Chapter Thirteen

Sara Friday morning found me seated at breakfast with Mom and my new stepdad. If I hadn't deliberately woken up and made my way to the hotel, I would have wondered what I was doing there. I barely said anything, I just watched the two of them chat. Mom would occasionally throw a question my way, and I would murmur or nod at appropriate moments, but I didn’t say a word.

Apparently, we were waiting for one more person. From what Mom had said, he was at my school, too, and I couldn’t help but wonder who it was. Either way, I knew it would feel awkward if I ran into him at school again from now on.

Have I met him before? Do I know him? Is he in the same age as me, or older?

Neither of them gave me a hint, and I felt too awkward just to ask outright.

The food had come already, and Mom and Greg were already eating, but I could only pick at my food, occasionally nibbling on a muffin, or taking a sip of my quickly cooling hot chocolate.

“Honey, you’re not eating,” Mom said, proving that she was still attentive. “Is there something you don’t like? Would you like something else? I’m sure they serve some desserts for breakfast if you’d rather have that…”

“I’m fine, Mom,” I said and faked a smile. “Everything tastes really good. Don’t worry about it; I’m eating just fine.”

I cut off a piece of blueberry pancake and chewed on it slowly and sent her a smile so she’d stop worrying. The worst part was, everything really did taste good. My stomach just felt too uneasy to appreciate it all.

I didn’t realize that things were about to get even more complicated. Not until Noah walked in about five minutes later.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said, coming up to our table. “Had a bit of trouble at the school…”

His voice trailed off as I looked up and our eyes met. I stared at him, eyes wide, wondering what he was doing here and what he meant by ‘late.’

There was no way he was the one we were waiting for… right?

I turned to Mom, wanting to ask, but she spoke up before I could say anything.

“Honey, this is Noah. He’s Greg’s son, the one who’s in the same school as you. He’s a senior, though.”

Inside, I wanted to cry, but my shocked expression didn’t change. The guy I’d been fucking for weeks now, the guy I really, really liked, was supposed to be my new stepbrother?

This had to be a joke, right? It wasn’t a funny one.

Mom frowned, seeing my expression, and reached out a hand to touch mine.

“Sara, are you okay?”

There was a loud scraping sound that killed the low murmurs in the restaurant, and it took me a moment to realize that it came from me. I was standing; my chair shoved back. The table shook a little because I’d knocked the edge when I jumped up. I didn’t feel anything except the way my body trembled and my fingers clenched so tight my nails dug into my palms.

“Are you serious right now?” I asked, my voice quiet. I looked at Noah, before quickly shifting my gaze back to Mom.

“Please tell me you’re joking with me,” I begged. “Mom, you have to be joking.”

My eyes stung, and I felt like I was going to cry. Noah was going to be my stepbrother. Was already my stepbrother since, technically, Mom and Greg were already married.

We hadn't told anyone we saw each other, and I didn’t even know if we were really dating, but people at school had already seen us together. If news of us being related now got out, how would people react? Not well, I was sure.

“What’s going on, Sara?” Mom asked as she stood up. “Do you know him already? Then that’s good, isn’t it?”

“No, Mom, it’s not,” I said immediately. “Of all people, why did it have to be him? You should have told me about all of this before you got married, not dumped it on me like the best surprise in the world when it’s not!”

I felt my heart race and a clench in my stomach as I started to panic. Before, I’d just felt uneasy, but right then, I felt a little sick. Like the little food I’d managed to eat would be coming up my throat soon. I’d told Mom exactly what I felt, but there were added dimensions that she didn’t know about, that meant everything to me.

“Why are you acting like this?” She sputtered, clearly upset. “Do you hate that I’m happy, Sara? Why do you have to be so selfish? For the past ten years I have mourned your father and refused to move on with my life. Even when I dated, it never lasted, and I could never give all of me to anyone, but I’m really trying now. I’m moving on. Can't you just be happy for me without making a scene?”

She blinked her misty eyes, and I went quiet. It felt like something was stuck in my throat.

That’s not the problem here!

I wanted to shout at her, but she looked like she was going to cry, and I felt bad for making my mom feel this way. It really wasn’t her fault that Noah and I had been together while she was with his dad. Neither of us had known, and while I wish she had told me she was seeing someone regardless, Mom wasn’t obligated to tell me anything about her life, just as I wasn’t obligated to tell her everything about mine.

We used to share things between us, but we’d both found men that distracted us from each other. It was just a shame that they happened to be father and son.

I wanted to cry, too, but I couldn’t find the tears. I wanted to explain, but the words escaped me. Things only got worse from there.

“Hey Noah, Sara!”

Both of us turned at the call of our names. When I saw Alicia and Caroline standing at the entrance to the restaurant, I got a little dizzy. For a second, I wondered if I was going to faint, but I wasn’t that lucky.

“Fuck!” I heard Noah curse under his breath. “I can't believe they followed me here.”

My eyes turned to his face, and his expression didn’t make sense. He looked angry, and also a bit concerned. I’d only pointed them out to him once, so Noah shouldn’t really know either of them. What happened, and why would they have followed him here?

I didn’t know what was going on, but their smirking faces made my stomach churn even more wildly. They weren’t here to say or do anything nice, and before they could shout it to the whole room, I walked over there. Before I got the chance to say anything, they spoke.

“I can't believe you, Sara,” Alicia said, looking absolutely delighted. “Like, what the hell is this? You and Noah are to the point of meeting the parents already? Isn’t that a little ridiculous?”

My face burned in humiliation, but at least they hadn't figured out the situation we were in. They might have been behind Noah, but they hadn't been in time to overhear any of the drama going on between the four of us.

“Look, guys,” I muttered, voice low. “This really isn’t a good time, so can you please leave?”

Caroline snickered. “What, sending us off, so we don’t see the train wreck? Whatever. We came here for something else, anyway.”

Their smug looks gave me a bad feeling.

“What?”

“We know your dirty little secret,” Alicia said in a sing-song voice. “Between you and Noah. That’s your mom, right? I wonder if she knows.”

“Knows what?” I asked, impatient.

“That you had to pay Noah to fuck you,” she said, voice quiet, smirk widening. “And, on top of that, to go out with you, too. I thought it was so funny when I found out, you know? You didn’t want to tell us it was him because of that, right?”

I stared at them in horror. I wanted to turn around and look at Noah, but I really thought I would go crazy if I did. It was just one thing after another today. My emotions felt like they’d been put on a rollercoaster, and every time I thought it was coming to an end, a new twist or turn appeared.

“You don’t want this information getting out to anybody, right?” Caroline continued with a sharp edge to her voice that only increased my worry.

Feeling like the floor had just been pulled from under me, and I was plunging into a big, dark hole, I swallowed.

“If you want us to keep your dirty little secret,” Alicia continued. “You’re going to have to pay us. And make it a lot, or you know we’ll just come back.”

That would have been the best time to suddenly faint, but still, nothing happened. I blinked my eyes, but the sting of tears had gone away. Right then, all I felt was numb. My throat was tight, and I swayed a little in place.

“Sara!”

Someone from behind me had called my name. I didn’t know if it was Noah or Mom, or hell it could have been Greg. But it was what I needed to wake up, and I knew what I needed right then.

I ignored everyone.

With my head ducked down, I walked back to the table and picked up my purse and my phone. My breakfast was still mostly there, and distantly, I felt that it was such a waste, but I couldn’t stay there anymore. It would probably be thrown out, but I didn’t care enough to sit back down to finish. Then, I walked out of there, and away from all of them, without a look back or a final glance at any of them.

It felt like the whole world had gone mad, and if I stayed there any longer, I would go mad, too.