When We Were Young

Homecoming

"How do I look?"

I grinned when Skylar emerged from the bathroom. The black dress hugged her body, showing off her curves. Her hair was up, tied in a loose bun revealing her slender neck and low-cut front of the dress.

"Amazing."

She smiled and slipped her arms around my waist, resting her head against my chest. Skylar sighed deeply and I kissed her forehead.

"Are you okay? You seemed very quiet today? Are you still angry with me?"

Skylar shook her head and then pulled back. Her eyes searched my face. She placed the palm of her hand against my cheek. There was something bothering her, I could tell. I felt like I was treading on thin ice; even though Skylar loved me, I was petrified I would really make a mess of things and she would leave.

She blinked and closed her eyes for a few seconds. "I'm okay," she whispered, opening her eyes and smiling warmly. "I wish I would have taken a nap. Today was exhausting."

I was also tired from horseback riding and having lunch with my father; we didn't have time to just sit. I was reeling after the conversations with pop, the weight of it all pressing down on my shoulders.

We were out so long that when we finally returned to the house, the party was less than thirty minutes from the first guest arriving. My mother had a small fit and scolded all of us. Brandt tried to control his laughter but my father wasn't so subtle. He burst out laughing and told my mother to lighten up.

I was shocked. I started laughing, too, and soon Skylar joined in. My mother stomped off, yelling at all of us to go get ready.

Now the party was almost an hour in and we had been given a second warning by my mother to come down stairs.

"Stick close to me tonight, please?" Skylar asked.

I nodded. She ran her fingers through my hair. "Are you sure there isn't something you want to talk about? We can skip this party altogether; sneak out the back and go to Molly's."

"No, no," said Skylar. She looked back and the sadness was there; I could feel it. "It'll be fun."

I kissed her softly. "I love you, baby. I'll be with you the whole night."

When Skylar smiled again, the sadness seemed to disappear and she was her normal happy self. I held her hand tight as we made our way down the stairs. The house was already swarming with people; many I didn't recognize, very few I did. It hadn't been that long since I was home and those I knew didn't look that much older.

The servers dressed in all black circled around the guests like hawks, holding silver trays of champagne and wine. I grabbed two glasses of champagne and handed one to Skylar who linked her arm through mine. I guided her through all the rooms.

"So your family hosts this party every month?"

"They're a group of friends, all lawyers, and each family hosts a party a month. Everyone tries to outdo the next. It started out as a dinner party when they had all finished law school and couldn't afford much. Mum made sure that the party was here when I told her we were coming."

"Quite the socialite."

I rolled my eyes. "Big fish, little pond. Father wanted to move us to London so he didn't have to commute but my mother didn't want to give up the house and this little world she created."

Skylar shrugged. "I guess that makes sense. She didn't want to leave her comfort zone." "Right. But maybe my father and I could've been closer."

"I don't know. It sounds like your dad really cherished the time you did spend together."