When You Least Expect It

15

a/n long ass chapter. aight so we all know the type of discussions that happen when this topic is brought up so please keep it respectful and don't come at people for their opinions. That's all, thank you and happy reading!

Chapter 15

The morning sun kissed my eyelids, but I couldn't find the energy to face the day. Miles entered, armed with a cheerful birthday greeting and a carrot cake he'd baked just for me. He must be in a good mood.

"Thanks, but I'm not hungry." I felt sick at the thought of eating.

"But you love carrot cake. And I woke up super early to make it, least you could do is eat a slice. Ungrateful piece of—,"

"Miles, I'm seriously not in the mood for this right now. Would you go please?"

Pause. Then, "why do you sound so depressed? Are you on your period or something?"

A tear slipped down my cheek. "Something like that, yeah," I mumbled into the pillow.

"Huh." Miles went silent. When this subject was brought up, he always became awkward. "I'm gonna... leave you to it, I guess. Go to the living room when you're feeling better. Dad's got a present for you."

Miles left shortly afterward, leaving the carrot cake untouched on my nightstand.

A knock echoed on the door. "You awake?" It was Dad.

"Yep," my answer was muffled by the blankets.

Dad crossed the room and sat on my bed. Leaning over, he kissed the top of my head. "Happy birthday, sweetheart," he murmured into my hair.

I didn't know why I felt like crying all of a sudden. "Thank you." I buried my face into his shoulder and sniffled. He smelled like laundry detergent.

"Miles told me you're not feeling well so I brought your present to you. Come on, open it up. You're gonna love it," Dad told me.

With a bag on his lap, he sat on the side of my bed. I smiled, then looked inside. It was a paintbrush set that I'd had my eye on for quite some time.

"You like? I know you've been wanting it for ages now."

I reached forward and tightly hugged him. "I love it. Thanks, Dad."

"Open mine," Miles said giddily from behind Dad. Knowing him, it was probably a stink bomb. That had happened once.

I eagerly tore into the package as Miles watched with anticipation. "Socks...?"

"Yeah, aren't they so great? They've got little fish on them since they're your favorite animal," Miles boasted.

I burst out laughing. "Thank you, that's very thoughtful of you."

"Conner's brother gave me a discount on them once I told him that I was part of a worldwide famous band. The guy actually believed me."

"One day, Miles. One day," Dad said. He turned to me afterward and said, "I have another surprise for you." He sifted through the pockets of his jeans and took out his phone. He turned the screen over so I could see.