No Love Lost

chapter three

Eli's POV

It's finally the weekend and I barely got any sleep last night. I kept tossing and turning, thinking about that rude encounter I had with Jason. Just saying it was weird is an understatement. I wonder if he thought I wouldn't find out about what happened to him, cause if it didn't come from someone I knew, I'm sure some nosy ass person at our school would find out someway, somehow.

If all he wanted to do was argue then he should've just ignored me. Better yet, I should've just ignored him. I should've known something like that was gonna happen. We've already grown apart. We aren't the same people we were freshman year. I don't know who he is now, and that's okay. Not everyone is gonna be in your life forever, though I'd hoped he'd always be there. I just need to focus on getting him out of my head, and focusing on myself, and graduating on time.

"Eli Millington, how are you still laying in bed?" My mom, Clara Millington, said while bursting into my room.

"Is it not Saturday?" I groaned as I rolled over to face the window.

"So? Do something productive! Eat, go for a walk, do homework or something!" She said, tugging at my duvet.

"Nooo, why are you being weird?" I said, burying my face into my pillow.

"I'm not! Now get up and come get something to eat!" She said, finally yanking off my blanket.

—

After an hour of pulling myself together and getting ready for the day, I skipped down the stairs and saw shopping bags, and a pair of shoes I didn't recognize... men's shoes.

"Mom? Who's shoes are at the door-" I said, eyeing them as I walked into the kitchen.
I quickly stopped my tracks when I saw a man in business attire standing next to my mom on the opposite end of the island.

"Finally! Eli, I want to introduce you to someone." She said, with a nervous smile on her face.

I stared at him for a few seconds, and he gave me a kind smile, but my stare quickly shifted to my mother, "and who might this be?" I asked.

"Peter MacMillan. It's nice to finally meet you, Eli." The man said, putting his hand out for me to shake.
I looked down at his hand, then back at him, then back at my mother.
He quickly retracted his hand, and my mom shifted nervously. From all the tension in the room even I was getting a little fidgety.

"Well, Eli, I've been seeing peter for a while now, he actually just got back from a business trip in Milan." She spoke.

"How long is a while?" I asked.

"Uh, almost 11 months?" She said, looking to him. He nodded in agreement.

"A long time then.. how come this is the first time I'm hearing about him?" I asked.

"We agreed to wait until he got back from his last business trip of the year, so we could tell you together." She spoke softly.

Don't get me wrong, I love my mom, and I want her to be happy. She's been through so much with my dad, lord knows he didn't deserve her. He treated both of us like shit, it just took some growing up for me to really realize.
When my mom found out she was pregnant, my dad wanted her to get an abortion, but she wanted to keep me. He loved her so he stayed, but not for me. Not for the life he helped create. He stayed for her. That's literally what he'd fight with her about, because he didn't want more children.
From the way he talked, when he thought I couldn't hear, it was clear that the two kids he already had were his pride and joy, and I was just the ugly duckling. I'm sure they don't even know I exist. He eventually left us when I was four and went back to his ex-wife who birthed his first two children. My mom took me to therapy and eventually I started to forget him. She got rid of all pictures of him, so all I can remember is the abandonment and hurt I felt when he left.

"I actually got you something, Eli." Peter said, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"Is that so?" I asked.

"Yeah," he smiled, "your mom helped me pick it out." He said.

When he came back into the kitchen, he handed me one of the shopping bags from Louis Vuitton. Leave it to my mom to find a sugar daddy before me.

"Is this really for me?" I asked.

They nodded, "open it." My mom chimed.

I slid the box out of the bag, and slowly lifted the flap, but slammed it back down with wide eyes.

"Oh my god." I said, looking down in shock.

"I know right?!" My mom said, with a smile on her face.

I flipped it open again to see the LV Pont 9 shoulder bag I've been wanting since I saw it in the fashion show last year.
I wanted to shed at least a few tears in appreciation for the craftsmanship of this beautiful bag but it's too soon to let my guard down around this man. No matter how much my mother likes him.

"Hm." I hummed, as I closed the box, and slid it back in the shopping bag.
"Thank you Peter for the lovely gift, but it means nothing. I know nothing about you so it will take a lot more than a luxury item to weasel your way into my family. You got that?" I said sternly.

"I expect nothing less." He spoke kindly.

"Good. Now if you'll both excuse me." I said, hastily walking out of the kitchen, and up to my room. Shopping bag gripped tightly in my hand.

—

3rd Person POV

Eli hastily walked out of the kitchen, heading up to his room, with his new designer bag.

"I think that went well." Clara said, holding Peters hand.

"You think?" He said, "I was trying so hard not to sweat." He said, fanning himself.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Clara and Peter heard Eli shout from his room.

"I think he likes it." Clara chuckled, giving peter a kiss on the lips.

"Mm do that again." Peter said, putting his arms around her waist.

—