Not the Same

Uncertainty

Kian’s POV

            “He’s home early,” Cam says calmly, but with a hint of terror in his voice.

            “You alright,” I ask.

            “Yeah,” Cam says.

            “Cam, where are you,” Earl shouts pleasantly.

            “I-In here, dad,” Cam says.

            The clatter of footsteps being taken towards us increased in volume until it stops when Earl and two other people who  appeared to be around the same age as Cam, appear at Cam’s door. One of the two people looked to be a boy who looked about eighteen years old. He had short black hair and green eyes. He was fairly tall and pretty skinny. His face was broke out with a few bumps on his left cheek with black facial hair on his chin. The other was a girl with long, smooth brown hair and flawless skin. She was medium height and a little chubby. She looked to be around twenty-six.  “Oh, I didn’t know you had company,” Earl says with a smile. However, his eyes had shown a look of disgust. Why didn’t I notice this at work? “Why didn’t you tell me you was going to let Kian come up,” Earl continues with his pleasant tone.

            “Sorry, it must’ve just slipped my mind,” Cam says.

            “It’s fine,” Earl says, taking a breath. “Just, let me now the next time you bring someone up.”

            “But dad, you let Jack bring home his girlfriends without him having to tell you,” the girl utters.

            “Yeah. Not that I’m complaining, but why do I get to bring over people without your approval, but Cam does? He’s older than me," the boy asks.

            “We’ll talk about that later,” Earl says softly. “So, Kian. Do you want to stay for dinner?”

            “Uh, let me make sure with my friends,” I say, trying to think of an excuse to postpone my answer.

            “Okay, when you’re done, let me know,” Earl says and walks out of the doorframe.

            Suddenly, the tension is the room instantly altered to calmness. The two other people go and sit on, what I assume, the boy’s bed and begin to start a conversation with themselves. “Do you want me to stay,” I ask. “It’s up to you. I know my friends won’t care.”

            “I mean, sure,” Cam says shakily. “If you want.”

            Looking at Cam, he seemed fine, but something felt off. He seemed scared a little and nervous. Was he lying to me about his dad? Or…was it something else? “Okay, I’ll stay,” I say.

            “Okay,” Cam says with a small smile. “I’ll go tell him.” Cam walks over to the doorframe and yells, “Dad, he’s staying.” Cam tenses up for a second and quickly relaxes. What was that about?