VIOLET (A Harry Potter Universe Fanfiction)

35.

Over the next week, Caiti spent an awful lot of time thinking about how she might address the situation with Sean. She wanted to be kind about it, to be sisterly, but also to stress that if he didn't get his act together, he was going to lose her altogether. She wished she had not volunteered herself to talk to him. What had she been thinking? She had no business getting herself involved in this.

But the thing was, as much as Sean sometimes drove her crazy, as different as they were, she really did love him, and she was afraid if she didn't at least warn him of what was coming, he'd end up getting really hurt. If she knew Sean as well as she thought she did, he had no idea Evelyn wasn't one hundred percent happy with the way things were going in their relationship, no idea she wanted or needed anything more than what she had.

Her parents had invited Marlowe, Sean, and Evelyn all over for dinner that night, and Caiti hadn't decided whether she was going to talk to him that night or not, but she thought if the opportunity presented itself to get him one on one, she might. She had a hunch that it would be good if her mum were nearby. She and Sean were close.

She agonized over what to say that whole day and still hadn't come up with anything good by the time they'd all arrived that night. All through dinner, she was distracted.

Finally, the four of them had found their way out onto the glassed in porch and were sitting and talking. She was curled up with her head on Marlowe's shoulder staring out the window, though she couldn't see much in the pitch black.

Marlowe and Evelyn were talking animatedly about odd muggle habits Evelyn had forgotten about until she'd started uni, spending lots of time around muggles again. Many of them were things Marlowe's mother did and the two of them couldn't stop laughing. Sean seemed mildly invested in the conversation but obviously didn't have as much to contribute.

Eventually, he excused himself to use the bathroom. Caiti's heart started pounding as soon as he left. She felt like this was her chance.

She waited a minute before she got up, but left without a word or a glance at either of them.

Her parents were sitting on the couch listening to the radio when she stepped back into the house.

She slipped past them, down the hall, and intercepted Sean just as he was emerging from the bathroom.

"Come in your room a second," she said. "I want to talk to you about something."

He frowned, but followed her into his old bedroom.

"You might want to sit down," Caiti said, and then wished she hadn't because instantly Sean seemed to grow nervous.

"Sorry," she said quickly, sinking down onto the edge of his bed. She put a hand on her forehead and shut her eyes for a second. "I just don't know how to bring this up."

Sean said nothing, but very slowly, he sat down in the desk chair.

Caiti was quiet for a while. She didn't think she had the words to put this as gently as she needed to, but all night she had watched Sean sit there beside Evelyn with this ease like nothing was wrong while Evelyn kept watching the way she and Marlowe interacted, and Caiti could see it now, the way Evelyn paid attention, the way she wanted something more or different than what she had.

"Have you noticed Evelyn seems a little sad lately?" she asked finally.

Sean frowned at her. "Not really. She seems fine at home."

Caiti hesitated.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said. "I was just worried about her is all."