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“Hey, Bug?” I try again.
More silence.
James hits my shoulder. “She’ll come around. Don’t worry; she won’t hate you forever.” He chuckles. If only he knew.
Well, damn. My fucking heart hurts.
Chapter Thirteen
SKY
A YEAR LATER
I barely saw Uncle Davey over the next few months. I felt so down and worried that I was the one that pushed him to move out. He won’t talk to me. He would avoid me whenever he came over and did everything he could to not be alone with me. It was like I imagined the whole thing, and maybe I did. Fuck, did I? Maybe I shouldn’t have told him the truth about my feelings that night. I’ve known exactly what I wanted for a long time. And I’ve been waiting for him.
* * *
My seventeenth birthday was last week. This weekend, the party is super chill, with just a few friends, my parents, and Uncle Davey.
It starts when we were playing cards; Slapjack, of course. Three of my friends are at the table with me. I just dealt out the cards, and we played gone the first round. Slapjack is still my favorite game, no matter what anyone says. My parents are watching a game on the TV in the living room. Uncle Davey is in the kitchen making my favorite Peach Bellini drink — mocktail because of my parents.
My friends turn pretty rowdy. It’s all just for fun. They throw ‘yo momma’ insults back and forth. One of them, Olivia, beats me in that last round holding the most cards. Elliott has a small pile of cards, with Chloe setting down her last card. With four people, we had to add another deck.
“Yo momma is dumb; she went to the eye doctor to get an iPhone.” Elliott played his last card, and he’s out.
My mom hollers from the living room, “Yo momma is so dumb, she got hit by a parked car.”
“Ayeee!” Olivia yells as she puts down a Jack.
My hand hits the table a split second too late. “Son of a bitch!”
“Sky, watch your language,” Dad warns me.
“Yeah, such a dirty mouth,” Uncle Davey yells, and Chloe and Elliott burst into laughter. Olivia’s too busy gathering up her giant stack of cards to add to her pile. “Bug, come get your drinks.”
I turn to Chloe. “Watch her. She’s stealing cards.” I wink at Olivia and head into the kitchen.
“Thank you, Uncle Davey.” I grab the glasses and walk back to the table before excusing myself quickly.
The straws were waiting for me when I came back into the kitchen. I walk around the counter and wrap my arms around Uncle Davey’s back. “You’re awesome; thank you for making the drinks.”
“You’re welcome, Bug.” He pats my arm.
I grab the straws and start to leave, but pause and turn to look over my shoulder. “Oh, and David? I may have a dirty mouth, but I can do amazing things with it.” I wink before I walk back into the dining room.
“A toast.” Olivia lifts her glass and clinks it with ours when I set everything down. “To the birthday girl. You’re one of the best friends I could ever have. May we all have the best year, but mostly me.” Everyone laughs, and we toast.
The rest of the night plays out fairly smoothly. Uncle Davey and Dad go outside on the porch with their drinks after the party winds down. Mom curls up on the couch with a book, just on the other side of me. It’s a great way to end the night.
* * *
My eyes open the next morning, and I blink a few times. I want to forget what happened last night before Uncle Davey left. Sighing, I glance at the clock on the nightstand beside me — 10:06 am. I really must have been tired to sleep that long.
The pang of rejection hits me as I roll over. How could I have been so stupid?
Chapter Fourteen
DAVID
