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“I don’t know. I wish I did.”
In his words, the sounds laced with sympathy and regret, I knew he was being honest. And that’s the part that hurt him the most.
His expression returned back to normal as he glanced to Caius, and then back to me. His eyes scanned over my dress briefly, and I watched as he squeezed his eyes shut in annoyance. “You really shouldn’t be here, Celeste.”
“I’m fine,” I bit out. If there’s one thing I hate most, it’s being babied. I can take care of myself, and I don’t need anyone else making or judging my decisions.
“Your dad would kill me if he knew.”
I paused. “Does he know about all this, too?”
Uncle Lucas looked down to the ground, and his hand moved up to the back of his neck, rubbing the skin gently. There was an awkward silence between us, and I let it settle before asking again.
“Uncle Lucas, does he know?”
He shook his head. “No. Russ only told me.”
Oh, shit.Now I’m caught in the middle of a family secret that only Uncle Lucas and I know, and the weight of my parents not knowing is now on my shoulders. And if Uncle Lucasdoesdecide to be buried here when the time comes, my dad is probably going to want to be here, too. If not, he’s definitely going to at least look into it. And if he looks into it, he’ll figure the rest out.
“Let me take you home,” Uncle Lucas suggested, reaching for me once more, but I avoided him again.
“No. My car is here. I can drive myself.”
His eyes glanced back to Caius once again, who still hadn’t moved from the spot behind me.
I cleared my throat in an attempt to get his attention back on me. “I’ll go if you go.”
Uncle Lucas hesitated for a moment as he weighed his options, but then nodded. “Yeah, alright.”
I accepted my fate and acknowledged the fact that this was the end of my night. Before stepping away to leave, I managed to turn and look over my shoulder slightly. Caius was there, his hands in his pockets, watching me. Thank God I already gave him a kiss goodbye, because there was no way I was about to do it now in front of my uncle.
But in that moment, he leaned down to my ear, his lips only a fraction of an inch away from my skin.
“This isn’t over, Celeste.”
His voice ripped through my insides, heating every morsel of my being in a fire for him.
He knew I would be back.
He knew this night was only the beginning.
Celeste
Hollowed choruses rang through the massive, ancient cathedral as the congregation sang the hymns. The echoed voices bounced off the walls, creating a reverb in the sanctuary. It was a beautiful sound, but my mind refused to focus.
How can we all sing, pray, and listen to topics about the afterlife when some of us don’t plan on being there? Why even bother?
There are people that sing about God and Heaven, yet don’t believe it’s the path for them. They would rather sign themselves away to Purgatory for the rest of time.
Although, I have no idea if anyone from the party is here now. I didn’t get a look at anyone’s face besides Uncle Lucas, and he never goes to mass.
But my Uncle Russ always went to mass with us every Sunday. Apparently, it didn’t matter to him.
To my left, my parents stood together, holding and sharing a hymnal as they sang together. To my right, Serena cradled Nolan, swaying and bouncing him in an attempt to get him to calm down. He was fussy, and I would be, too, if I had to sit through Catholic Mass with my teeth cutting through my gums. I reached over and grabbed his hand, my pointer finger fitting perfectly in his little palm, and he instinctively held on. I gave him a big, cheesy smile, and it seemed to help for a bit.
That is, until the organ stopped playing, and the room went quiet.
Nolan began to fuss again, and Serena looked to me, her dark hair up in a bun and her brown eyes tired.
