Unconsciously, I bite my lip before leaning into him and placing my lips on his. His hand rests on my waist as our mouths move together causing the same sparks in my head and heart as all the other times we've kissed. When he pulls away, he brushes some hair away from my face. "I want you to come over to my house this Friday," he says, almost breathlessly. The way he says it brings tingles to my whole body and my mind immediately goes to a dirty place, causing my face to go warm. He chuckles. "That came out the wrong way. I mean for dinner. With my dad." With his dad? "Really?" I ask, trying to stop my face from blushing further. "Yeah," he nods. "It'll be the first time in a while that all the Parker boys will be home at the same time." If Derrick and Ethan are going to be there, then it can't be that bad, can it? "I'd love to," I smile as I say it. My mind sticks to the word 'boys.' Dylan has never mentioned his mom and I wondered if it's a sore subject for him. I'll feel horrible if I've only been capable of talking about my own issues and not asking him about his. Did she leave them? Or something else? I decide not to push it. He'll tell me when he's ready. "Maybe I should get going," he says, glancing at our clock on the wall. "Not to be rude, but I don't want your aunt to see me and have her assume I'm trying to corrupt you or something." "Okay," I chuckle. As I walk him to the door, he says, "Any time I'm with Kay, I'll let you know." "Don't stress too much," I tell him. "I trust you." Sure, it bothers me that they are still going to see each other, but Dylan's actions from the get-go have been nothing but positive when it comes to me. I don't trust Kay, but I trust him more. After Dylan leaves, I stay on the couch and watch TV, but I'm really only staring at it blankly. A million thoughts are running through my mind and I don't know what to do with all of them. Why does everything have to be a mess? I hate that this has become my life and instead of fighting back, I'm just accepting it. But what more can I do? I can't change the fact that my parents are gone, and no matter how much I question why this has happened to me they won't come back. And what about Jacob? Why couldn't he just break up with me instead of cheating? I could've gotten over a break up easier, but now I have to live with the fact that I wasn't good enough for him when he cheated. Kay only made it worse. How do I know Dylan won't cheat? Or any other guy I date if me and Dylan don't work out? Do I want to fight for him? My aunt practically rushes inside with a few bags from the grocery store, startling me. She smiles. "Well, don't you look comfy." She continues to walk past me until she does a double take. "What happened to your face?" I've completely forgotten to think of a lie. My mind is racing trying to come up with a convincing lie. "I—uh, there is a stray cat on the railing by the stairs when I got home. I tried to pet it and it attacked me..." It's a lame excuse, but it's all I can think of. She set the bags down and strides over to me. Grabbing my face, she examines it. "It's bruising." "Is it?" I play dumb. "It did have big paws. Grabbed onto my face pretty good." She eyes me skeptically. "You have the worst luck." Tell me about it. "Do you need help?" I ask her, standing up and changing the subject. "No, I got it. I do have to tell you that James is coming over for dinner." Her genetics professor-boyfriend. I haven't seen him since Thanksgiving. "Oh, okay," I nod. "I can see if Casey wants to hang out so you don't have to worry about me." "Actually," she says as she walks into the kitchen with me following her. "I was thinking the three of us could have dinner together so you can get to know him a little better." I'm surprised. If she wants me to get to know him more, then that has to be a good sign for them. "Things are going well then?" I ask. She's pulling everything from the grocery bags and setting them aside. She lets out a long sigh. "Things seem to be going too well. I keep waiting for him to have a flaw," she laughs at herself. "Would you mind cleaning up a little bit? I know it's not filthy, but—" "I got it," I say. She's nervous, and even though she's trying not to show it I can see it. I vacuum the carpeted areas, dust the shelves, and while I'm doing all of that my aunt disappears into her room. When she comes out she has changed from her black trousers to jeans that match the maroon blazer she has on. "What time is he coming over?" I ask after I finish cleaning up. She's at the stove, completely focused on the chicken cooking in the pan. "I told him to come over at six." Glancing at my phone I see that it's going to be five-thirty. I go into my room and brush out my hair. I stare at my plain black sweater and decided it's decent enough for dinner. Slipping on my ring from my aunt, I walk out of the room and double check the rest of the apartment. It isn't much, but I hope I've cleaned it enough. "What are we having?" I ask her. "Chicken parmesan." The doorbell rang and she looks at me. "Can you get that? I don't want to mess anything up over here." Behind the door is James, who is a tall guy with the beginnings of salt and pepper hair and a trace of a goatee. He has a light blue button up rolled up to his elbows and some dark jeans. He smiles at me. "Hi, Lacey," he greets.