Nothing's Fine

Chapter 49

We were sitting around the kitchen table and if you looked close enough, you could actually start to see a real family starting. I picked at my food, biting my lip. I felt a kick from under the table. I opened  my mouth to yell at one of the girls to watch her manners but then I saw Liam grinning. I shook my head, and kicked him back.

He stuck his tongue out at me. I almost laughed but didn’t want Emily to feel like she wasn’t being listened too.

“Yesterday, while we were at Auntie’s, she said that Liam was going to be living with us for a while.” Emily never looked up from her food, and continued shoveling it in. I smiled and looked at Liam.

I watched as Kaylie picked up her hand and intertwined it with Liam’s. She had the sweetest smile on her face and she held onto his hand and continued eating. I got a feeling at the bottom of my stomach as I saw his eyes start to water.

I excused myself from the table and ran to my room. I sat down on my bed and took a few deep breaths.

It had only been two weeks. It had only taken one for me to fall in love with him. He stayed true to his word, he never stepped foot inside my room which I was thankful for. It was usually a mess, with me trying to find clothes that would fit up to his standards. I knew I should’ve gotten past the stage of trying to impress him, but I hadn’t.

The third night he was here, he went out and bought all three toy stories. I laughed at him when he held them out to me. I didn’t understand why he didn’t just go get the ones he owned from his house, but he said he was already there, so he just went ahead and bought them.

That night, after the kitchen was cleaned and everything was ready for bed, he got the girls in the living room. I walked in, only to find him setting up the first Toy Story. I shook my head, but finally gave in and sat down on the couch. The girls made it through the first movie, laughing and giggling. While Liam was making the switch, they tried to get their Barbie’s to admit that they could talk. I smirked, glaring at Liam for causing a new phase in their childhood. He just shrugged and got back into his position.

Half way through the second movie, the girls had shifted over to Liam. Emily was cuddled under his right arm and Kaylie was cuddled under his left. They fell asleep, as he let them drool on his shirt. I suddenly became more interested in them than the movie. I watched as he moved the girls into a more comfortable position, and grabbed the big blanket that was laying on the couch. After they were covered, he looked up at me. When he caught me staring, he gave me a soft smile. That’s when I realized I made the wrong choice keeping them away from him. That’s when I realized that I never stopped loving him. That’s when I realized that he was right. That I would love him by the end of the month because I already did.

Once the movie ended, we sat there in the dark silence, listening to the girl’s soft snores. After a while, Liam shifted, taking Kaylie into his arms and cradling her to her bed. I got up and grabbed Emily and followed him. As we tucked them in together, he said his good night’s to Kaylie, the we switched places. I turned around to see him plant a kiss on Emily’s cheek much like he’s done mine so many times before.

We walked out of the room together in silence. I walked to my doorway, only to see him lingering in the hallway. I tried to get him to tell me what was wrong, but he wouldn’t say. He had just shook his head and went to sleep on his place on the couch. That was the first night I felt bad about him sleeping there. He would’ve never done that to me.

Chantelle hadn’t been around very much, but she knew when she was needed. Yesterday, she came and got them around noon, just as Liam was waking up. I didn’t know what she was up too, but I’m glad she did it. After last week, I needed to spend some time with Liam and that’s just what I got.