Blurred Lines

~Mother Knows Nothing~

Nick's POV:

It was awkward. Having to sit at the table with Deliah glaring at Kali and Kali smiling at her as if she didn't notice. My mom was none the wiser because Deliah would smile every time she looked in her direction.

But that's the way it has to be. That's the way it needs to be. My mother needs to be kept in the dark about this whole thing. All the years of pain and torture, she can't know about them.

She can never know about them. Not now, not ever.

She'd be all alone if I told her. She needs someone to care about her when I'm not around. She needs someone to rely on when she can't rely on me. And sadly, Deliah is that person.

For however long that's true, I'll keep my mouth shut and allow her to live in her fairytale world with her perfect best friend and son with the nice girlfriend. She can stay happy.

"So Nick, how long have you and Kalani been together?" Deliah said Kali's name like a slur. Like it offended her to even have to speak her name.

"Uh, a year?" I looked down at Kali and she shook her head.

"Silly, we've been together since high school. We just broke up a few times but we've always known where home was." She said before leaning up and  kissing my cheek.

"Right." Being next to Kali was making it easy to sit in a room with Deliah. She kept me from panicking to the point of embarrassing myself and exposing every lie that was hidden in this house.

She made me feel normal in times where I should feel everything but that. I shouldn't be as calm as I am right now. I should be sitting in a corner somewhere with my knees pulled up to my chest overthinking like usual.

"Hm. I don't remember you mentioning a girlfriend, Sweet Pea." Deliah commented.

"Come on, Del. They were so young back then. He probably didn't want to make a big deal out of it." My mom laughed.

"Of course! I'm just surprised. Nick would always tell me everything when he was growing up." It's not like I had a choice. It was like everything I did she knew about. That's why I avoided talking about Kali around anyone who wasn't the boys or occasionally my mom.

"Well you two will have plenty of time to catch up over the next few days. We all will." The excitement in my mothers voice was impossible to miss. How was I supposed to say no to anything she asked when it was so obvious that this was everything she had wished for? I couldn't.

"Yes we will." Deliah said, looking towards me before smiling at my mother.

"Um, actually there's something I need to tell you guys." I looked at my mom nervously. She sounded worried, I didn't like that.

Was something wrong? Is she sick? Is that why she was so adamant about me coming home so suddenly? 

"What is it mom?" I asked quickly.

"Well, I wanted you to come home for a few different reasons. Yes, I missed you and wanted you to come and visit but there's also something else." She said smiling.

She's smiling entirely too much for my liking. She could be telling me she's dying from cancer right now and she has the nerve to be smiling about it.

"And those reasons are?"

"Deliah was coming home and I wanted us all to be together. And then I wanted you to meet someone. Someone important to me." Someone important? What the hell is she talking about?

"A special someone, Olivia?" Deliah asked, her eyes brighter than before.

"Yes. Nick, I want you to meet my boyfriend while you're here." What. The. Fuck.