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What? How? We rode together.
"Which brings me to an entirely different topic. How long have you been seeing this girl?"
Fuck me in the ass.
He knows. I wanted to tell them; Piper begged me not to. She didn't want them to know until after her internship was over. So ... now, I guess.
"What?"
"You mother was kind enough to offer her a ride home when she broke down in tears after her presentation. She tried to call an Uber, but you know your mom. She insisted on driving her. And do you know where she took her? Your apartment. To get her car."
Well, the cat’s out of the bag now.
Falling back into my chair, I scrub my hands over my face and prepare for the lecture I know is coming.
"Do you know what else?" he continues. "She tried to deny that you two were seeing each other, said you were just friends, that you'd known each other for years. That didn't sit well with your mom, of course. So you know what she did after she dropped her off?"
Of course I do. Because if nothing else, my mother cares about me, which also means she's nosey as hell.
"She let herself into your apartment."
"And she talked to Brady."
"She sure did. I really do like that guy, by the way." My dad gives me a thumbs-up and big smile as he says it.
"You only like him because he's afraid of Mom and can't lie to her worth shit."
"That's part of it. I like him because he cares about you. I doubt he told your mom everything, but he did tell her that you're in love with Piper. That whatever happened had to have been this morning before you came in. And that it would be the first fight you two have had since getting together, which was only a month ago. He also said—"
"Dad, I don't need a play by play. I know how forthcoming Brady is with knowledge."
"He also said," my father continues, clearing his throat, "that she loves you. That you two are perfect for each other. That you've both been lying to yourselves for years. And that you've been keeping your relationship a secret from everyone, not just us."
"Our group of friends, they're..." What's the word I'm looking for?
Tight? Yeah, but that's not it.
Invested? Kind of.
Nosey as fuck? Of course, but it's more than that.
"Complicated," he offers. I nod, but that's still not the way I would describe us.
We're committed to each other. In a way most friends aren't. It's like we're all ride-or-die. No one person is more important than the next. We all have equal footing. And when things change, when relationships change, the balance is tilted.
"Listen. I have no idea what you two are hiding, from who, or why, but I do know this. Whatever you fought about today isn't worth throwing away what you have. Whether it's been a month, a year, or a decade. Your mom and I still fight, all the time. But we promised each other a long time ago to never go to bed angry. To always resolve our issues at the end of the day and start fresh the next. It's hard, but it can be done. You just have to talk to each other."
I let my father's words sink in for a minute. A million questions are running through my mind, and I'm about to speak up when my mom walks in the door, hand on her hips, scowl on her face. Every question flutters away as I try to make myself as small as possible in my chair.
Can I fit under my desk?
"You, young man, are an idiot. You owe Piper an apology. We raised you better than this. You don't treat women the way you treated her today. You never walk away. Ever."
Her voice is raised. She's not shouting, but my mom doesn't have to shout to scare the living shit out of you. Nope. The look on her face is enough to do that.
"I'm sorry."
"I'm not the one you need to apologize to, Julian James."
