DELICATE ★ JENLISA - Chapter 22: Chapter 22

Thanksgiving was always the one holiday that shoved my mood right up my ass. I couldn't get over how much I hated it. Granted, the traditional holiday sounded nice. If I had had the chance, I'm sure I would have loved to sit around a big table with friends and family and eat, making sure to give thanks for the good fortunes that life brings.
But I hadn't had a Thanksgiving like that, and if I did, I sure as hell didn't remember it. I had no doubt that my parents celebrated at the end of November, but I was too young to have made any memories. The memories I did make during my childhood weren't exactly pleasing. Being shifted around foster homes until I was fourteen and a half hadn't presented me with the best of experiences, clearly, and Thanksgiving hadn't been any different.
The worst thing about the holiday was that I couldn't think of very much to be thankful for. At one point, I was thankful that I was still alive. If my dad had not brought me outside on that fateful night twelve years ago, I wouldn't be. At one point, I was thankful that I had a friend that I could more or less trust with my life.
But Charles had significantly diminished the thankfulness I had for being alive, and I could no longer be thankful for having Chahee by my side every day and night.
Still, there was one thing I had to admit I was thankful for, seventeen plus years later. Had I never met Lisa in the hotel that night, and had I not been placed in her class, I'd still be in Charles's house, and I'd still be miserable. Despite the fact that she exhausted me, she also made me happy, and that was something I couldn't overlook.
Not to mention, her niece had also made me smile more times in over two months than I had in my entire life.
I'd planned on working today, but Max had forced me to go 'spend time with my family' the day before. And honestly, after the night we'd had a few days ago, I wasn't sure what to expect with Lisa. She was normal, or as normal as she could be while still being her, but I didn't know what her plans were. That was, until she walked out of her room in a fitting black dress, brushing her hair and shooting me an odd look."Why aren't you getting ready?"
"What?"
"To go?"
"To go where?"
She sighed. "Ashley's house. You didn't think I was just going to let you mope around my apartment all day, did you?"
And that was that. I showered and threw on a decent looking outfit before being ushered quickly down the stairs and into Lisa's car. I really had not expected her to just assume that I'd be spending the day with her and her family, but I wasn't complaining. She seemed happier than usual, which made me happy.
As soon as we pulled up and I saw multiple cars in the driveway, I began to wonder if Liam would be here. It honestly seemed like Lisa was excited, or at the very least not completely bummed out by the fact that today she'd be with her family, so I guessed that he wouldn't be. We walked inside to find more people than I expected in the living and dining room. I immediately recognized Lisa's dad, Ashley, her husband June, and obviously Ark, but there was another older couple and two tall men as well sitting on the couch watching football.
If I had to guess, I'd have to say that they were June's family.
I managed to finish my scan of the room, failing to find the man that seemed to make Lisa ridiculously uncomfortable and turn her into an entirely different person. I breathed a sigh of relief and walked up behind Ark, placing my hands on her shoulders. "Excuse me, but I'm looking for my favorite little eight year old ball of sass, do you know where I could find her?"
Ark whirled around and her face lit up when she saw me. "Jen!"
I laughed and hugged her. "That greeting never gets old."
Ashley smiled at me and walked towards Lisa. Ark smirked and lowered her voice "Now you can't deny that you're Aunt Lisa's girlfriend. You're at Thanksgiving! Come on!"
"Still just a friend, Ark."
"You were kissing!"
I rubbed my neck. "No.. uh, we were..."
"Oh just stop it already. I'm pretty smart, you know, I can tell when you're lying." She paused. "Besides, Aunt Lisa already admitted there was something between you guys."
I raised my eyebrows. "She did?"
"Yep," she nodded. "You know you should feel pretty special, Aunt Lisa's never brung a girl to Thanksgiving before."
I simply smiled at her wording and nodded, my mind going elsewhere. When after a few moments of her talking she realized I was too far gone in another world, she all but rolled her eyes and ran away to chat up Lisa, who was now sitting next to her dad on the couch. I sat down on a nearby chair and stayed quiet, listening.
"You promised."
"Ark," Lisa sighed, "I just sat down."
"You promised me you'd swing with me!"
"Fine," she groaned, standing up. "Ten minutes, Ark. It's cold outside."
"That's a matter of opinion," she responded simply, dragging Lisa towards the back door. The older blonde threw me a lopsided smile. "Where does she get these phrases from?"
"Daughter of two lawyers," I reminded her, smiling slightly and watching her get pulled out the door. I stayed to myself, not exactly one to get up and socialize with a bunch of adults I didn't know. That was, until Ashley approached me and nodded towards the kitchen. "Would you mind helping me cook? No pressure, just thought you'd like something to do."
"I can't say cooking is one of my strong suits."
She smiled softly. "I'm sure we can find something for you to do. Come on."
I nodded and followed her into the kitchen, which was empty upon arrival. Ashley pulled something out of the oven and turned to me, nodding towards a bag near the sink. "I'm sure you know how to peel potatoes?"
"Sure," I responded. I had to admit, being alone in a room with Lisa's sister intimidated me a little bit, mainly because I didn't know how to start a conversation and I didn't want it to be awkward.
She spoke before it reached that point. "You and my sister are growing on each other."
I looked over at her. "Observant, are you?"
She shrugged. "I suppose. Being observant does help me in court. Does that mean you're agreeing with me?"
"Well we've been living together for two months now, it'd be pretty uncomfortable at this point if we didn't like each other at least a little bit."
"Good point," she answered. "It's just weird for me to see you do something that no one else has been able to do."
I shot her an odd glance. "Which is, what exactly?"
She shrugged. "Bring back Lisa's old self, I guess, even if it's in tiny fragments. It gives me hope."
I bit my lip, looking down. "Can I ask you something?"
"You can always ask me anything.. but that doesn't necessarily mean you're guaranteed an answer."
"I know you're not going to tell me anything else about what happened with Lisa and your mom, and I really don't want you to. I want to respect her privacy, and I want her to tell me. But I am curious, and keep in mind I'm just asking about you here, how come you seem so.. not affected?"
She sighed. "That's a little hard to answer. I.. am affected.. just not as much as my sister and my brother. I mean don't get me wrong, I loved my mom, I still do, and she will always be in my heart, but it's been two years since she passed away. There was a point last year where I decided that I needed to stop thinking about the shitty event that happened, and instead focus on the amazing memories we made together when we had the chance. For Ark, anyway."
I wasn't really expecting such a long, honest answer, but I nodded anyway. "Do you think Ark really misses her?"
She shrugged. "Course she does.. but at the same time, she's still very young, and I'm not sure if she understands what it means that her grandmother is no longer alive. She... she looks forward to the day that she can see her again."
"... Do you?" I asked.
"Do I what? Look forward to the day that I can see her again?" I met her eyes, staying silent as she tilted her head. "Are you trying to ask me if I believe in heaven?"
I shrugged and she stared at me. She pulled the foil off of a baking pan and stirred before turning back to me. "Yes, I do. I believe that I'll see her again someday. Maybe that's why I have an easier time accepting that she's gone."
"Does that mean Lisa.."
She shook her head. "No, no, I don't care if it's not about my mom, if you want to know anything about Lisa, including her beliefs, you have to ask her."
"Okay. Sure. Thanks for answering my first question, though."
"Of course," Ashley answered. I spoke up, because I was dying to know one more thing. "Is Liam going to be here tonight?"
She eyed me, but shook her head. "God I really hope not. I told him not to come and then my dad went and re-invited him, so I have no idea what he's planning on doing."
I nodded silently. I barely knew anything about Lisa and her brother's relationship, so all I could hope for was that she would remain happy and light-hearted for tonight.. and the next night, and the next. Ashley and I spent another hour or so in the kitchen alone, which was okay, because it meant that I got to get to know Lisa's sister a little bit. She was actually a pretty cool person, even though she'd given me quite the intimidating first, second, and third impression.
Eventually all the food was ready and I returned to the living room to see most of Ashley's family in the same positions they had been in, only now Lisa and Ark were back in the room. It seemed to me like the game had reached halftime, because the two men to Lisa's right stood up, one holding a football. "Lisa, whatya say, game of touch for old time sake?"
She shrugged. "Sure, but there's only three of us."
"I count eight, excluding Ash because it seems she's completely disappeared."
"I suppose I'll play," Lisa's dad said.
Ark joined in. "I want to play! Please!"
The man nodded and continued to convince who I assumed to be his parents to play, until I was the only one left in the room who hadn't agreed. Lisa walked over to me. "What do you say? Want to play?"
"Uh... I.. I've never played, I probably suck."
Lisa smiled. "That's alright, so do Rocky and Justin, but they're still willing to get their asses beat by a girl. Come on, it'll be fun."
I nodded and everyone shuffled outside except for Ashley, who I suppose was setting up for an early dinner. Lisa explained the rules to me before the game began. My team was at a significant disadvantage, because it was me, Ark, Justin, and his mom. Considering the fact that Justin was the only person on our team even slightly competent at the sport, we didn't do very well at first. I had to admit though, with Ark on my back as I ran her around the yard and tried to help Justin, I was having a lot of fun.
Towards the end of the game, at which point we were losing really badly courtesy of Lisa's athleticism, Justin suggested we switch up our defense and play man on man. Ark chose her grandfather to guard, Justin chose his brother, and their parents paired up, leaving Lisa for me to guard. I had very much so enjoyed watching her run around and let loose, and getting to be closer to her while she did so only heightened my excitement.
"Remember when I said I played a lot of sports in high school?"
I stood in front of her with my arms out, my back slightly leaning against her front as we waited for Rocky to throw the ball. "Yeah?"
Rocky threw the ball and in one quick motion, Lisa was out from behind me, catching the ball at least ten feet from where we'd just been standing. Without her support, I fell back into the grass and landed with a hard thud.
She strolled back over to me. "Well, I think I've pretty much got the speed thing down to a tee," she smirked. "Want some help up?"
"Yeah thanks," I muttered, rolling my eyes. "Not all of us are athletic, you know. You're not proving much by beating me at football."
"Sure but I'm beating Justin too, and I'm doing it in a dress."
"Remind me never to play sports with you again."
She nodded. "Will do, but you need to finish out the game first." The blonde winked and tossed Justin the ball, who tried to throw it to his mom three times, knowing I was no use with Lisa guarding me. He did not succeed. When Lisa's team was on offense again, I put more effort into guarding Lisa and succeeded for the most part. On his last attempt, Rocky threw the ball far, making me use every ounce of speed I had in my body to catch up with Lisa.
I finally did, wrapping my arms around her waist from behind and pulling her towards me, preventing her from catching the ball. We fell back, her on top of me, and all I could think about was the fact that my hands were on her body, whether it was clothed or not, and her scent was nearly strangling me. She laughed, pulling away from me. "This is a game of touch, Jen! Two hands! You don't tackle me to the ground!"
I smirked, shrugging and brushing myself off. "They should make that more self-explanatory."
She shook her head, chuckling. "It is self-explanatory, I just don't think you and sports agree with each other."
"We don't. But I got to touch you, so I'm not complaining."
Lisa's head turned rather quickly. She looked down at me, eyeing me with a look I couldn't place. We stared at each other for a while, like the other six people had completely disappeared, until a voice that even I recognized broke us out of our trance. "What'd I miss?"
It was Liam.
"The memo that you weren't invited," Lisa hardly mumbled. The gloss over her beautiful pools of green disappeared so that I could no longer feel the happiness radiating from her. What I felt instead was a mix of both anger and anxiety. She was already shifting on her toes; the blonde was nervous.
"Hey Uncle Liam," Ark smiled, completely oblivious the amount of now obvious tension in the backyard. I looked around, but June seemed to be the only person other than me worried for what might happen.
Liam hadn't yet looked in Lisa and I's direction. He looked at his niece and smiled. "Happy Thanksgiving bella." Ark grinned and hugged him as I wondered why he'd greeted her like that. When he pulled back, his eyes connected with Lisa and he froze. After a moment, he looked at his dad. "You said she wasn't going to be here."
I watched Lisa's eyebrows pull together. "What? Dad, you knew I was coming. Why was I told that he wasn't going to be here?"
Their dad looked between the two anxiously. Liam spoke, narrowing his eyes. "What's going on?"
Lisa's father sighed, rubbing his neck, before he Jenme serious. "Look, I'm sick of this. You two are brother and sister and it's about damn time you start acting like it. Neither of you are leaving here today until you sort out your problems, and I'm going to make sure of that."
Liam scoffed and turned away immediately. "Sorry Arabelle, but I have to go."
His dad turned to Ashley's husband, "Please, help me out June."
June ran in front of Liam, pressing on his chest. "Come on dude, you need to stay and sort through your shit with Lisa. It's getting old, and I know you think it's her fault, but you need to move the hell on, if not for the sake of your sister who already feels bad enough, yourself, and your dad, then for the sake my wife and daughter."
"You have nothing to do with this June. Get out of my god damn way."
I didn't know what to do with myself. I felt awkward being here because I was in no way a part of their family, but I couldn't bring myself to go anywhere. I watched Lisa, who stood like a statue watching her brother and in-law bicker back and forth, completely frozen.
"I have everything to do with it when my daughter's uncle and aunt can't even be in the same room without freaking out on each other or getting mad and storming out. Seriously, your dad's right, this needs to stop, and it's going to stop today."
"Whatever," Liam scoffed. "I'll stay for dinner. No later."
"We're honored," Lisa muttered, sighing. My presence seemed to fly right out the window. Liam shoved his hands in his pockets and walked toward Lisa as everyone else began to walk inside, clearly not wanting anything to do with this.
"Let's just get through this dinner," Liam spoke in Lisa's direction, the fire in his eyes obvious to me.
"Why the hell are you telling me? I'm not the one that starts shit."
"Well you have no reason to. I do. I can hardly stand to look at your face."
"Just stop, okay? We don't need to do this right now, especially not in front of her."
Liam's eyes flickered over to me, and I awkwardly shuffled in the opposite direction. He narrowed his eyes at me and I froze. "Who the hell is that?"
Lisa seemed like she was going to speak, but she stopped herself, apparently not knowing what to say. Finally, she answered him. "It really doesn't matter to you."
Liam stared at me for a while, before turning back to her. "Are you fucking kidding me? You brought some girl to Thanksgiving? This shit is the reason we're in this mess!"
Lisa looked between the two of us and her voice hardened. "She is not some girl, and mom didn't die because I'm bisexual Liam. That's fucking ridiculous."
"Is it? Say that to me again, Lisa. Seriously, do it."
"I can only apologize for what happened so many times Liam. I feel like absolute shit and all you ever do is make that worse. But I'm not going to apologize for being myself, and I'm certainly not going to apologize for being with someone who makes me happy. Not to mom, and definitely not to you."
Her dark eyes met mine and she moved away from Liam, walking towards me and the house. "Walk, Jen."
I immediately started toward the house. Lisa wasn't someone I wanted to say no to, especially not when she was in one of the moods that Liam put her in. We made it inside without Liam's voice stopping us, but all I could think about was the last thing she said. Was she talking about me, or about women in general? And what the hell did that have anything to do with her mom?
Lisa looked at me. "Please, I'm begging you, just don't ask."
I nodded my head but stayed silent. The food during dinner was amazing, but the whole thing was probably the most uncomfortable thing I'd ever been a part of, and that was saying a lot. Eventually everyone was finished, and I helped Ashley with the dishes, desperately wanting to escape the tension of the dining room.
I spoke as she washed and I put the dishes in the dishwasher. "Is it this uncomfortable every time Lisa and Liam are together?"
"Since our mom passed, yeah," Ashley sighed. "It used to be worse than this though, surprisingly enough."
I nodded. "I believe it."
We spent the next few minutes in silence. Together we walked back into the living room to find Liam at the door, shrugging on his jacket, in the middle of another argument with Lisa. Ashley groaned.
"—but I can't move on Lisa. Look," he said, his features softening. It seemed like June had taken Ark elsewhere, and Liam's next few comments made me realize why. "I'm fucking trying, okay? I know it doesn't seem like it, but it's the truth. You're my big sister, and believe me, I love you, but every time I look at you I see mom's face, and I can't do anything about that. I know you feel like shit, but it is your fault, you know that."
"That doesn't mean you have to make me feel worse! I can't go back and change what happened, Liam!"
"I know you can't. And I know I'm an ass for making you feel worse about it, but I can't help it. I was closer with mom than you and Ashley were, and I know you loved her more than anything, but it's so much different for me. Every time I see you I think about what happened and it's fucking horrible. I really gotta go," he sighed. "I'm sorry. I want to stop blaming you, for you and for dad, but if you'd been paying attention that night, she'd still be alive, and that's something I just can't stop thinking about."
With that, he sighed heavily and pulled the door open. "See you...." he trailed off. "Whenever."
He left the house, and I turned my head to see Lisa struggling to conceal her emotions like she normally had no trouble doing. She glanced at me, which only seemed to make whatever was going on in her head worse, because she turned and practically ran out the back door.
"Well shit," I muttered, looking at Ashley. She turned to her dad. "Are you happy now Dad? Lisa feels guilty enough without Liam constantly reminding her of what she did."
Her dad just looked down. June's parents and brothers stood up, all looking extremely uncomfortable. "We're going to go, Ash," Justin spoke. "The food was awesome. Thanks."
With that, the four of them left, leaving Ashley, her dad, and I alone in the living room. She sunk into the couch, looking exhausted. "I wish you knew Jen. There's got to be someone besides June and I able to see how ridiculous Liam is being.
Her dad spoke. "He's just hurt, Ashley. He lost his mother."
"Yeah so did I, and so did Lisa."
"I know. God I feel too old for all of this. I'm sorry I ruined the night Ash, you were right not to invite him. I'm going to go."
Ashley barely mumbled an answer and her dad left. I really wanted to know how Lisa was doing, but I didn't want her to get upset with me for going out and trying to talk to her. I looked at Ashley. "On a scale of one to ten, how bad of an idea do you think it would be for me to go see how Lisa's doing?"
She shook her head. "At least an eight."
I shrugged. "I can live with that." I stood up and she got up too. "I'm not going to stop you from going out there, but take a jacket. It's freezing."
I took the jacket she held out to me and put it on, walking out the back door to find Lisa sitting on the step, hunched over. I sat down next to her and she looked over at me, wiping her eyes. "Go back inside, Jen, it's cold."
I shook my head, taking the jacket off and resting it over her shoulders. "I know. You're shivering."
She said nothing, only looked away from me as she continued trying to wipe the tears from her eyes. I placed my hand on her thigh and guided her face towards mine until she was looking at me. her voice was fragile when she spoke. "Jen..."
"We don't have to talk about it," I whispered. "I just... wanna be here for you like... you were for me."
She closed her eyes and pressed her cheek against my hand. "I want to tell you, I just..."
"I know, it's hard." I pulled her into a hug and instantly felt her reciprocate, which felt amazing. I felt like with every passing day she was becoming more accepting of our situation. I had already accepted that my feelings for her weren't going to go away, but I knew she needed more time and that was okay with me as long as we were continuing to move forward. "It's gonna be okay Lisa."
She pulled back and just shook her head. We stayed silent after that, both of us staring out into the darkness in Ashley's backyard. I wasn't going to bring up her mom, but I wanted to talk with her because I figured it might release some endorphins and get her to loosen up a little. "Is Ark's full name Arabelle or Arabella?"
She glanced at me strangely. "Uh, Arabelle, why?"
"Why'd Liam say Happy Thanksgiving bella then?"
"Oh," she answered, looking down. "He wasn't using her name. It's Italian for beautiful."
"Are you Italian?"
She sighed. "Yes, my mom was Italian." She met my eyes and continued. "When we were younger, she tried to get Ashley, Liam, and I to learn the language but none of us wanted to. When she passed, Liam started to learn it. I doubt he's very fluent, but I guess trying is his way of connecting with my mom even though she isn't alive anymore."
Lisa looked over at me, the emotion on her face raw, as if she didn't want to hide it. Her bottom lip trembled, and I wasn't sure if it was because she was cold or because she wanted to cry. "Jen, please," she shook her head, "Get my mind off things. Talk to me. I don't care what about, I just need to stop thinking about Liam.. and.. my mom."
That request I really couldn't have anticipated. I stuttered, "Um.. okay... Uh.." I shifted on the step, racking my brain for something, anything, to talk about, but in the moment, after everything that had just happened, all I could think about was Liam. I finally thought of something.
"So.... you're bisexual now? You told me you don't label yourself."
She rolled her eyes. "This is the conversation you choose to distract me with?"
I smiled. "What? I'm curious."
"Well," she sighed, "I generally don't label myself because most lesbians seem to be harsh critics of women like me, like, we're being greedy by choosing both genders, which really isn't how that works, but it is what it is. Anyway.. I am bisexual, and it is a real thing, in case you were wondering."
"I didn't realize that was a thing, that lesbians are critics of bisexuals?"
She shook her head. "Well not all of them, obviously. But I got a lot of shit for it in college."
"So you've dated men then?"
She stared at me but smirked after a while. "Yes."
"Oh come on, you're not just gunna leave it at that, are you?"
"You know when I said distract me, I didn't exactly mean ask me about my dating history."
"First thing that came to mind," I answered, smiling. "Come on."
She sighed. "I had a boyfriend in high school until I graduated and we split... and then I had a girlfriend in my first year of college. A little while after we broke up, I started dating a man that... I loved. A lot. But it didn't work out. And... then I had a girlfriend."
"What happened?"
She smiled a little, but it was sad. "I was still in love with the man."
"You broke up with all of them?"
The blonde eyed me. "Three of them. The man I loved broke up with me."
"Oh... that.. really stinks."
She tucked her hair behind her ear. "Yeah, I was crushed."
I glanced at her. "Are you still.. uh.."
"No Jen," she said, smirking slightly. "That was almost six years ago."
"Well, excuse me, I didn't realize that was a stupid question. I wouldn't know, but I heard it's not easy to get over a first love."
She shook her head. "It's not. I was a wreck for at least a year. But I forced myself to move on." She glanced at me curiously. "You've really never been in a relationship? Just... sex?"
I was a little surprised by the bluntness of her question, but answered her anyway. "I really never have. It's just easier not to get that involved with anyone. Clearly that hasn't worked with you, but even with Cara, I can't bring myself to tell her anything important about me and it's hard to be in a relationship with someone when you feel like you can't talk to them. I don't know how I was able to tell you."
"Maybe because I knew something had to have happened and I still didn't push you."
I turned my head to meet her eyes. "Yeah, maybe. Even if it weren't for my past and, well, my present, I've only ever wanted to be in a relationship with one person and she was straight, so that kinda sucked. It also... uh, wouldn't have worked out in the end, even if she did like me."
"Why?"
I shook my head. "I don't want to talk about it."
"I'm surprised we're able to actually have a conversation when neither of us ever want to talk about anything."
I laughed, looking at her. "Yeah, it's pretty damn surprising."
She smiled. "Quick, my distraction's dying down, I need another one of your amazing conversation starters."
I smiled too. "I'm all out. I can't think of anything."
"You know, I haven't asked you, what do you want to do when your senior year is over?"
I groaned. "Ugh, please don't even ask me that question. What do I want to do or what will I actually end up doing? I don't have any money Lisa. I can't go to college without Charles's help, and I don't want his fucking help. Not that he'd even give me money after I move out of his house."
She looked at me. "Student loans?"
I shrugged. "I guess I could always try, but I don't really know how that works and I could also be denied, I think. Plus I don't have any idea what I want to do."
"You know, I could help you, with that kind of stuff. I've already been to college, I know how it works.. and, if you need.. I have some money saved up—"
"No, Lisa, you are not giving me money. I've already spent an insane amount of your money through the food I've eaten. Besides, don't you have student loans to pay off? You're a teacher, you said yourself you barely make anything."
"I don't, but my dad made an account for my college fund when I was a baby and I had more than enough money to get through four years of college. I still have a good amount left over that I could give—"
"I'm not taking it."
She rolled her eyes. "Well if you should figure out what you want to do, I want you to know that I'm here to help you get there."
I smiled. "Thank you, that means a lot to me."
She nodded. "You have no idea what you might want to do? What about art?"
I shrugged. "I really can't see myself painting or drawing all day long. It's more of something I like to do for a little while to kill time and clear my head, but not for a living, I don't think." I paused, and then spoke, smirking. "Hey you know what, I could become one of those criminal sketch artists and you could become a forensic scientist like you've always wanted to be, and we could be like a law enforcement duo."
She smiled but seemed to look away, as if bothered by something. "There you go. I um, I hate to spoil your awesome idea, but I don't think I'm switching professions anytime soon."
I shot her a puzzled look. "I don't get it. You have a biology degree, why didn't you do what you actually wanted to?"
She sighed. "I did, Jen. After I graduated with my bachelors, I investigated crime scenes and worked in a lab for about a year and a half. It was mostly just for experience, I usually watched my co-worker do his thing and learned from it, but it was everything I'd wanted and more. I... uh, I left, though, and got my teaching certificate about a month after."
I shook my head at her. "But why? I don't understand."
She looked at me but her features had hardened again, and I internally cursed. What had I said that was so wrong? I hadn't said anything about her mom, had I? "Lisa—"
"Jen, I can't, I can't talk about this. It's too difficult. Now all I can think about is my mom and I know you're confused but I'm overwhelmed. I just can't."
She stood from the step and disappeared inside the house, leaving me to wonder what the hell I said wrong.
After Thanksgiving, Lisa was different again. She wasn't closed off per se, or angry, or upset, she was just... odd. Her movements seemed strange, like she didn't know how to act around me, and it confused me to no end. I didn't want to ask her about it again because I had a feeling it would only make her run away on me.
Cara was texting me more often now, and though I knew she was flirting with me, I didn't flirt back and I didn't entirely shut her down either. I liked Lisa, a lot, and I couldn't lie about that but she obviously didn't trust me enough to let me in like I had with her, and that hurt a little bit. I knew the chances of anything actually happening between us were ridiculously slim, which is why I was still talking to Cara. I could admit, she was pretty damn cool too, but I knew she didn't make me feel the same way, especially not when we kissed.
Work was hard to get through with so much on my mind, but nine o' clock finally rolled around that Friday night and I headed back to Lisa's apartment. I expected her to either be putting Ark to bed, who had been dropped off by Ashley this afternoon, or in her bedroom reading. I noticed that the books in her apartment were all mystery and a few law books, which I found interesting because I knew she was truly interested in the field she apparently already worked in. I just couldn't understand why she would quit when she enjoyed it so much.
The walk seemed just as long as work was, but I finally made it to her building and started up the steps. I expected the hallway to be empty but I heard noises on my way up, and what I saw when I reached the first floor put my heart in my throat almost immediately.
Her front door was open, and Charles was in the hallway, pressing Lisa against her door with his hands wrapped around her neck.