Shadow Of A Star

Chapter 10

"Drive." Maya .muttered the minute she got in Ethan's black Saab, slamming the door a bit more than necessary given the age of the vehicle. She shook him from whatever app he'd been playing on and he started in confusion at the ice in her voice.

"Mai? Are you ok?" He asked in concern, eyeing his girlfriend's tear stricken face and shaking form.

"I said drive." She repeated, the frustration in her tone making it clear she was not up for a conversation. He inspected her for a moment before nodding, shifting his stick into first gear and speeding away from the school. They cruised around the city for a bit before they came to a stop outside a park, the calm and quiet a welcome escape.

"Come on, let's take a stroll." Ethan said, unbuckling his seat belt and holding his hand out to Maya. She glanced at it for a moment before repeating his actions, placing her hand in his. His lips quirked into a small grin and he kissed the back of her hand. Once they had gotten out of the car they began to long walk around the pond in front of them. They were quiet for the first leg of the journey, wandering around the pathway, hand in hand. It was nice to be there together; basking in the sun as children ran around, exploding in laughter as they played.They passed a bench with an elderly couple feeding ducks, watching as they bickered constantly, yet still looked at each other with so much love in their eyes.

"Do you think we'll ever be like that?" She ventured after a while, and Ethan looked over at her with a soft smile.

"No babe, I'll never look that old. Black don't crack. You on the other hand?" She giggled and shoved him lightly. He grinned at her face, the smile reserved for him, that set her eyes ablaze.

"So... you ever going to tell me what happened?" She sighed and relayed the story of the fight to him. He kept a straight face, yet squeezed her hand at just the right times, and nodded his head even when she went off on tangents. That was what she needed, all had ever really needed. Just, someone to actually listen. Not offer any advice, not to tell her what she needed to do. Just let her get everything off her chest, let her finally unload. When she finished her story he led her to an empty bench and mulled over his response. She watched him carefully, biting her lip as he seemed to brace himself. He turned to her and grasped her chin, so they could make complete eye contact. When she held his gaze he allowed his hand to move, to stroke her cheek gently, before falling to her folded hands.

"Mai... I think you need to talk to your mom." She looked at him stunned, and prepared to reiterate just how much that was not a good plan; but he held up a palm to stop her sentence before it could begin.

"Listen, Maya, ok? I love you, and all I want is for you to be happy. Right now, despite what you'd like to believe, you're not happy. The weed and the alcohol is great fun, and that's always going to be there... but family ain't. You only get one of those, and you shouldn't waste it." She looked at him, trying to think of anything she could say to stop him from convincing her, because god damn he was doing a good job.

"But, you're my family." He chuckled at that and brought his hand up to stroke her cheek.

"I am that Mai. You're mine too, nothing will ever change that. That doesn't change the fact you have a mother that loves you Maya, cares about you. That's a gift, you've got to embrace that."

"She doesn't ca-"

"Babe, she does. She wouldn't be riding you so hard if she didn't. Mai, she's made mistakes, I'm not denying that. At the end of the day, she's a human being. I could write a book on absent parents, people who never wanted to be parents. I know enough about it to know when someone cares. There will come a day when she's gone Mai, think about that. Don't you want her to know that she was loved? Don't you want to know that she loved you?" Maya listened to his speech and surprised herself to feel tears running down her face. She slowly nodded before he sighed and pulled her into a tight embrace. She hiccuped and felt a sob wrack her body as he held her closer.