Someone Hit the Mute Button

Chapter Five- Bad Day

Chapter Five- Bad Day

     Christmas came and went quickly, and save a few awkward moments, it wasn't that bad. It was a little gloomy of course, being the first Christmas at home without Alec. I had been in the hospital last year. 

     Anyway, I hadn't seen or spoken to Dustin since he brought me home. Now, it was New Year's Eve. Most teenagers would have been happy about that. I mean, come on. Adults went out for the night, and of course, the kids are clear until at least one in the morning. 

     I wasn't happy. At all.

     Mom wasn't going out tonight- in fact, none of us were, because she was having her boss over for dinner. I didn't see why we all had to be here, but I had already tried to argue, and it didn't end well. Mr. Boss-man had just transferred from somewhere a little over two hours away, so I had never even heard of him, but Mom seemed to have taken a liking to him. I didn't even know what his last name was yet, but she talked about him all the time.

    I had to wear something at least semi-nice, so of course, April had forced me into some of her clothes. White skinny jeans, a plain black tank-top and red blazer. I didn't really need shoes, but she had forced me back into the black ankle boots. I swear to god, that girl was more convincing than a politician.

     Mom had told me that her boss was widowed some time ago, and he had two kids, a girl and a boy, both my age. I had no idea who they were, but I wasn't exactly looking forward to meeting them. Most people who were just meeting me thought I was weird because I didn't talk, and then they felt bad when they found out I was unable to. The pity got annoying once it hit a certain point, which is one of the reasons I isolated myself so much. I hated seeing people feel bad for me. I couldn't stand the pity.

     Anyway, mom had me setting the table while the she finished up with the cooking. April and Aria were still getting ready, which I didn't understand, considering the guy that was coming was my age, not theirs. Well, it was either the kid or the dad, but I'm pretty sure my mom had already called dibs on him, so...

     I still had no idea why Aria was even here. She was an adult- she didn't need to be living with her mommy. But then again, neither did April. April was twenty-five. Aria had made it clear that she was not moving in, but she showed no sign of leaving anytime soon, which I was highly annoyed about.

     As you can tell, Alec and I were obviously unplanned for. There's four years between Aria and April because, and I quote, "Aria was a devil child," but there's almost nine between April and the two of us.

     Just as this thought crossed my mind, the doorbell rang, and mom scurried to the front door to let them in. I gave my signature silent sigh and followed after her, waiting in the living room with my arms crossed over my chest and my left hip dropped, the universal sign for "I don't want to be here." Hopefully, they'd get the hint and ignore me for the entire length of this dinner. Unlikely, but a girl can hope.

     "Hello, Mr. Knight," Mom greeted cheerfully, and I rolled my eyes. Mom was not a cheery person...ever.

     Wait, back up. Knight?

     Knight? As in, Dustin Knight?

     No, no, it had to be coincidence. Yeah, it was just a coincidence that my mother's boss had the same last name as Dustin. And moved around the same time as Dustin. Yep. Definately coincidence.

     "Hello, Ms. DeMarco, thank you for having us over tonight," Mr. Knight greeted politely. "These are my kids, Dustin and Avalon."

     Well, damn. So much for that "coincidence" theory. In all reality, though, I shouldn't have even been hoping.