'll be able to go home anyway, so I only have to endure it for another week or two or three. I can do that.

     We continue to talk. She tries to ask about my family a lot, but I make the conversation about her instead. We talk for about an hour before she has to go. When she ends the call, I feel a strange sort of loneliness that makes my head ache.

     There's a knock on my door. I snap my head over to it, furrowing my eyebrows. "Come in."

     Levi opens the door and steps inside. He isn't who I expected. For a moment I wonder if he's like Layla, but when he smiles kindly at me I second guess that. "Hey. Mom asked me to ask you what you want for dinner."