𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓 │ 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧

𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍

IT HAD BEEN A WEEK since Emberly found the photo at Liam's house, and the discovery still weighed heavily on her mind. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the image of her, Evelyn, and her dad—standing together with an unfamiliar woman and little Liam. It was so surreal, so unexpected, that she had barely begun to process it. How could Liam, the guy she'd known from school, possibly be connected to her family? She hadn't told anyone—Spencer, her mom, not even Evelyn. 

She wasn't sure how to explain it. How could she talk about this when she barely understood it herself? The idea of Liam being her half-brother felt like a bomb waiting to explode, but she had to figure out how to handle it first. It felt like everything was shifting beneath her, but until she had some answers, she had to keep it all in, tucked away in her mind like a secret she wasn't ready to share.

Life—especially high school—had a way of demanding attention elsewhere. Since the break-in, Layla had been staying at Emberly's house nearly every night. After the robbery, Layla didn't feel safe in her own home, and Emberly understood that completely. With her mom's blessing, Emberly had offered her friend a place to stay. It wasn't much of a hassle—her mom welcomed Layla with open arms, even if the situation felt strange at first.

But Layla's presence had been a comfort. Their relationship had drastically improved since the days where she found just even a sight of Layla annoying. It was also something that kept her mind off her own problems. 

The school had just wrapped up an intense game, and Emberly walked with Spencer toward the parking lot, his confident stride making it clear he'd given it his all out on the field. The atmosphere around them was buzzing with excitement from the game, but Emberly's mind was still tangled with her own turmoil.

"Congrats," Emberly said, trying to sound more casual than she felt, a smile tugging at her lips as they made their way out of the gymnasium.

Spencer grinned back at her, eyes still alight with adrenaline. "Thanks."

"They were pretty rough on you out there. You okay?" Emberly asked, her voice carrying a thread of concern. Spencer had taken some heavy hits during the game, and she couldn't help but worry.

"Nothing I couldn't handle." Spencer gave a confident shrug, his usual self-assuredness returning as he flashed her a playful smile.

"Okay, Superman. I was going to offer you a massage, but I guess you're okay," Emberly teased, raising an eyebrow as she nudged him lightly.

"Oh. No, no, no." Spencer groaned dramatically, rolling his shoulder as though it were the most painful thing in the world. "No, I mean, really, you're great," she said, catching Emberly's eye with a grin.

"There's so much pain," Spencer grabbed at his shoulder. 

"Oh, really?" Emberly grinned. 

Before Spencer could retort, a voice interrupted them, causing Emberly to turn toward the sound.

"Sorry to interrupt," a man's voice said, and they both turned to find a tall, well-built man with a warm but slightly guarded smile approaching them. It was Corey, Spencer's dad. Emberly's heart gave a small, unexpected jolt. She'd never met Corey before, so this was their first interaction, and she wasn't sure how to handle it. The tension between father and son was palpable, and it made her feel like a silent observer in a situation that wasn't entirely hers.

"I just wanted to say congratulations," Corey continued, his eyes settling on Spencer. "Man, you played one hell of a game."

"Thanks," Spencer replied, his tone polite but not overly enthusiastic, the flicker of something unreadable crossing his face.