The Story of Tonight

Chapter Twenty Two

Lia was used to angry parents. Or, rather, an angry mom. She had always been a good kid, but inevitably had gotten into trouble over her life. She knew what to expect by this point. The look of disappointment. The yelling that was a hybrid of English and Spanish that only a Latinx mother could perfect. It wasn't pleasant, but she was used to it.

Lin being upset... that was another story.

The car ride was silent, other than the low air flow of the heat through the vents. When Lin had shown up at Marissa's and gotten her from the cops, he merely thanked the cop, gave Lia a once over and said to follow him to his car. It was so far removed from the guy who she had had coffee with after sneaking out to the city to meet him to score some extra credit with Mr.Martin.

Lia's eyes peered over at Lin in the driver's seat. His focus was directly on the road in front of him, a tired look on his face. She knew he had just finished a show when the cops had called him to come get her.

Lia heaved out a sigh, partially to get Lin's attention and the other part to focus on something besides her nausea. Neither was successful.

"So," Lia finally broke the silence, "Is now not a good time to say at least I didn't throw away my shot?"

"Emilia," Lin spoke up for the first time, his eyes still focused on the road.

"Lin, I'm sorry," Lia said quickly now that she, somewhat, had his attention, "I didn't know the cops were gonna show."

"The cops showing up?" Lin scoffed, "You think that's why I'm upset?"

Lia was confused by his answer, "Well, yeah. You haven't said anything," She replied.

"I haven't said anything because I don't know what to say," Lin said honestly, which only made Lia feel worse. She stayed quiet as she waited for him to speak.

Unbeknownst to Lia, Lin had been trying to think of something since the moment he left the theatre. The man who was known for his way with words was at a loss.

"Where does your mom think you were tonight"

"At a sleepover," Lia admits timidly, leaning her head against the car window.

"Hmm," Lin mused, which made Lia even more nervous than if he had just started yelling. Either reaction was a contrast to any side she had seen of Lin before, but at least yelling would lead to more words.

"I can't tell you that you shouldn't do it again because we already had that conversation less than a month ago. I can't get mad at you for sneaking around and lying because that's not my place,"

Lin continued to speak, almost as if he was thinking out loud and Lia just happened to be present, "It's not. I'm not your parent. Your mom is. I'm just the guy who you can call to bail you out of stuff that you don't want your mom to find out about or if you need a few bucks. The flashy celebrity," As he spoke, there was a hollowness to his voice. It brought tears to Lia's eyes, not having expected the conversation to go to this place.

"And that's not your fault," Lin continued, his eyes still directed at the dark roads ahead, "I thought we were building a relationship, and the way to do that was to keep everything good and easy because I've missed out on so much of your life already."

Even if Lia found a moment to say something, she didn't even know what to say. When said out loud, it did sound like she had just been using Lin. She couldn't deny what he was saying, which only made her feel shittier.

The two went back to uncomfortable silence. Lia kept her focus on the street lights through the window, while Lin's focus didn't waver. When the car was placed into park and Lia saw her surroundings, her eyes widened, and she whipped her head over, "Why are we at my mom's?"