The Guilty Pleasure

Sixteen| Pretty Little Fears

Yasir

Riley's grip on my shirt loosened a little as she stepped back and stared up at me. She licked her lips and dropped her hand before looking away. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see you." I admitted.

She was trying her best not to smile but it was too late. I witnessed the corners of her mouth turn up before she tried her best to look neutral.

"Are you gonna invite me in?" My tone was teasing but I really was trying to figure out the hold up. There was an unfamiliar car parked out here, so I was trying to guess her next move.

"Oh, um," Riley cleared her throat before she nodded and stepped inside, opening the door wider for my entrance. I dragged my suitcase behind me, abandoning it at the door once I took in the scene in front of me. "Raven, I told you to go to your room."

"But Riley—" her younger sister interrupted in a light protest as she tried to justify why she was speaking to their mom.

"Hey, can I talked to you real quick?" I interjected. Riley looked at me with furrowed brows before she finally nodded her head. It wasn't hard to tell she didn't want to leave the two alone. "Look, this isn't my place but ya sister is growing up. I know you're tryna protect her but all you're gonna do is push her into ya moms arms behind ya back. At least this way, you can monitor it."

So many emotions flashed through Riley's eyes as she focused on the two in the next room. The realization was written all over her face but she was stubborn. That was something I knew and had taken into consideration. But I was right and the sooner she grasped that, the better it would be for her. She wasn't her sister's mother and it honestly wasn't her job to shield her. People lived and learned. All she could do was be honest and the rest was up to her sister.

"It's getting late." She finally spoke up.

Her mom nodded before she focused on her eldest. Riley was defiantly standing in front of me with her arms crossed across her chest. "Goodnight Raven."

"Goodnight." The youngest looked from her mom to her sister, finally smiling widely at me. "Night Yasir. Guess I'll see you at breakfast." I tried not to chuckle but it was hard because I could practically see steam coming out of Riley's ears.

"I want to spend time with her, hopefully the both of you."

Her eyes searched Riley's face but she still wore her stoic expression as she stared at the woman that had given birth to her as if she was a bum on the corner asking for money. I let out a low sigh and nudged her a little with my hand. This was clearly a situation that was not going away and she needed to make things happen on her terms. That was the easiest way to handle the situation.

"Let me tell you something and I'm not going to repeat myself, so listen closely." I furrowed my brows as her feisty attitude took over as she took a step closely to her mother. "If you're here to play some type of game to make yourself feel better, leave and don't come back. Don't come in here, get her hopes up, and leave. You did that once but I could handle it. Raven isn't build like that." Her legs continued to move until she was face to face with the older version of herself. "If you hurt her, I will ruin you." Her tone was so cold as she took another step, leaving no personal space. "Trust me, you don't want to test me."

After a brief stare down, the other woman conceded. "I'm just trying to right my wrongs."

"Sure." The sarcastic remark didn't go unnoticed as Riley reached for the door knob. "Don't drop by here unannounced anymore. Write your number down in that book and I'll contact you before the week is over for dinner. Got it?"