Lost on You [Lewis Capaldi]

Chapter 16 - parents

Not long after Lewis left, Keira's phone buzzed.

She quickly went to pick it up from the counter only to realise it was her mother calling.

Speak of the devil, she thought, shaking her head as she answered.

"Keira, you and I need a word," her mother said by way of greeting, her harsh voice crackling down the line.

"Nice to speak to you too, Mum," she replied sarcastically as she took her phone into her room and collapsed onto the bed.

"I'm serious," her mum snapped, "Your father and I are concerned about you."

Keira only sighed. "What is it?"

"I want you to explain the photos your sister just showed me of you and some boy."

She rolled her eyes. So this was what it was about: Lewis.

"What about them?" Keira said, inspecting her nails, already bored of the conversation.

"You looked very close with him," she went on and Keira could almost hear the frown that was no doubt on her mother's face. "We agreed you would focus on your studies if you went to Scotland."

"I am," Keira rolled her eyes, sinking further down into her pillow. "Anyway, 'that boy' has a name. He's called Lewis and I really like him."
"I don't care who he is, Keira. I want you to stay focused and not be taking time out to have coffee dates with men you barely know."

She had to try so hard not to lose her temper. "You know it is possible for me to do well at university, whilst also having a social life. I think I'm old enough now to make those types of decisions myself."

"Really? Because you've made so many good decisions in the past, haven't you?" the venom in her mother's voice was enough to make her fingers tremble. "You didn't listen to us when we told you not to go to the festival all those years ago, and look what happened."

Anger roared through her. "That's not fair. You can't compare this to that!"

Her mother ignored her completely. "You're not to see that man again, you hear me?"

"No, no I'm not going to do that," Keira said. Her brows pinched together. "You can't make me."

"I think you'll find I can," her mother replied slyly. "Don't forget who is paying your rent there, Keira."

The warning was clear. Her parents still owned her, still had so much influence over her life and she hated it.

She was silent for a long while as she looked across her room. This was her home. She had built a life here and she didn't want to give that up.

"I'm not having this conversation with you," she tried to stop her words from wobbling. "Until you have proof that Lewis is affecting my grades, I'm not going to stop seeing him."

"Keira, you're making a mistake. You-"

She hung up before her mother could finish.

Keira did care what her parents said, there was no way they were stopping her from spending time with Lewis. She had never felt a connection as strong as the one she felt with him. It was like he understood her. He saw her and didn't turn away. So she wouldn't turn away from him either.

Maybe it was going to be hard. Hell, it was definitely going to be hard. But Keira didn't mind. Nothing easy was ever worth having anyway.

She stared up at her ceiling for a while, not bringing herself to move off the bed. After a minute, her phone buzzed again.

If it was her mother . . .

Reluctantly, she plucked it up from where she had chucked it across the mattress.

But when she saw who the text was from, her face broke into a smile.

Lewis: Is it weird that I'm missing you already?

Keira: If it is, then it makes me a weirdo too.

Lewis: I wish I could still be at your place watching a film with you.

Keira: I wish you were here too. But I have other ideas of what we could be doing . . .

Lewis: Keira-Marie, I am trying to work!

Keira: Sorry, I can't help myself. Hope work goes well.

Lewis: It won't now that all I can think about is you.

Keira laughed, falling back onto her sheets. All of the sadness she had felt before was now completely gone.

She didn't understand how he could do that. Change her mood so quickly. Make her forget the problems in her life. And she knew that as long as she had him with her, everything would be alright.
At least that's what she hoped.