Forgiven // l.h. // Book 2 in Bully Series

29. So Much In One Day

The shock on my mom's face in the moments after I spoke was actually irritating. How did she expect me to react? She'd been gone for over six years without having even said goodbye. She left me with my dad; didn't even give me the option to go with her or to stay with him.

"Daeyna, I- you grew up so beautiful." She complimented quietly. I lifted my eyebrows at that, crossing my arms just as Luke stepped up next to me, confusion all over his face.

"Thank you for the compliment, mom, but you still didn't answer my question." I snapped. The part of me that had been taught to respect your parents screamed at me for being so rude, but the part that had been hurt when she left was screaming louder.

"Wait, this is your mum?" Luke asked incredulously, looking at me. I glanced at him and nodded before turning back to face my mom. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him tense up slightly.

"I'm sorry for being rude, but I honestly don't think you have any right to be here right now." Luke said. I saw my mom's eyes narrow at his words.

"I am her mother." She practically snarled at him. "I have every right to be at my daughter's birthday party." I let out a laugh at her words, though there was absolutely no humor in it at all.

"You gave up that title the day you left without so much as a goodbye." I countered. "Or did you forget about that?" My mom blanched at the words, as if they had come out of nowhere.

"I had to go, Daeyna. I couldn't stay with your father." She defended. What kind of weak excuse was that? I could feel my cheeks heating up with anger every time she spoke.

"Then you divorce him! Holy shit, mom, I was sixteen years old and even I knew that. You don't just run away. That solves nothing." I exclaimed. I barely even paid attention to the various groups of people who were watching the argument.

"Dae, let's just go. It's your birthday, you deserve to be happy." Luke murmured in my ear, gently taking me by the elbow and leading me away from my mom. We made it about five feet before she shouted after us.

"Daeyna Jane Larksen, don't you dare walk away from me!" She scolded as if I was still that sixteen-year-old girl she had dragged to Australia in the first place.

"You mean like you did to her, right?" Luke's voice was filled with venom as he whipped around to face her once more. "It's perfectly fine for you to walk away from her and be gone for years, but God forbid she turn her back on you once." By the time I turned around, Luke and my mom were only feet from each other, facing off with such loathing in their eyes I was sure an all-out brawl might just start soon.

"I know all about you, Luke Hemmings. Daeyna spoke about you often, how you tormented her in school, said awful things about her country. I bet you thought it was funny when you finally manipulated her into liking you." She snarled. It was as if her comment made something snap in me.

"What the fuck do you know about our relationship, huh? At least he was sorry for what he did! He made up for his mistakes, realized that it takes more than just saying sorry to fix something." I ranted.

"Daeyna, I am your mother, and you will not speak-" My mom started, but I cut her off.

"If I didn't make it clear already, I'll do it now. You may share the same blood as me, but you are not my mother. Liz Hemmings is my mother. She's the one who took me in when dad turned to alcohol to drown out the pain of you leaving him. She's the one who taught me how to manage a budget, how to pass my Calculus midterm, how to love unconditionally." So many emotions were bubbling up in my chest I didn't know which one to display. Anger, frustration, hurt, sadness. They were all there.

"I know, and I'm so sorry. I made so many mistakes." My mother's shoulders dropped in defeat as she turned her gaze to the ground. But I didn't buy it.

"Why now, mom?" I asked just as quietly. "How come you waited all this time to come back? It can't be because you missed me, because if you did, you'd have done it sooner." I questioned. I waited a few moments for her to reply, but she didn't. I sighed, backing up a few steps and shaking my head. "Yeah. That's what I thought. I just- I love you mom, and I always will. But this? I can't forgive this."

--

The party ended pretty much as soon as my mom left the park. I was on the verge of a breakdown, but I held off as much as I could not only for the sake of everyone who had come, but also because I was almost one hundred percent positive the paparazzi were trying to get a picture of me crying.

Liz gave me a hug after we packed the last of the tablecloths and other decorations into her car.

"I know you feel like you were too harsh." She said as we pulled out of the hug. I frowned, looking at the ground. "But, to be honest, Daeyna, some of us who truly love you think that you weren't harsh enough." I couldn't help but crack a small smile at that.

"Thank you, Liz." I said sincerely. I hadn't been lying to my mom when I told her that Liz was more of a mother to me than she was. Not only had she taken me in when I really had nowhere else to go, but she continued to love and support me no matter what sort of relationship I had with her son. Whether Luke and I were enemies or friends or even more, she was always ready to cook up some food and chat if I needed it.

--

"Ugh, that sucked." I groaned as soon as Luke and I ended up back at my apartment. I crossed the room and flopped onto my bed face-first before letting out another groan. The bed dipped slightly as Luke sat down next to me.

"It was good for a while, though. And as horrible as what happened was, I think it was probably good to get those emotions out as well." I flipped over onto my side and looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah? And when did you become so wise?" I questioned lightly. Luke gave me a small smile, though it turned into a frown shortly after.

"A while back, I realized that my fear of feelings is what got us into this mess in the first place. I didn't want to deal with Kylee's death, and you forced me to by moving into her house. I was afraid of what feelings you'd have if I told you about the tour. Holding back like that caused so many problems. It's better to be honest." He explained. I smiled up at him.

"When you put it that way, it's hard to disagree." I chuckled.

"You know, as much as I think it was important for you to have that confrontation with your mum, she really couldn't have picked a shittier day to do it." He added. I nodded. "But not for the reason you're thinking. Tonight was supposed to be wonderful. You were supposed to smile and laugh all day, and then when we were leaving, I was going to have a surprise for you." I lifted my eyebrows in intrigue at his words.

"A surprise?" I asked, pushing myself to a seated position. "Is it too late for this surprise?" Luke let out a huff, smiling.

"No, I don't suppose it is." He said. "I was going to ask you if, well, if you wanted to be my girlfriend." I felt the air rush from my lungs at that. "You know, like officially."

"Yes. Of course." I said, leaning forward to wrap my arms around him in a hug. Luke hugged me briefly before pulling away, a grin on his face.

"Good." He breathed.

Then he kissed me.

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Yay another chapter! Hope you all love it! Not too much to say here, as it has literally only been a day or so since the last one was posted.

Though, I would appreciate it if you kept my family in your prayers. My cousin Larry passed away on Monday rather suddenly. He was only in his mid-40s, and the entire family is sort of in shock. 

Anyways, I love you to bits, and I will see you next time!