CHAPTER 30: CONCEAL
SHANE'S POINT OF VIEW
Dad and I were up early to make breakfast. This was his first step toward making things right with Mom.
"You really will do anything to get them back together, won't you," Sister Lydia whispered beside me as we arranged the plates on the dining table.
"Of course, Sister."
I had just set down the fish fillet with marinade—Dad's specialty—when Mom came downstairs.
"Go on, Shane. I'll step outside so you three have some privacy." Sister Lydia winked at me before slipping out.
"Mom, come eat."
"Wow, did you make all of this?"
"Dad helped."
They looked at each other for a brief moment before both quickly looked away. If this wasn't the definition of awkward, I didn't know what was.
"Y-your daughter woke up early to prepare this for you," Dad said.
We sat together. While we ate, I noticed them stealing glances at each other across the table in perfect alternation. Glance—look away—glance—look away. My eyes were practically spinning.
"This fish fillet is incredible. The marinade is perfectly balanced and the cooking is exactly right," Mom praised, chewing slowly and deliberately then reaching over to add another piece to her plate.
I caught Dad's eyes and gave him a discreet nod that said success. He held back a smile.
"Shane, did you make this?"
I nearly choked. She had apparently forgotten this was Dad's signature dish. I took a quick sip of water and cleared my throat. "Mom, Dad made that. It's his specialty. Amazing, isn't it?"
The look on Mom's face was priceless. She moved to put it back, but Dad spoke before she could. "Just eat it. Don't be like that."
"Exactly, Mom. You said yourself it was delicious. Why put it back?" I added.
Dad and I exchanged a quiet high-five when Mom's expression curdled into a reluctant frown. Then all three of us burst out laughing when she reached over and flicked both our foreheads.
I had missed this. Just like the old times. For the first time in so long, we were laughing together. I only hoped nothing would ruin—
"Shane!"
My fork and knife clattered against the plate. The laughter cut off completely.
"Shane! Come out! We need to talk! Please!"
I could feel Mom and Dad both looking at me.
"Shane," they called, nearly in unison.
I lifted my face and looked at them. I smiled through the tears that had already started to fall.
"Dear, what's going on?" Mom reached over and took my left hand, her voice full of concern.
"Did that guy hurt you?" Dad's hands were pressed flat on the table, fists curling slowly.
"Please don't worry." I wiped my face carefully with trembling hands. "I just don't want to talk to him right now."
Dad pushed back his chair and stood up. "Leave it to me."
~*~
ANDREI'S POINT OF VIEW
I had been caught completely off guard when someone kissed me. When I looked up, it was Christie. A colleague and someone I considered a friend but why she did that?
"Hi, My Sweet Doctor." Her smile stretched wide as she turned toward Shane. She greeted her too. "Oh, hi to you too. Nice to meet you. I'm his girlfriend, by the way."
My stomach dropped when I saw Shane go quiet. This is bad.
"Sh-Shane... it's not what you think—" I tried to say something but lost the words when she smiled as well.
"Oh, hello." She shook Christie's hand without missing a beat. "I'm Attorney Shane Smith. I'm one of your boyfriend's friends."
Friends. She said friends. I felt it somewhere deep... the disappointment... the ache of it. She should be angry. Why is she smiling like that?
She finished the last of her coffee, stood, and looked at me. That same calm smile. "Thanks for the coffee, Doctor Williams." Then at Christie. "I have to go. Enjoy your date, Miss."
I couldn't find the strength to go after her and explain. I just watched her walk away until she was gone.
Why, Shane? Is it still Charles? After everything, is there still no room for me?
"She's too composed for someone who just found out something like this. Either she's very good at hiding what she feels..." Christie's voice broke through the silence beside me. "...or she doesn't feel anything for you to begin with. What do you think?"
Something sharp went through my chest at those words. I hope it's the former. I really hope.
I turned to Christie, jaw tight. "Why did you do that? You're my friend, and you pulled that."
Instead of flinching, she smiled wider. "Exactly because I'm your friend."
"That's a terrible excuse."
"Andrei, I did it to see how she'd react. To help you figure out what she actually feels. But based on what I just saw..." She trailed off. "She's really good at keeping herself locked up."
"Damn it." I hit the table hard enough to startle her and every nearby customer. "That may have been your version of helping, but you just made everything worse." I left without another word, because I didn't trust what else I might say if I stayed.
I wanted to go straight to Shane's house and explain everything but an urgent call came in from a colleague at the hospital. A patient had gone into a seizure, and he needed me back immediately. The situation was serious.
I pressed my eyes shut and exhaled slowly.
Not now.
~*~
I was at the hospital through the night, monitoring the patient closely. By the time I left, it was already morning.
Shane still hadn't replied to any of my messages. I had called multiple times, but her phone was off every time. I thought about reaching out to Sister Lydia or her mother but I couldn't bring myself to explain what had happened without shame, and besides, it was my mess to fix. They also had enough going on with their own family situation.
I decided to stop at a café on the corner before going to Shane's house. The exhaustion was catching up with me fast.
As I drove, I couldn't stop the nerves building in my chest. I kept turning over the words... how to explain what happened when I would finally face her.
Funny. I did nothing wrong, and yet it feels exactly like I did.