Faker

Chapter 6

I slip on my flats and a denim jacket over my stripped V neck t shirt. My phone buzzes on my bed, a text from James letting me know that he's in my driveway.

I race down the stairs and to the door when I hear,

"And where do you think you're going?"

I sigh.

"Out." I reply.

"With who?" My dad asks.

"Um, a friend." I tell him, although 'friend' isn't really the right word to fit James.

"You haven't eaten your supper yet." He says.

"Not hungry." I reply before walking out the door and shutting it behind me. I look in the driveway and see James parked there. He looked up and smirked at me.

What have I gotten myself into?

"Hey." I mutter, stepping into the car.

"Hey beautiful girl." He replies.

"Excuse me?" I question, shocked that he would describe me in such a word.

"What?" He inquires.

"You called me beautiful." I tell him. He smiles.

"Because you are." He replies.

"Oh, thank you." I mumble.

~~~~~

James drives us to Squeezed, but I don't mind. I just want to get away from the house.

"Here you go." James says, handing me my smoothie, which he insisted on paying for.

"Thanks." I reply, taking the drink. James sits on the couch beside me, turning his body so he was facing me and casually slinging his arm behind me.

"So, didn't want to stay with your family, huh?" He asks.

"Yeah, I suppose you can call it family." I sigh.

"What's wrong?" He asks. I'm surprised. He actually sounds...Sincere.

  "You know, the divorce and stuff." I reply.

  "Yeah, I can see how that affects things." He responds.

  "Yeah." I mutter.

  "Do you want to talk about it? I'm all ears." He offers, laying a hand on my shoulder and gently rubs small circles with his thumb. It's actually quite comforting.

  "Well, my dad cheated on my mom with some twenty year old bleach blonde named Sarah. When my mom found out, she immediately confronted him about it. They started fighting and arguing and in the end, dad chose Sarah and he walked out on us. They got a divorce and I guess you can see how the rest turned out." I explain.

  "You haven't really forgiven your dad, huh?" He questions.

  "No. Emily has but I haven't. She was always closer with him anyways." I mumble.

  "Just remember, I'm here for you if you need anything, okay?" James tells me.

  Maybe I had misjudged James. He actually seems concerned about this. It was a side of him that I haven't seen before and I like it.

  "Okay." I reply.