Broken Strings, Tangled Hearts. (#1 of Hearts of Silverlake)

2. Pancakes and Pretenses ୨୧

Daisy:

"Time to wake up!" Mom's voice cuts through the quiet of my room, all sing-song and bright, like she's having the best morning ever. Then the sunlight streams in, hitting me right in the face.

Nooo.

I groan and pull the covers over my head, hiding from both the light and her cheerfulness. "No... leave me alone. I just want to sleep all day." My voice is muffled under the blanket, but I know she hears me.

I don't want to get up. I don't want to go to school. And I definitely don't want to see him.

I feel the bed dip as Mom sits down next to me, but I don't move. I stay curled up, the blanket still shielding me from the world, from her. I know she's waiting for me to say something, but I can't-not today. Not when everything feels like it's closing in on me. I squeeze my eyes shut, hoping she'll just leave, even though deep down, a part of me wants her to stay. To fix everything. But she can't. So what's the point?

"Oh, come on," Mom says, not letting up. "Dad's making pancakes and bacon. He's even adding chocolate chips, and he's making smiley faces on everyone's pancakes."

Normally, that would get me out of bed. But not today.

"Dais... is everything okay?" she asks softly.

I hate that question.

Because it means I have to lie to my mom. The woman who gave birth to me, the woman who I love so much and can't ever imagine living in a world without her.

I don't lie because she's a bad mom; I lie because I don't want to make her worry. I don't want my parents constantly checking up on me, scared out of their minds that they'll lose me.

So, I do what I do every time she asks me this question.

I put on a fake smile and lie.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm just really tired." I push the covers off my face and sit up.

I look at my mom and smile a little. She's so pretty. Her blonde curls frame her face, bouncing softly as she leans in. The sunlight catches in her hair, making it look like it's glowing. Her blue eyes are bright and full of life, and her warm smile makes my chest ache. She's wearing that soft, flowy top I like, and even when I'm wrapped up in my own mess, she somehow makes everything seem a little bit better.

"If it makes you feel any better, so am I." She smiles really big.

"Oh please, you could never even tell." It's true; even when she's exhausted, she's so beautiful that it looks like she's had a solid twelve hours of sleep.

It honestly makes me jealous sometimes.

"Yeah, yeah, come on. Let's go eat." She gets off the bed and walks out of my room.

I stare down at my bed for a few minutes, then get off and shuffle to my closet, grabbing an outfit without thinking too much about it. I throw on a soft sweater and jeans, wishing I could just stay in my pajamas forever.

---

By the time I get downstairs, everyone's in the kitchen, talking and smiling. The smell of pancakes and bacon fills the air, making my stomach rumble, but I can't bring myself to feel hungry. I glance around the room, and my eyes land on Laura. She's my younger foster sister, and she's been with us for a couple of months now.

She sits quietly at the table, pushing her food around her plate. It's become a normal thing. My parents always wanted to become foster parents but never had the time, money, or space to do it. Now that they're doing well in their careers and we have a good home, they decided it was finally time to help someone who needed it.

My dad saw Laura and immediately felt a connection. I guess he saw himself in her, so they took her in.

My parents know that foster care often doesn't help kids, which is one of the many reasons why they wanted to foster-to give kids a good home, even if it's just for a little while. Most parents take their kids back, but they wanted to be different.

"Dais!" My older brother, Cole, immediately smiles when he sees me.

"Hello," I say, dragging the word out as I sit down on the island stool. Just as I settle in, Dad hands me a plate stacked with two pancakes, the top one decorated with chocolate chips in the shape of a smiley face and smothered in syrup, along with some crispy bacon on the side. "I am indeed alive."

Kind of ironic, considering last night.

"I was getting a little worried there; you took forever to come down." Cole slings his arm around my neck, causing me to flinch slightly.

I hold my breath, hoping nobody noticed my reaction.

When nobody says anything, I release my breath and grab my fork, cutting into my pancakes.

"So, are you excited for your last first day of school?" I ask Cole, trying to keep the conversation going.

"Ew, don't remind me." He fakes a gag, and I can't help but smile a little.

Cole doesn't like school that much; he just loves playing football and hanging out with his friends. But none of his friends are the same as they used to be.

He knows it, and I know it.

Nobody's the same as Kieran, his best friend, my best friend.

We all grew up together; he was basically another son to my parents. But when I was eight, Kieran was forced to pack up and leave, and nobody knew why.

At first, I thought he was just on vacation, but then his mom came back without him. I tried to ask her why he left, but she just smiled at me and said, "He's with other family right now. He'll be back soon, hun."

He never came back.

Hell, I don't even know if he's alive.

And now his mom is gone, too.

My thoughts drift back to the present as I glance at Laura, who still looks lost in her own world. I wonder if she's thinking about her past too. I want to reach out to her, to ask if she's okay, but the words get stuck in my throat. Maybe today will be different. Maybe I can find a way to connect with her, just like my parents have done with me.

But for now, I focus on my pancakes, forcing myself to eat while trying to shake off the heavy thoughts swirling in my mind.