Elias Carnell
“Hello?”
Walking into my mom’s house, I don’t see her or Hilda, so she must be out back. She invited me over for lunch this morning. We haven’t had lunch, just her and I, in a while. Probably mostly my fault since I’ve tried to avoid this house like the plague.
I’d imagine it’s pretty quiet around here, having had Zeke leave for Miami two days ago.
At the thought of Zeke, the memory of him kissing me outside his work before his flight flashes in my mind. The way his face lit up when he saw me. The way he clung to me when he kissed me. And that kiss… That kiss was unlike any other kiss I’ve ever had. It was tumultuous and tender all at the same time.
I didn’t plan on showing up at his office that night. Mom had told me about Elena, and before I knew it, I was pulling up his contact, sending a text. He may not have told me too much about his upbringing and his family, but one thing I do know is Elena means the world to him. They’re incredibly close.
Zeke may not express emotions very well—or hardly at all—but I know, even behind that brick wall surrounding his heart, he’s hurting. And as much as I shouldn’t, I can’t help but want to be there for him. Offer him any sort of solace I can.
Stepping out back, I spot Mom right away. She’s grilling something, I just don’t know what.
“Hi, Ma,” I say, closing the distance between us.
Her eyes lift to meet mine, a grin pulling on her lips that doesn’t quite meet her eyes. “Hi, honey. I didn’t hear you come in.”
“Well, yeah.” I laugh. “You’re out here, so that makes sense.” Nodding my chin behind her, I ask “What’re you making?”
“Just some burgers. Thought we could have those and some chips for lunch. I cut up some fresh watermelon too.” She returns her attention to the grill. “It should be done in a few minutes.”
“Sounds good. Anything I can do to help?”
“Uh, yeah, actually.” She turns again. “Can you go grab the fixins in the kitchen? There’s a tray covered in foil in the fridge with the cheese and the toppings, and the watermelon is in the fridge too. Red tub. And the chips.”
“Sure thing.”
Once I grab the shit in the kitchen, I also snatch a couple of beers for us from the fridge too, before heading back out. I hand her the cheese, then bring everything else over to the picnic table, setting everything up for us.
“Where’s Hilda?” I ask once I’m done.
“She’s not feeling well today, so she’s probably lying down.”
Mom sets the tray of burgers down in front of us as she sits, and we both dig in, fixing our burgers, grabbing some chips, opening our drinks. We eat in silence for a while, until I can’t not ask any longer.
“Have you heard from Zeke?” I haven’t. I know I told him he could text or call me if he needed to, but I don’t actually expect him to. He’s probably got a lot going on. Plus, aside from his farewell kiss, we haven’t exactly spoken much since Katie found out about us.
Me and Katie aren’t really speaking right now either. The house has been tense, and on the rare occasions we run into each other, we both seem to scurry out of the area before we’re forced to face our issues.
Her reaction is valid and her being upset with me is understandable, but I also feel hurt by the way she’s handled it. The way she scolded me, then stormed out. I don’t know… Hopefully, we can get back to normal soon.
“A little bit,” Mom says in response to my question. She seems more tense than normal today, and she won’t look at me. It’s bizarre.
“How’s Elena doing?”
“Not great.” Her lips turn down into a frown. “I don’t think she’ll hold on much longer.”
“Well, why don’t we go down to be there for him.” The words slip out of my mouth before I can stop them, and I shove the burger in quickly as a way to shut the fuck up and not say anything else so stupid.
Mom’s eyes finally snap up to meet mine as her brows dip. “I offered, but he said he wants to do this alone. I was going to fly down for the service after she passes.” She sets her burger down, grabbing her drink and downing some. “I didn’t think that would be something you’d want to do. You’ve never seemed like Zeke’s biggest fan, and you barely know Elena.”
Her arms cross over her chest as she waits for my response, the movement making my stomach roll.
Huffing out a laugh that sounds more nervous than anything, I mutter, “Well, we’re family, right? I’m not so heartless that I can’t be there for family at a time like this.”
Still eyeing me, she says, “That’s sweet, dear. We can fly down together when the time comes. How’s that sound?”
