Stepbrother

24: Stay

The warm air comes in contact with my skin when I enter Sean's house. The tears on my face have dried, and when Sean's mom greets me with a smile and a hug, she doesn't even suspect that something is wrong with me.

"Maya, I haven't seen you in so long!" Sean's mom says to me, embracing me in her arms. "I haven't seen you since you were in middle school, I think. I'm glad that you're visiting." I force a fake smile on my face while she's hugging me, and when she lets go of me, she speaks to Sean in German. I didn't understand what she had told him, but she quickly runs into the kitchen, leaving me and Sean at the front door.

"She wants us to wait in the living room for now. Have you eaten dinner? My mom is making dinner right now," Sean explains to me, leading me into his living room.

I haven't eaten since this morning, so I shake my head. "I haven't eaten yet."

We both take a seat on the couch, and the TV is already on, so Sean changes the channel for us. While using the remote, he asks, "Maya, what happened?" Sean looks at me with another worried look.

I shake my head again. "I don't want to talk about it right now, actually." I feel my heart racing again, afraid to tell Sean about Kendall's confession to me. I don't want Sean to hate me. I can't handle that right now, and the thought of being all alone makes me feel completely afraid.

Sean furrows his eyebrows. "Maya, you-"

"Dinner will be ready in five minutes," Sean's mom interrupts. She walks away again to prepare the food, and Sean turns to me again.

"Really, Sean, it's-" I begin, but my phone starts buzzing. I pull it out of my pocket to slide it open, realizing that Jordan had just sent me a message. I mentally sigh to myself and open the text.

'Where are you?'

I bite my lower lip and look up at Sean again. "It's Jordan, isn't it?" he asks, already knowing without looking at the screen. "Does he know you came here?"

"No, he doesn't." There's a long pause between us, both lost in our thoughts. "Can I stay here? Only for a few days," I whisper, and the look of confusion appears on Sean's face. "Please?"

"Alright, dinner is ready," I hear Sean's mom calling out, and we both walk into the dinning room, and the food Sean's mom made is laid out on the table.

Sean says something in German to his mom, and Sean's mom takes a glance at me with furrowed eyebrows and the same confused look as Sean's. She nods her head at Sean and takes a seat at the table, and Sean and I do the same.

"So, how's your mom, Maya?" Sean's mom asks. "I haven't seen her in years, and I was surprised when she told me that she's currently in California."

I nod my head. "She's getting married to Darren there," I inform her, chewing my food.

She smiles. "Really? They've been together for many years. I'm glad he finally proposed to her. Can't wait to go the wedding next month."

I turn to Sean with a shocked look on my face. "You're going to the wedding?"

Sean gives me a small smile. "Of course I am. I've known your family for so many years. I would never miss your mom's wedding."

A warm smile appears on my face, and it almost feels strange, since I haven't been smiling these past few weeks. My phone buzzes again, and I drop my gaze down to my phone, revealing another message from Jordan.

'Maya? I have no idea where you are. Can you tell me?'

I glance at Sean and he nods his head at me, suggesting that I should talk to Jordan. "Um, I think I need to call someone," I tell Sean's mom. I stand up, pushing my chair back, and I leave the dinning room to call Jordan.

"Maya," I hear Jordan say through the phone. His voice doesn't sound angry or sad. It just sounds... emotionless.

"I think I'm going to stay at a friend's house for a while," I mumble, hoping that my voice didn't waver. I don't plan on telling Jordan that I'm staying with Sean, because he might assume I have feelings for him too. And even if it wasn't Sean, I still would tell him. What if he comes to look for me?

"Oh," Jordan says, his voice lowering a bit, and he goes silent.

"Is that okay with you?"

"Whatever you need."

I start to involuntarily pace back and forth outside the dinning room, thoughts racing through my mind and causing my heart rate to go faster. I can hear my heart pumping, its beating sound constantly thumping in my ear.

"Jordan?" I half-whisper, not expecting myself to say his name.

"What?"

"Do you, um, still care about me?" I can hear his breathing on the other side of the line, but he doesn't answer my question. "Do you?" I say again.

"Hey, I gotta go, Maya," Jordan speaks a bit faster. "I have to study."

I bite my lower lip, and the sound of my heart constantly beating has suddenly stopped beating. "Okay," I manage to say to Jordan without a hint of sadness or heartbreak.

"Have a good night."

The call ends, and I take a seat at the dinning table again, no longer wanting to eat the food on my plate. I just poke it with a fork, my head lost in all of my questioning thoughts about Jordan.

"Maybe you should just get ready for bed," Sean's mom suggests to me, speaking up and breaking the silence lingering around us. I can see the worried look behind her eyes, but she doesn't question my depressed state.

I give her a small grateful smile. "Thank you," I tell her, and I leave the dinning room with Sean following behind me.

"You can sleep in my sister's bedroom," Sean murmurs, opening the door to show the lifeless bedroom, which was once his older sister's. "I'm pretty sure you can fit her clothes too," he adds, stepping back so I can get through the door.

"Thanks, Sean," I say weakly, and I close the door behind me.

***

I knooooow! I haven't updated in a while. I will be updating more, I swear.