Pretending (bxb)

Chapter 17

Azzy falls asleep about half way through the movie. She's still lying on my shoulder, drooling on my shirt. Janette and Adrian aren't really watching the movie, I notice, but they keep glancing at each other making it obvious they want to say something.

I pretend to actually be interested in the movie, even though all I really want to do is to go back to bed.

"I called the school," Janette starts, making me turn away from the screen and to where she's seated on the couch, looking at me. "They said you could start tomorrow if you wanted."

"Beats staying at home all day. I'll go," I say, thinking that would be the end of the conversation.

"Are you sure? I mean I don't want to rush. You are still healing after all." I don't understand this woman. One minute she won't even look at me, and the next she's concerned with my well being. I mean choose a damn side, am I right?

"It's fine. I've been to school loads of time in worse conditions." Okay so I thought that would make Janette feel better about letting me go, but that just seemed to backfire.

Her face turns into a mass of guilt and she avoids my eyes again, making it seem like looking at me pains her or something.

"Um alright well I'll go let Fiona know. She can tell Ian to show you around a bit tomorrow." I'm about to tell her that she doesn't have to do that, mostly because I don't want Ian to be forced to show me around, but Janettes already up and off the couch. Damn I should not of said that.

I glance at Adrian who's watching his fiancée run up the stairs, seeming a bit conflicted. Then he turns back to me, catching me already staring.

"Don't worry about her, kid. I think she's just a bit exhausted is all," he says, trying to be comforting. Yeah well she isn't the only one. "I should probably take that little monkey up to bed, huh?" He smiles affectionately at Azaela.

"Probably."

He stands up, adjusts his clothing, and then begins to take ahold of Azzy. He gently lifts her up in his arms, carrying her brides style.

"Hey, turn off the lights in here before you go up to bed alright?" He says casually as he begins to walk away.

"Yeah alright," I answer.

"And uh, Quinn?"

"Hm?"

"I'll give you a ride to school tomorrow. Don't want Ian driving you on your first day. I don't really know much about the kid, but I know he's a bit of a punk," he says. I don't really like the idea of being in the car alone with Adrian but I can't exactly just tell him that. There's really no way of getting out of this without sounding like a dick so I guess I'm stuck getting a ride to school with Adrian.

"... Okay. Thanks," I say as he makes his way up the stairs and leaves me alone. I sigh and lay my head down on the couch, deciding to stay until the movie is over to go to bed.

In the mean time I sort of just doze off and think about what my father is doing right now. I wonder if he regrets what he did to me or if he just regrets getting caught. Even though he beat me most of the time we were together, I do remember times when I was younger when he'd do something kind every once in a while. Like letting me watch a football game with him, or tucking me in for bed, or even that one time we drove out of the city and he took me fishing.

I don't really know when exactly it got so bad to the point where he stopped giving a crap about my well being but those little moments when he was nice really stuck with me. Is it wrong that I still crave them?

After the movie I barely paid attention to is over, I turn off the TV and all the lights, like Adrian asked, and go back upstairs into bed. I check my phone to see if Amari ever ended up texting us to Face Time but there was nothing. A little disappointed, I put my phone on my charger, which by the way is completely fucked up- I'm surprised it still works, and then lay into the bed.