Tell Me You Love Me

Part 9

Demi groggily reached over to the bedside table to grab her phone. She wanted to stop the buzzing before it woke up the sleeping woman beside her. "Hello." Her voice was hoarse from just waking up and from the activities of the night before. She tiptoed out of the room and onto the balcony that overlooked the best parts of Los Angeles. The peace that slightly took over was disrupted as her name was yelled on the other end of the phone. "What?"

"Where the hell have you been? We have been texting and calling and texting and calling." Demi sighed, hearing the irritation of her older sister's voice over the phone. This is the last thing she wanted to be hearing so early... she looked at the time, so early in the afternoon. 

Demi chuckled, thinking her sister was overreacting like always. "All you had to do was come by. I haven't been anywhere but home."

"Me and mom stopped by and we got no answer." Dallas huffed.

"Well I've been busy."

"Do you and that girl do anything but have sex?"

Demi suddenly felt a shift. "Her name is Kehlani. You know her name so you can call her by her name."

Dallas rolled her eyes. "You've known her what all of seven months."

"What are you calling me for, to check in or to nit pick because I could be doing something more important than hearing you bitch at me for nothing?"

"We're having a family dinner tomorrow night so come and bring Kehlani with you." Dallas sighed and Demi followed suit.

"Why would I do that?"

"Because she's your girlfriend and we don't know anything about her. We've never met any of your girlfriends so its about time Demi. So tomorrow at 7 you little shit."

Demi rolled her eyes and hung up the phone. "Babe." Kehlani called out, sitting up on her elbow, calling her girlfriend back to bed. "So my family wants to formally meet you." Honestly Demi was nervous about bringing Kehlani over but Dallas was right. "Do you want me to meet them?"

"I do, of course I do but I am extremely nervous about it."

Kehlani looked at Demi with a puzzled looked. "Why?"

"My parents always want me to be happy. They constantly talk about how they can't wait for me to get married and have kids.."

"But not with a woman." Kehlani finished for Demi. Disappointment surrounded them. "I'm sorry." Demi frowned, twiddling her thumbs.

"Don't be sorry.. It was fun while it lasted."

If they were in some romantic comedy the record would have scratched at the words that came out of Kehlani's mouth. "So you would throw in the towel just like that?" Demi asked.

"I'm not exactly, 'Take home to mom' material. You know how many times I've been dropped when it comes to things like this. I understand if you choose your family over me."

"You don't love me as much as you say you do is all I'm hearing."

"Of course I love you which is why I'm trying to be understanding."

"No, being understanding is you making face with me tomorrow night at the disaster that will be that family dinner. Every time something comes up that is remotely difficult you are quick to give up before even putting in any effort."

"I do love you Demi, more than I can even put into words."

"No... you don't. If you did, you wouldn't be so willing to give up on us, regardless of what you have been through in the past. What you have now should matter if it's so important to you." Demi didn't even realize she was crying until she felt the tears drop on onto her legs.

"Demi.." Kehlani started but was cut off by a breaking Demi.

"Can you just leave?"

She looked away from who was supposed to be the love of her life but now she was thinking that maybe she rushed into things with Kehlani. Demi felt Kehlani's hand on her shoulder and flinched away. "LEAVE!" Demi yelled.

It was like Kehlani's entire world had shattered the second Demi raised her voice. She had messed up big time and she didn't know if she could fix it. Kehlani bit her lip to fight the tears that so badly wanted to fall and she inched away from Demi to gather her things and give Demi the space she wanted. She didn't say anything else, she just took one more look at Demi's whimpering shell and closed the bedroom door and went on to let herself out.