About You

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

The next day isn't as awkward as I imagined it to be. We wake up way later than the others, but I make sure to get dressed and fix Evan's messy hair before we go downstairs. Nothing happened, but I don't want their parents assuming anything about me.

When we get downstairs, everyone must have already taken off for the day, because we have the house to ourselves. We eat casserole leftovers and watch Netflix for most of the day until Alex gets home.

"Hey, you two." Nate walks into the living room later that afternoon. Evan grabs the remote and pauses the movie.

"Hey, we didn't hear you guys get home." I sit up on the couch, taking my head off of Evan's chest.

"Alex is just putting some stuff away in the fridge for the girl's night thing." He says. "She brought me so we can 'buddy up' as she calls it."

They try to laugh off the cringe as Alex walks in. "Hey, look who I found." She announces.

Rae and Chris trail in after her with pizza and plastic shopping bags in hand.

"Hey." Rae says distractedly, already unpacking face masks, old DVD's to watch and comfy clothes she must have brought from home.

"As much as I adore you boys, I think it's time to scoot." She continues piling stuff on the table. The boys awkwardly shuffle to the basement while Evan untangles himself from me and the blanket on the couch.

We haven't really talked about how girl's night would go, and I must make a face at him because he tells me, "I'll be fine. You girls have fun."

He kisses me on the forehead, before following the guys downstairs. I get up to see if there's anything I can do to help, and notice Alex is still upset after last night. Although, seemingly less so with us.

I trail after Rae into the kitchen while Alex goes upstairs to the bathroom. I remember the largest popcorn bowl known to man that I had seen on game night and grab it down for us from the top shelf. We just get popcorn made and set on the coffee table, when Alex comes back downstairs carrying a folder.

"Before the night goes on any further, I just wanted to let you know about this." She says flopping it down in front of me on the coffee table. Confused, I set down my empty pizza plate and open it. It's a copy of the short story I wrote about Jordan. The final one I showed to Evan once I finished it.

"Where did you get this?" I demand. Not sure if I should be worried or mad that she has it.

"Evan gave it to me. Actually, he showed it to all of us." She nods her head towards her parent's room even though they aren't here, and then to Rae as well.

"Why?" I don't know how to compose my face. When? I didn't write it with intent to ever be read. Let alone read widely.

"It was perfect, Tara. You showed her spirit and captured her heart somehow in those few pages." She tells me, waving her hands around dramatically like Mary was last night.

Rae nods along with her and Alex sits down on the big couch by herself.

"That's why I submitted it."

"What?" I jump up from my seat. "To where?"

"To that creative writing scholarship Evan told me about. He said you thought you didn't have anything good enough to submit. But you do."

"How did you get it to them? When was the deadline?" I'm puzzled and not sure if I should feel betrayed. How could she do this behind my back?

"I told Anderson that I was doing you a favour by handing it in for you and accidentally missed the deadline with everything going on. He thankfully let it slide."