On Our Own

Chapter 15

I called Ethan again, and again he didn't answer. What had my life come to that I was hung up over a guy? I went upstairs and hung out with the kids for awhile. Since I had beaten Liam in FIFA so many times, he had challenged me in basically every other video game we owned and I continued to beat him in every video game we owned.

"Okay that's it. I give up," he said, throwing the controller down in frustration.

"When will you learn, Liam? Leah is the best at all the video games in this house," James said smiling.

I laughed and got up to use the bathroom when I heard Kyle on the phone with someone. I shouldn't listen in, I thought to myself. But what if he was talking to Ethan? I gave in and decided to eavesdrop.

"I don't get it, Ethan," Kyle said.

I smiled. So he was on the phone with Ethan.

"Dude, whatever's going through your head, you have to calm down. It won't matter to her," Kyle continued.

Were they talking about me? I smiled to myself, maybe he did like me. He must've hung up because the doorknob clicked and I practically bolted down the stairs. I had to get out of the house. The urge to ask Kyle about Ethan was too strong.

As I drove, I remembered that my grounding was lifted this morning and I could go back to work. Even though my boss had fired me when I told him that I wasn't allowed to work until Jess would let me again. Still, I was hoping I could get my job back. I had only missed two shifts.

"Hey Steve," I said.

"Leah? What are you doing here?" My ex-boss asked.

"I was wondering if you filled my position? I can work again now," I explained.

"I'm sorry, Leah, but we already replaced you," he explained.

I just stared blankly and nodded. He scratched the back of his head and then looked back at me.

"Uh, but you know what? My brother runs the diner nearby. I can give him your infromation, maybe he needs help," he offered.

"Okay, thanks," I said awkwardly.

I left right after. That was embarrassing.

With no where else to go, I sat in the car in silence for awhile. I did not want to go home yet, and Ethan still hasn't returned my calls.

Finally, I decided to go to the bank. I walked in and requested to see my accountant. The man immediately recognized me and groaned. He got paid by the city to help foster kids with finances but that didn't mean he had to like it. In fact, I knew that he found me and my questions quite annoying.

"Okay so you currently have a little over ten thousand in your account," the man across the desk from me said.

"So what does that mean for college?" I asked.

"You could probably qualify for some aid or a loan," he replied.

"Could you maybe help me with that?" I requested.

"I'm not your college counselor," he said rudely.

I sighed this was pointless, I thanked him for his oh so valuable time and left. How else could I pass the time? I was aimlessly driving around as the sunset. I had just passed the park and decided to pull over. I parked the car and made up my mind. One more time, I would call Ethan just once more and if didn't respond, I would leave him alone.

As the phone rang I hoped he would answer, I didn't want to leave Ethan alone. Finally, on the last ring, I heard the call go through.

"Ethan?" I asked.