THE INEVITABLE │ t.h

SIXTEEN

"How long is she staying?" Evelyn questions Tom's way in a loud whisper as she looks over at the sleeping girl, who was sprawled out on the guest bedroom mattress.

"I don't know," Tom sighs, unable to tear his gaze away from her. He's stayed close to her side ever since he found out the reason behind her disappearance. His arms were crossed over his chest as his tired eyes laid upon her body, her chest slowly rising and falling, her face soft and relaxed as the darkness of slumber consumed her.

"She can stay forever," Evelyn smiles, averting her attention from her father to the woman she was beginning to idolize. "I like her."

"How about you grab her some of the breakfast Rita made?" Tom questions, bending down to his daughter's height. "She's probably starved."

"On it!" Evelyn cheers as she runs out of the room, slamming the door shut. Tom winced, glancing over at the stirring older girl.

"Tom?" Venus questions in a whisper, her voice about as awake as her body. She squints her eyes, adjusting them to the sight of the brown-haired man.

"Morning," he replies, giving a warm smile. "Hungry?" he questions. She nods, her eyes shutting once more. "Evelyn should be back with some food." Venus's lips curl into a smile, her body stretching as she awoke herself more.

"Tom?" she questions again, but this time it lacked confusion and concern, instead laced with wanting his attention and the promise of speaking more words. He hums, sitting beside her on the bed after she patted said spot. "Thank you so much."

"Don't mention it," he responds, grinning over at her.

"I seriously owe you my life," Venus groans, sitting up.

"You really don't," Tom retorts, reaching over and pushing the fallen strap of her tank top back onto her shoulder. She doesn't seem to mind, instead stretching a bit further before putting her hair up into a loose ponytail. Tom felt his stomach flutter at the sight.

"What's on the menu?" Venus questions with a soft smirk, Evelyn arriving just in time.

"Pancakes, bacon, and strawberries for the best person ever!" she chants as she sets the tray on the Venus's lap with care. Evelyn pulls a face of fear, slowly looking up at her dad. He just laughs, ruffling her hair.

"She is pretty incredible, isn't she?" Tom teases. Venus nearly spit out her food, grateful nobody noticed her reaction.

"I haven't done anything," she remarks, mouth full of food.

"Your presence is more than enough," Tom replies, his voice smooth, his eyes returning to hers. Venus was shocked by the sudden flirtatious vibe, especially with his daughter right beside them. "Do you work today?" he asks, pulling the smaller girl onto his lap as he waited for a response.

"I might have to ask for a longer break," Venus huffs. "I still don't wanna even think about going outside right now."

"I get it," Tom replies. "But in order for me to keep my job, I need to go in for at least a few hours. Will you be okay here?"

"Yeah," Venus smiles. Then her eyes fall on Evelyn, her eyebrows knitting together as she finally realized it wasn't the weekend quite yet. Evelyn saw her expression and grinned.

"Daddy doesn't want you staying home alone," she explains, "so he called my school and told them I'm sick."

"Tom," Venus huffs, looking at him with disappointment and guilt.

"Don't look at me like that," he retorts. "She's smarter than everyone at that school, she'll be fine." Venus still shook her head despite the truth he spoke, continuing to eat.

"Can I have a moment to enjoy this food and get ready for the day?" Venus politely asks.

"Oh y-yeah, s-sorry, of course," Tom stammers, pulling himself and Evelyn out of the room.

"You like her," Evelyn sings to Tom as they approach the living room.

"Evie, don't," Tom demands.

"Don't give her your cooties," Evelyn teases, running off to her room. Tom rolls his eyes and walks to the kitchen, informing Rita that he was giving Venus her number in case she needed someone a bit bigger than Evelyn.

"Of course, Mr. Holland. I will speed over here as soon and as quick as I possibly can," Rita responds, smiling.

"You're amazing, Rita," Tom grins, giving her a hug.

"It's cute how you worry so much about her," she responds, pulling away from him after an appropriate amount of time. "If you care about her that much, I already consider her family." Tom smiled wider, thanking her once more. "Now hurry and skedaddle so you can support your daughter." Tom nods, saying a quick goodbye to Evelyn and Venus before racing out of the house.

➴⋆➶

"My daddy would not like that," Evelyn remarks as Venus refuses to make herself lunch. "Did you eat all of your breakfast?" She recognized the same hesitation in Venus as she saw in her father only a couple days before when she would ask him the same question about every meal, including a snack. "You didn't."

"Wha-"

"My daddy doesn't eat sometimes too," Evelyn interjects, knowing what she was going to be asked. "You really should eat."

"I'm just not hungry, Evie," Venus huffs, sitting down. Her head was spinning profusely, and she was scared of fainting.

"You're getting white!" Evelyn exclaims, dropping her fork on the table. "My daddy gets the same way — and then he passes out!" She slides her bowl of Mac and Cheese in front of Venus. "Eat, now!"

"Evelyn-"

"Eat two bowlfuls and I won't tell daddy about this," Evelyn responds. Venus sighs, knowing she was better off leaving Tom in the dark of her eating habits over the past several days. Plus the bowl wasn't that big.

"Fine, you got me," Venus sighs. "I'll get my own though, okay?" Evelyn nods, watching her carefully from the time Venus grabbed her own bowl to the time she shoveled the last bit into her mouth.

"Feel better?" Evelyn questions, already smirking because she'd won another argument and made someone healthy again at the same time.

"Much better," Venus responds with a warm smile. "Thank you, Evelyn."

"My daddy should be home in an hour," Evelyn informs after looking at the clock, "so can we watch a movie?"

"Of course. You pick."

"Tangled," she mischievously grins. "Daddy will be so jealous." Venus laughs, following the little girl into the living room.