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My mom’s face lights up, while Curt’s forehead wrinkles in apprehension, clearly knowing his son as well as I do.
“Take a seat then. Just give me a few minutes to finish up with your father’s hair first.”
“Take as long as you need. I’m not going anywhere.” Noah throws her another one of his ominous smiles, making me just as worried with what he’s got up his sleeve as his father is.
Noah starts to walk to a side bench, bypassing me without so much as a hello my way, when I remember why I got up from my seat in the first place.
“What are you doing?” he suddenly asks me, his tone no longer upbeat with mischief when he sees me picking up his father’s sweater to put on.
“I’m cold,” I explain, fully committing to the lie.
But just as the explanation has left my lips, Noah takes off his leather jacket and throws it at me.
“Put that on.”
Since I feel our parents’ curious stare on us, I quickly put on his jacket and walk back to the bench swing, acting as if this is no big deal. As if Noah lending me one of his most prized possessions holds no significance whatsoever.
Nothing to see here, people.
Nope.
Nothing at all.
The fist around my heart tightens as I shove my hands into the jacket’s pockets, feeling warm all over. It takes everything in me not to lower my nose to the lapel just to relish in his scent.
And I calledhimpathetic.
Sigh.
Noah starts scrolling through his phone, while I watch my mom continue on with her task of cutting her husband’s hair. Whatever tension ensued with Noah’s arrival is now forgotten as both of them start to tease each other, back to their love bubble. Every once in a while, my mother giggles like a lovesick schoolgirl, while Curt chuckles softly, his hands always finding excuses to touch her.
Between being enveloped with the heat of Noah’s jacket and watching my mother’s happiness in full display, my own heart pitter-patters, wondering if that type of love will ever be in the cards for me. But just as I think this, my heart dips into my stomach when my eyes land on the boy sitting across from me.
Like me, Noah is also mesmerized by our parents.
But while their love gives me a sliver of hope for what life has in store for me in the love department, Noah’s cold expression says he feels something different completely.
Resentment.
Pure and unadulterated resentment of their happiness.
My frown is immediate, and all the blissful warmth I had been momentarily spoiled with morphs into something cold and ugly, chilling me to the bone.
“There,” my mom says gleefully, satisfied with her handywork. “Now you look like the man I fell in love with.”
“Glad to hear it. I wouldn’t want to be anyone else.” Curt chuckles, getting up from his seat and placing a tender kiss to her lips.
My mother’s cheeks turn crimson at the small display of affection.
“You’re up, Noah,” my mother says, turning to Noah with a genuine smile once she’s collected herself, but her grin quickly falls to the floor when she sees the same disgusted look on Noah’s face that I do.
She opens her mouth to say something to him, but then is interrupted when her phone decides to ring. My mother is quick to answer the call, making sure to divert her attention off of Noah and stare into the distance, since it’s obvious his glower is unsettling her. When she hangs up the phone, there is a look of relief on her face.
“I’m so sorry, Noah. That was Mrs. Henderson. Seems like Mr. Henderson had a bad fall off their roof and she wants me to come over to have a quick look at him to see if it warrants him going to the hospital.”
“Damn it. I bet the old fool was trying to clean his gutters without me,” Curt adds, shaking his head in dismay. “I’ll drive you. While you check up on him, I’ll clean the gutters, so he’s not tempted to do it by himself again.”
Curt grabs his sweater and pulls it over his head before going inside the house to grab his car keys. But as my mother waits for his return, she stares at me and Noah in a way that I’m not exactly comfortable with.
