That Stupid Little L-Word:

Chapter Sixty Two:

I am released from the hospital after two more days. The first one is spent running a whole bunch of other tests, and the other is just to double check and make sure that I am alright. And after those couple of days, thanks to the mixture of medicines I now have to take, my memories of the accident are one giant blob of blurs and messiness.

When I finally get home, I am ecstatic because we have actual food.

I am seated on one side of the couch, cuddled into the cushions. A blanket is wrapped around me, and I feel like a fuzzy burrito. "Thank the lord for instant noodles," I sing happily as my mother sets a bowl down in front of me. I set the remote down and dive in. "I've missed their cheap, nood-ly goodness."

Out of the corner of my eyes, I see my mother roll her eyes. She sits down on the other end of the couch and holds her own bowl of ramen closer to her chest. "What are we watching tonight?" she asks after her first bite.

I pause and glance at her. "How does Harry Potter sound?"

She nods. I press play on the remote and then return to inhaling my instant noodles. Several minutes in to the movie, I hear the doorbell chime. I reach out for the remote and pause it. Both my mother and I share a confused look. Then she stands and sets her bowl down on the coffee table.

"If I'm not back in five minutes, call the police," she whispers as she starts toward the foyer.

I roll my eyes, but make sure to keep the telephone handy just in case.

The front door creaks open, and then I hear my mother make a surprised sound. A small moment of silence passes. Then I hear, "Detective Chris, this is quite a surprise."

I squint at the bowl of noodles in front of me. For the life of me, I can't place a face to that name. I feel like I should know it. It sounds very familiar. But I don't, at least not off the top of my head. I hear Detective Chris say something soft and then my mother loudly invites him into our house. I grumble curses under my breath and hoist the blanket up higher. I also try to tug on my tank top, so I don't flash the poor soul with unexpected cleavage. Their footsteps echo against the wooden floor as they walk toward the family room.

Then my mother enters the room, with a very familiar cop in tow.

"Oh," I grunt in mild surprise. I feel an eyebrow lift as I glance him over. "So you're Detective Chris."

Detective Chris smiles at me and removes his hat from his head. His hair brushes against his cheeks in soft brown curls. He's the same cop from the hospital –the one who had acted so friendly toward my mother. He is also the one who appeared on my doorstep several weeks ago, after my little silly-spray adventure with Amanda and Kylie. For a brief second, I freak out. He might be here to arrest me for being a vandal. Or something else horrible.

He just dips his head with a nod and laughs. "Yes, I am the mysterious Detective Chris. It's very nice to see you again, Alice."

I harrumph at him. He doesn't seem to want to arrest me, so I return to my noodles.

Out of the corners of my eyes, I see my mother roll her eyes toward the ceiling. "Just ignore her," she said to Detective Chris. "She can get pretty salty when she's hungry. Anyways, what can we do for you tonight?"

His smile seems to magnify as he turns toward her. "Well, I was in the neighborhood and I just wanted to come by and give you an update on the case. May I sit down?"

My mother makes a sweeping gesture toward the recliner. "Take a seat," she chirps.

I watch Detective Chris gently sit down on the edge of the chair, as if he's afraid he'll break it. He smiles again at my mother and clasps his hands together on his lap. "We were able to gain access to the high school's security camera footage and managed to find the time slot in which the attack took place. We are able to identify your attackers, Alice."

"Yeah?" I arch an eyebrow at him. I sure couldn't anymore. "Glad somebody can."

My mother shoots me a scowl and I drown in my noodles. Detective Chris laughs a little and then continues. "Your attackers were Zack and Tyler Russell. They're twins, and both played on the school's football team with your ex-boyfriend, Seth. We believe that their attack had something to do with Seth. Both them and a few other students have been detained."

I froze. "A few other students?"

"I really can't dive into their personal information. I believe you used to have some sort of relationship with one of the girls, however. Do you know a Miley?" Detective Chris cocks his head to the side. "She and two other girls were present during the attack, and did absolutely nothing to stop it. We also have reason to believe that she was one of the girls who vandalized Seth's car a while back. Detectives found several used cans of silly-string in her locker. She and her friends are being charged with disorderly conduct and vandalism."

My eyes widen.

Then I think back to that night, when Amanda, Kylie, and I threw eggs at Seth's car. A part of me feels guilty that Miley is going down for our crimes. But then again...she apparently just stood by and watched the twins attack me.

"Wow," I mutter around a mouthful of ramen. "Who knew she had it in her?"

He nods solemnly. "I'm just glad that it's over now. You and the baby are safe and healthy."

I can't help but feel weirded out by the amount of concern Detective Chris seemed to harbor. I lift the bowl of noodles to my mouth and sip on the broth said noodles swam in. My gaze skirts toward my mother, and I notice her dreamy gaze. I lower my bowl, a sour expression on my face. She so likes him.

I kind of want to hurl.

Detective Chris shifts around on the chair, almost uncomfortably. His cheeks flush a bright red color and he regards my mother with a cautions look. "That wasn't...well, I have another...I came here for another reason too," he finally blurts out.

My mother presses her lips together. I notice her cheeks flush red, and I try to focus on my ramen.

He sucks in a sharp breath and then lets out a little, breathless laugh. "I know this is entirely unprofessional. But I wanted to know if you would like to go...well, if you wanted to go on a date with me?"

"Called it," I hiss into my bowl of ramen.

My mother blushes an even brighter shade of red and looks ready to slap me. "I would love to," she answers him with a small smile.

I swear, I've never seen a happier cop in my life.