Chapter 2 Emotions

[Lilah’s POV]

“Of course!”

My mother’s voice rings out immediately, and I feel a mixture of uneasiness and relief.

Although I am relieved that I have somewhere to stay while I get back on my feet, I’m uneasy about staying with my mother and the man that she married.

Since I lived in a different city from the two, I didn’t have much of a chance to get to know the man who was now technically my family. And because of that, I wasn’t sure what he was like or whether or not we would get along swimmingly.

“Sweetheart,” my mother’s voice drifts through my reverie, snapping me back to reality. “It’s fine, but did something happen?”

“Well,” I respond, taking in the scene in front of me once more. “Let’s just say that bad luck seems to be following me.”

After that, I explain everything that happened while my mother listens quietly, and when I finish, I feel a wave of relief over being able to release all the frustrations that I have been carrying.

“I’ll head that way now.” I tell her, realizing that there was no point of me standing around watching. “I’ve just got to stop by the store to grab a few things.”

“Of course,” my mother responds. “Your room is exactly how you left it, so you don’t have to worry about having to move things.”

“That’s great,” I sigh. “Then I’ll see you soon.”

Finished speaking, I take one last look at the building in front of me before turning and heading in the direction of the closest convenience store.

After buying a few essentials for the evening, I make my way toward the bus station and then buy a ticket and board the bus that will deliver me to the place that I never thought I would actually be returning to.

The ride is long, and by the time I arrive at my destination, I feel like I could collapse at any moment, but I continue to move, heading to the street where I hail a taxi and then give the directions to where I’m going to the cabbie.

After that, I settle into my seat and watch the city move around me.

I take in the familiar buildings and sights, feeling almost like I never left the place.

Everything was exactly as I remembered it, down to the very last detail, like a city frozen in time and never changing.

However, things had changed.

They changed drastically, and even if I wanted to try to convince myself otherwise, it didn’t make it true.

Sighing, I tear my gaze away from the city beyond my window and watch as the cabbie turns into the neighborhood that I grew up in and then stops in front of the house that I never thought I would have to see again.

“Keep the change,” I tell the cabbie after shoving money into his hand and then climbing out of the cab and watching as he drives away.

“Well,” I murmur, turning my gaze to the large house in front of me. “I can’t just stand out here staring.”

As I speak, I watch the front door open, and then my mother heads toward me.

“Sweetie!” She coos, throwing her arms around me. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. ” I assure her, smiling. “If anything, I’m just exhausted and would love to get some sleep.”

It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t exactly the truth, but before I can even move to head inside, the man that I had been avoiding this whole time appears.

He’s about the same as I remember him, with his large build, dark hair, and pointed gaze that almost seems to burn into me, but he feels different as well.

“Collin,” my mother calls, turning and taking him in. “Is Lilah’s room ready?”

“Of course,” Collin smiles, heading toward us. “I made sure to change the comforter and the sheets as you asked me.”

When he reaches us, he wraps an arm around my mother's waist and then stares at me as if he is expecting me to say something.

What was it that he wanted exactly?

An apology?

A welcome to the family?

How the hell could I say such things when he swooped in and stole my mother before my father was even dead and buried?

Collin was the doctor that took care of my father in his time of need, and he was the man that comforted my mother while she was suffering.

I honestly at the time thought it was just a normal relationship between a patient and doctor, but when I found them sucking face after my father’s passing, I just couldn’t handle it.

That’s why I decided to keep my distance from the two, only seeing them for the wedding, and then making up excuses to miss everything else.

“We should head inside,” Collin says now, drawing me back to the situation in front of me. “I’m sure Lilah is exhausted after everything.”

“Yeah,” I say slowly, appreciating the opportunity to escape. “I think I’ll just head inside and go to sleep.”

Nodding, Collin keeps his gaze fixed on me like a predator taking in its prey, and when it becomes too much for me, I head toward the house.

Once inside, I make my way straight to my room, where I end up collapsing.

“Fuck,” I growl as all the unpleasant emotions from the past start to slowly bubble up in me. “How is it possible that seeing the two of them together still has this much of an effect on me?”

You would think after some time I would get used to my new reality, and yet…

I can’t.

How can I when I remember my father’s slow and painful passing and how the two who are now living happily acted during that time?

“Ugh."

What the hell is wrong with me? Why did I ask my mother if I could stay here when I knew that it would only torture me?

I should just go and rent a hotel room, but I didn’t know how long I would actually be there.

With my apartment burning the way it did, I was already certain that I wouldn’t be able to return for the time being.

I have renters insurance, which means that it should cover everything I lost, but did I have enough in savings to find a new place and cover all the move-in fees?

“Fuck.” I sigh, throwing an arm across my eyes and trying to ignore the headache that is slowly beginning to creep up on me. “I should just go to sleep.”

Grumbling, I turn over, pulling a pillow against me, but when I close my eyes, I hear a knocking sound behind me.

“Who is it?” I call, not bothering to get up since I was certain it was my mother. “I’m tired, so…”

“It’s me.”