Buried Wishes ✔

Chapter 25: Moron Saved Me From the Shadow Lady

~ [Evelyn] ~

"Ev! Hey, you're here!" Erick greeted me at the front door of my childhood home. We tackled each other with a bear hug as Dad laughed on the couch while watching us try to lift each other. Dana was drinking from her class of water, but she started to choke on it as soon as she began waving at me excitedly.

"So are we ready to go out for dinner?" I asked Dad after Erick put me down.

"We're still waiting on one more and then we'll take the SUV," Dad informed me, which prompted my puzzled expression. He saw my reaction and said, "Liam."

Oh.

Um... Okay.

Erick grinned at my sulky face and leaned into my ear, whispering, "I'm still rooting for him to be my bro-in-law. Date all you want, but I know you and Liam are endgame."

I rolled my eyes at him, but before I could say anything I heard someone's footsteps up the porch stairs. I worked at keeping a composed face, having faced him every other day for the past several weeks, but this was different. We weren't in class or talking about homework. This was my family welcoming him in our celebration as if he were one of us, which for a while, he was.

"Hey, congrats, Erick," he exclaimed as he went in for a hug.

Erick let him go and then turned to me with a devious wink. Freakin' ass.

I avoided Liam's eyes as I rushed out, "Alright we should get to dinner, I call shotgun!"

Right as I pulled the passenger door open, Erick sped by and hopped in the seat like a cartoon character. I frowned at him as he closed the door and stuck his tongue out at me. Rolling my eyes, I opened the back door and found Liam's eyes already on me. They were sad, but he masked them well.

I hope I did a better job with mine.

~o~

Dinner really loosened us up and I was starting to wonder if food really was the answer to all my problems. By the end of the meal, we were joking about the old times and making new jokes in the hopes of a future moment like this.

The whole car ride home was full of laughter and I was seriously feeling normal again, like my friendship with Liam hadn't changed at all. Like things from junior year never changed.

One could only hope.

We were planning on having a laid back chat in the living room, the five of us, and that was exactly what happened until the faint knocks on the front door. Erick had gotten up to open it, though I wish he hadn't. Standing there in her designer black dress and thousand dollar heels was our mother.

She held little giftwrapped box in her hands and held a shy smile on her red lips. She gave Dad a nod before pulling a speechless Erick in for a hug.

"Congrats on getting accepted, sweetie!" she cheered as she held onto him. Erick seemed stiff, almost comically so. She looked like she was hugging a tall cactus.

I turned to glare at Dad, who gave me a sheepish smile.

"I thought she'd like to know," he told us with a shrug.

"I'll... be in my room," I mumbled as I got up to head for the stairs, but halted as she grabbed my wrist.

"Wait! Ev, please. Can we talk? I just need to explain myself," she pleaded, but I felt nothing as I met her green eyes, the one thing I had that constantly reminded me that I came from her.