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“Favorite,” she said, nodding. “I noticed you make them every weekend. I doubt they are as good as yours, but I tried.” She blushed slightly as she raised her head, and we locked eyes. “I owe you the biggest apology for how I acted last night. I normally don’t drink,” she softly spoke, embarrassed and ashamed of herself.
“It’s okay,” I replied. “I’m more concerned about you being okay.”
She smiled the most broken grin I’d ever witnessed in my life. “I’m okay,” she lied. She turned to walk away, and I called after her.
I gestured toward the tray of food as she followed my stare. “There’s enough for two.”
Her full lips parted, and she narrowed her eyes. “You want me to stay?”
“Please. I mean, if you want.”
Please stay.
I gestured toward the tray once more. “As I said, there’s enough for two.”
Her saddened eyes glistened a little with light as she took in a sharp breath.
Then she walked past me, entering the room. She took a seat on the left side of the bed, and I sat on the right, placing the food right between the both of us.
We ate in silence for a while before she cleared her throat and said, “I need to talk to Jeff today. He’s been calling me nonstop, but I haven’t answered. I’m sure Kelsey told him that I knew what was going on.”
“I’m sorry you have to deal with this.”
“Don’t be. I was an idiot. There were so many red flags that I chose to ignore.”
“No. You were taught at a young age that red flags weren’t red. It’s not your fault for not seeing them. Speaking of… why were your stepmothers such monsters to you?”
“I don’t really know. Growing up, I looked up to them. After losing my mom, I think I secretly hoped I would grow close to them. Not for them to replace my mom or anything, but because I just would’ve loved to have another woman in my life to confide in. It wasn’t that at all, though. They put up with me because of Kevin, that’s all.”
“They sound awful. I can state for a fact that Rosalina is, but I’m sure I’ll think the same of the other two.”
“Yes. But still, I feel bad for them.”
I laughed. “You can’t feel bad for the villains.”
“Of course, you can. That’s what makes us different than them.”
“It doesn’t change who they are.”
“Maybe you’re right.” She narrowed her eyes as she poked at the pancakes. “I’m scared that I’ll never be able to tell the difference between what’s a trauma response for me or not.”
“You can do it.”
“How do you know?”
“Because you’re you, and you can do anything.” That seemed like a line from a corny rom-com movie, but she could. “You just need to find the right people to help you. If needed, I’ll be your person. You can come to me when you feel overwhelmed or confused about anything.”
Her face reddened as if she were embarrassed by what I’d offered. “No, Damian. I can’t ask you to do that for me.”
“I want to.”
“Why?”
“Because I like you.” She laughed, baffled by my compliment. I arched an eyebrow. “Why is that funny?”
“Because it doesn’t make sense. You don’t like me.”
“Yes, Stella, I do.”
