The Choice

Chapter 4

I feel a tiny pair of arms wrapped around me, and I look to see Chloe holding on to my legs.

"Are you alright?" I ask, picking her up. 

"Who is that?" Chloe asks, looking over at Ezra.

Chloe's shy, while Leon is the complete opposite. 

I walk closer to Ezra, realizing Chloe and Leon probably don't remember him. 

"This is Ezra, and this is-" I stop, when I realize I don't know the redheads name.

"Lucy," she says, reaching her hand out.

I shake her hand, giving her the warmest smile I can. A pang of jealousy hits me, but I don't let it show. 

"Why are they here?" Leon asks, getting straight to the point. 

I hear Clay chuckle a little, and I try my best not to. 

"Ezra and Lucy are friends of your mommy and I," Ricky says, keeping it short and simple. 

"I used to be around more when you were little," Ezra says, lightly bopping Leon on the nose. 

My throat catches when I hear his voice, and my heart rate speeds up. I can't believe Ezra's here. 

"What happened?" Leon asks, being the nosy kid he is. 

You can cut the tension with a knife. Everyone looks uncomfortable, but Ricky clears his throat. 

"Ezra moved away to go to school," Ricky says.

"Will I have to move away for school?" Chloe says, her eyes wide with fear.

"No honey," I laugh. 

"Dad, can you make me some juice?" Leon asks.

"I will," I say, looking for any excuse to get the hell out of there.

Leon grabs my hand and follows me into the kitchen.

"Grab a cup," I say, lifting him up, so he's tall enough to reach the cabinet. 

He grabs his favorite Spiderman cup, and he hands it to me.

"Apple juice or grape juice?" I ask, knowing he'll most likely want grape. 

"Grape," he smiles, confirming my thought. 

I grab the container out of the fridge, and Paige joins me in the kitchen, Chloe right behind her.

"Are you alright?" she asks.

"I'm fine, but can we get out of here?" I laugh a little. 

"Of course. Want to sneak out the back?" Paige laughs. 

"Of course I do," I laugh. 

I give Leon and Chloe hugs and kisses, and they storm off to the living room. Paige sends a text to Luke, and soon him and Chase are with us in the kitchen. 

"We're sneaking out?" Chase laughs. 

"I feel like I'm in high school again," Luke rolls his eyes, but I can see a smile twitching at the corners of his lips. 

All four of us duck down, and we crawl to the back door. Luke opens it slowly, trying to avoid making any noise. Once he successfully opens it, we make our way down the porch steps. We all grab each other's hands, running through the darkness to my car. I feel something tugging me, and soon, I'm falling into mud with the others.

I let out a scream, but it also comes out as a laugh. 

"Sorry, I slipped," Chase says. 

We all get in my car, and at this point I don't care that it's going to be stained with mud. I'll have it detailed later. 

I quickly turn on my car and belt out the driveway. 

"You were the first thing Ezra asked about when he walked in," Chase says, wagging his eyebrows. 

"Oh be quite. He's got Lucy now," I say, frowning a little. 

"He misses you," Luke says.

"How would you know?" I say, smirking at him.

"When he walked in, his eyes immediately scanned the room, and I'm pretty sure he was looking for you. When you walked in with Clay, he had such a jealous look on his face," Luke laughs.

"He thinks that Clay and I?-"

"Yep! We all just let him think it, too. Even Ricky didn't say anything," Paige laughs.

"You guys!" I say, my face feeling flushed. 

"He's the one that assumed! We just didn't let him know that he assumed wrong," Luke laughs.

We pull into my driveway, and we all hose off in the backyard.

"How's Jesse doing?" Paige asks as make our way inside. 

"He's been working a lot, and traveling with Missy when he's not," I smile, turning on the heat.

Missy is Jesse's girlfriend. They've been together for about a year now. Missy models, so Jesse travels with her when he can. It's actually been awhile since I've last seen him.

"Where is he now?" Chase asks.

"He's in New York right now I believe. I haven't talked to him in awhile, but last time I checked that's where he was. I'm just glad he's got someone he's happy with," I smile. 

We all make our way into the kitchen, and everyone helps make dinner.

"We should go out tomorrow night," Luke says.

"Want to pick up some girls?" I ask, laughing a little. 

"I think we all should try putting ourselves out there," Luke says, giving me a hard stare.

I roll my eyes, and I take another bite of the food on my plate.

"He's right, Jo. You haven't been on a date since Ezra," Chase says.

"I'm comfortable all by myself," I say, being stubborn. 

"We're going tomorrow," Paige says, agreeing with the boys.

They've been trying to get me to date ever since Ezra and I broke up. 

"Fine," I sigh, even though I hate the idea.

I honestly don't think I could ever meet a guy like Ezra. Now that he's with Lucy, my chances with him are pretty much over.