Babysitting the Bad Boy

Chapter 17

After the fight I had to make up several excuses as to how I knew how to fight the way I did. I basically told the others the truth, that my cousin had taken me to one of his classes in Ireland and I'd loved it, just not the whole Irish and European champion "thing".

We went back to Lucas's house, where the others went home, "What are you doing for the rest of the day?" Lucas asked me as I got a water bottle from the fridge.

"Um, I don't think I have anything. Probably just Netflix and food." I said and he laughed.

"Do you maybe want to swing by the hospital with me? My mom goes in for surgery on Monday and I can't visit tomorrow. She really wants to properly meet you." He said.

I smiled, "Of course." I said without hesitation and ten minutes later we were in Lucas' car, on our way to the hospital. 

We parked and made our way up to Level D, going to the same room we had gone to the first time. Except this time, Lucas wasn't scared or flustered. He just knocked lightly before walking in. 

His mom was sitting up in the bed watching the TV in the corner of the room. She looked much healthier than when I had last seen her, and her eyes lit up when she saw Lucas.

"Hey!" She said as Lucas walked over and hugged her.

She looked past him at me and smiled even wider, "Ariel! Hi hon, how are you?" She asked me.

I smiled, "I'm good thank you." I said.

"I'm glad you came! I've wanted to get to know you ever since I met you." She said as Lucas and I sat down in two chairs next to the bed.

Cassandra and I talked back and forth for a good half hour before Lucas got bored and went to look for food. 

"Finally he's gone. It took him long enough." Cassandra said once the door had closed and I laughed, "now we can talk about him." She added.

"You need to tell me everything." Cassandra said.  

"What do you want to know?" I asked, preparing myself.

"Just, how is he? The last time I've seen him this often was when he was eleven and twelve. What kind of person is he?" She asked.

I was quiet, debating whether or not to lie or tell the truth. I decided to go with the latter, "I've only known him for the last six-ish months. When we met, he was...he was an asshole." I said bluntly and Cassandra laughed, "but, ever since I've met him, he's gotten a lot better. He's very protective over the people he cares about, and once you gain his trust, he'd do anything for you." I said honestly.

She smiled, "That's good to hear. You know, when he was little, he would always talk about how he couldn't wait to get married, so he could take care of his wife forever." She said and I laughed louder than I'd intended to, which made her look at me.

"I'm sorry. It's just, from what I've seen, Lucas doesn't really do relationships." I said with a shake of my head.

She gave me a thin smile, mischief in her eyes, "I'm sure he'll grow out of it." she said.

"If you don't mind my asking...why haven't you seen Lucas in five years?" I asked her softly.

She gave a heavy sigh, "I'm sorry I shouldn't have asked." I said hurriedly.

She shook her head, "No it's okay. I just haven't really talked about it in a while." she said, "Jason and I were never married. I got pregnant with Lucas when I was really young, only eighteen and straight out of high school. Jason was only 20 and I thought for sure he was going to bolt as soon as I told him I was expecting. But, he stayed with me all the way through Lucas's birth.