Countdown (on hold)

Two years, eleven months, six days, eighteen hours before

Neither Caleb nor I spoke much until we reached the front of his house. While Caleb thought of the right words to say, I looked around his house. I instantly fell to like his house. It was made all from wood and had an overall cozy, warm feel from the outside. I wondered if the inside felt as warm as much as the outside looked it.

Caleb gently placed his hand on my shoulder. "My family is a bit...different." He started to say, "After Marley left my mom became blank and emotionless. We both did, to tell you the truth. Marley was my mom's only daughter and she-"

I cut him off, "Caleb, please don't try to apologize or explain about your family. It doesn't matter to me.

"Shay, just let me finish." I nodded. "As I was saying, Marley was my parents only daughter and Mom didn't cope very well with Marley not being here because of her reasons for leaving. Then Alex left shortly after Marley did. I was her only child she had left, so she began to rely on me for everything and she told me everything, even though I was only ten at the time. But anyway, I wanted to tell you that so that you wouldn't feel weird or anything around my mom." I looked at Caleb and saw that his cheeks were turning pink.

I laughed a little, "You're blushing, Caleb."

He blushed a little more, "I know."

"You didn't have to apologize about your family, no ones family is perfect. We're all a little quirky."

"Yeah, I know, but I just wanted to give you a little background on everything. Alex came home after three years, and now he only has a few months until he's supposed to meet his soulmate."

We were still standing outside the Dawson's front door. "How much longer do you have for your countdown?" I asked.

He looked down at his bracelet. "Slightly less than two years. And yours?"

I looked down at my bracelet. "Slightly less than two years as well."

"Strange occurrence or mess up by the government?" Caleb gave me a sly grin and my matching half grin was all it took for us to burst into laughter. Our laughs died down quickly, but our faces were still flushed and we were still smiling at each other. "We should go in."

"We should go help your mom with dinner."

Caleb opened the front door for me. "You don't have to help with dinner, you're the guest." We walked into his house and I was slightly taken back. The outside of his house screamed cozy, warm, and that a loving family lived here. The inside was dull, gray, and emotionless. Or at least the main hallway was. I hoped the rest of his house wasn't like the hallway.

I turned towards Caleb. I gave him another small smile that I hoped convinced him. "I promise the rest of the house isn't like this. Let's go into the kitchen, I think you'll like it. And I think dinner should be done now." Caleb led me farther down the main hallway. He stopped before a doorway. "Knowing my mom, she most likely overdid it with the cooking and baking. I just wanted to warn you to be ready for a room filled with food."

"It's fine." I was clearly confused why Caleb was warning me about food.

Caleb gave me a small laugh. "I warned you." He took my hand and gave it a squeeze before we walked into the kitchen.

Mrs. Dawson was standing by the table getting everything ready. The table was covered in a dark blue cloth and shiny silver plates that reflected the light coming off of the gas light.

"Hi Mom." Caleb walked over to Mrs. Dawson and gave her a hug.

"Hi Caleb." She gave him a kiss on his cheek. Mrs Dawson turned towards me. "Shay! I'm so happy you could join us for dinner."