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My eyes saw some kind of feeling. I didn’t want to cry in front of everyone, so I turned my eyes away from him and looked at Salvatore’s daughter. She was too perfect, and I hated everything she did, even how she breathed.
“Is that Caleb?” my mom whispered in my ear. I told my mum everything that happened between me and Caleb that night. The next morning, I just nodded. “Caleb, I have to admit, I’ve been dying to see you,” she says, cutting off Sebastian and Salvatore’s business talk. Everyone got quiet and looked at my mum with a confused look, and so did I.
“It’s not the place.” Maya smiles at me as if to say, “You need to control your mum.”
How could she do this to me? How could she?
“Mom, I’m fine.” I took a sip of my water. Sebastian was now staring at me, and he looked worried. Or maybe my head was just playing tricks on me.
“No, Pumpkin,” my mom says and shakes her head. “Caleb, how was it ruining my daughter?” my mom asked angrily. My face turned red as I looked at Sebastian.
“It wasn’t like that, Mrs. Callahan.” Maya stood up for her brother, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. Maya always stands up for me. My eyes were drilling holes into Maya’s head, and my brain kept trying to come up with reasons why she was defending him and not me.
“Mom, leave it.” I pulled on her arm to get her to look at me again, but it didn’t work.
Salvatore’s daughter stood up for Caleb and said, “I won’t let you talk badly about my fiancé.” I was angry and stood up to protect my mom.
“Don’t you dare stand up and try to belittle my mother ?Know your place.” I said this slowly so she would understand better, and I tilted my head as I said it.
“Sit down, Aria.” Maya then stood up, and my best friend stood up to argue with me. I can’t believe her; she’s supposed to be my sister, but she’s defending this stupid model.
“Just tell your dog to sit down, Maya, or I’ll do it myself.” I moved my chair back a little to make more room for safety reasons.
“I like to see you try,” Salvatore’s daughter said with a smirk.
“Sweetheart,” Caleb tries to say, but I jump forward towards his fiancée and cut him off.
She threw herself back to avoid my hands before I could even wrap my hands around her small neck. I start to fight back against the hands that caught me, but they tighten around my waist, stopping me from moving. I kicked and punched, but they didn’t move.
“Get her out!” Salvatore yells.
“The business deal is off, and it’s all thanks to your dumb daughter.” I heard Sebastian say this behind me. I stopped and slowly turned around. He was the one who caught me. My mom is still sitting down, but she can see Sebastian’s hands around my waist. I stepped on his foot, which made him let me go and moan in pain.
“I hate you, Caleb.” I was so angry that I didn’t even notice I was crying until one of them hit my arm. I quickly wiped them away and pushed past Sebastian to the door, leaving everything and everyone behind me.
I ran my hands through my hair as I walked outside. I was on my way to the car when someone grabbed my hand.
“Please let me explain,” Caleb begs. I turned my head quickly to look at him. Caleb Wolfe was crying, and so was I. I couldn’t help but let my eyes soften a little.
Caleb gently pulled me in closer. “Aria, you’re the only girl I’ve ever liked. I love you, Aria.”
When he talks, my heart skips a beat, but then I remember everything he put me through: leaving me after I gave him something I could never get back and coming back with a fiancée. I shut my eyes and then opened them again. I slowly pulled my hand away from his until it was back on my side.
“I never want to see you again.” My lips trembled, and Caleb’s face fell when he heard what I said.
“Don’t do this, Aria.” Caleb takes my hand again, and his eyes are full of fear.
My heart wanted me to take back what I said, hug him, and tell him I loved him, but my brain knew better. My mind showed me a picture of his fiancée from the past and everything that made me cry about him.
I took my hand away. “Bye, Caleb.”
I kept walking towards the car, and now I’m crying and my heart feels like it’s been broken. It feels like I just lost something I was holding on to for dear life, but it slipped right out of my hands.
I heard my mom say, “Awh, Pumpkin.” She held me close. I turned around to show off my red, puffy face, which had tears streaming down it. She hugs me even tighter, and when I look into Sebastian’s eyes, I see that he is conflicted, as if he is mentally fighting a battle between his heart and brain. I tore my glare away from his.
“I’m fine,” I said and pulled away from my mom. “Can we just go?” I ask, but it sounds more like a plea.
“Of course, sweetie.” My mom says, but she seems a little unsure before she says anything else. “Pumpkin, Auntie Nora texted me earlier and asked if I could spend the night at her house to help her with some divorce papers.”
“Oh.” I raised my eyebrow. “Mom, I’ll be fine.” I quickly understood why she was hesitant; she wanted to be with me because I was having a mental breakdown but couldn’t.
“Are you sure?” my mum asked.
“Yes.” I tried to sound sure, but crying a few seconds ago didn’t help.
“I’ll go home with Aria so she won’t be alone,” Sebastian finally said. His voice sounded more like a demand than an offer.
Please, God, let my mum say no.
“Thank you, Sebastian.” My mum kisses him on the cheek in a sloppy way. I was going to say no and argue, but I couldn’t do that anymore, so I just nodded my head.
Sebastian drove us all to our house so my mum could get some clothes. I ran to my room as soon as we got there and slammed the door. I wanted to be alone for a little while to get my thoughts in order.
I put on some shorts and a big T-shirt that my dad gave me before he left us.
I took a candle out of one of my boxes and lit it so that my room would smell great. I never get mad at Vanilla Bean. I keep thinking about how Caleb is engaged and how my best friend stood up for his fiancée instead of me. This is going to change Maya and me forever. That trust problem will always be there. She knew how much her brother hurt me and that I still loved him, but she didn’t have the guts to tell me he was getting married. I took a book off the shelf and sat on my bed to read it to get my mind off of things. When I looked down at Simba, who was snuggled up against my leg, I smiled.
I chose to take a break and go downstairs to watch TV and eat ice cream. I walked on my toes into the hallway. Sebastian’s office door was open, and a bright light was shining inside. I promised I was going to walk by it, but then I started to worry about ghosts and robbers. Yes, I’m that paranoid, so I decided to look inside.
“Aria, you should be sleeping, right?”
I should have kept going.
I didn’t answer his question because my eyes were wandering around his office. I had never been in his office before, and it was so clean and organized. I lightly ran my fingers along his wall, and my legs quickly followed. He was watching me like a lion stalking its prey, and I stopped in the middle of the room.
“I thought you were a ghost,” I said in a whisper, and the words came out rough and deep.
“Is that so?” he says.