The Coffee Spill |Demi Lovato|

Chapter 58

Written 2015

Revised May 2021

*Ellie's POV*

"Eleanor." The voice behind me says.

I turn around, dropping the keys that I finally managed to college onto the ground. "Mom?" 

"Hi." She says, hands in her pockets, keeping a respectable distance between us. 

I pick my keys up off the ground. "What are you doing here?" I ask, overwhelmingly confused. 

She pulls an envelope out from her back pocket. I recognize the decorative design on the envelope as Demi and I's Save The Date invitation. "I got your invite." She says. I look at her for a few seconds, almost swearing I saw her mouth curl into a subtle smile as she held my wedding invitation up. 

Is that all I had to do? Get married and send her an invitation to erase the last few years of her absence. 

"How did you find me?" I ask. 

She chuckles at my question. "It's not hard to generate a google search for someone who's engaged to a pop star." My mother jokes. 

I just stand there. Not laughing along with her nor unleashing the anger I've held on to for the last few years. 

I know I was the one who initiated this reunion. I invited her to the wedding. I sent her the invitation. Now that she's responded to me, I don't know how to react. What to say or do. Truth be told, I didn't think we'd make it this far. I expected her to either mark the invitation 'return to sender' or throw it right in the trash. 

"What are you doing here?" I repeat the question, unlocking my car and throwing my bag onto the passenger seat.

"I came to talk to you. If you'll let me." She asks, taking a step closer. 

I've gotten this far, I might as well hear what she has to say. Right? "Follow me." I say, getting in the drivers seat, turning the car on. I watch as my mom turns around and gets in an old Toyota Corolla parked just a few spots down from me. 

"It's just coffee, Ellie. Just coffee with your mom. Everything will be okay." I repeat to myself as I turn into Café Bistro, my mom's car turning into the parking lot and parking beside me.

After awkwardly reuniting again outside of the café, she holds the door open for me. I select a table in the corner, furthest away from other customers. I'd hate for this conversation to turn into a screaming fest for the entire café to hear, which is exactly how how our last in person conversation ended. 

We sit in silence for a minute or two, neither of us initiating a conversation. Luckily, the silence is broken as our waitress walks over asking if we'd like anything to drink.

I order a hazelnut cappuccino and a pistachio muffin while my mother orders a cup of coffee with extra extra cream and extra sugar. I scrunch my nose up at her drink order. Why don't you just order a glass of milk with a dash of coffee in it? 

We return to our silence as we wait for our coffee. 

I take a deep breath before deciding to break the silence. "You got the invitation so I assume you haven't moved." I say in observation.

She nods her head. "You kids grew up in that house as did I. I wouldn't move for all the money in the world." She admits, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Speaking of you kids, have you spoken to your sister recently?" She ask. 

I break a small sliver off from the top of the muffin, popping it into my mouth. I savor the taste before swallowing. 

When my parents, more so my mom, disowned me, my sister didn't agree with their decision. However, she's two years younger than me, and if she voiced her opinion, I'm sure they would have kicked her out too. When she graduated high school and went off to college last year, she reached out to me again, apologizing for not having my back.