60.0
60.0
XAVIER
Drama. Fucking drama. My jaw clenches so hard that I can fucking feel a muscle twitch. I hiss, stepping into the room fully and turning to face Sadie, my eyes narrowed into slits. "You need to leave," I tell her.
She starts laughing as if I've just told her a joke when I look deadass serious. Her head tilts back, a seriously annoying and mocking smile on her lips. "Excuse me?" She tells me.
"I said leave." I move closer, planting myself squarely between her and Harper. “This isn’t your place and you know that. You weren’t invited.”
Sadie huffs, crossing her arms over her chest, a pout on her face. That's petty. It's her signature look, the one she uses when she's trying to look put-upon but is actually just being a manipulative bitch. “Wow. So she snaps her fingers and you jump? Cute. You didn’t seem so eager to get rid of me last time.”
I almost roll my eyes, but I don't look back at her. My eyes stay on Sadie. “This is not the time.”
“Oh, it absolutely is.” Sadie tilts her head, smiling sweetly at Harper. “You should know what kind of guy you’re letting around your kid. He doesn’t exactly do quiet, stable, very well.”
That does it. Before she manages to put thoughts in Harper's head... she has to leave.
“Get. Out.” My voice drops. “Now.”
She scoffs. “Or what? You’ll throw me out yourself?”
"Try me." I shrug. I'm trying to act nonchalant here. But with the way she's acting, I think I might actually have to use a little show of force. What the fuck is wrong with her though? It's been so long since I invited any girl home. And you don't show up unless you get a text or... Why the fuck is she laughing now?
“Oh my God. This just keeps getting better.”
“Sadie, don’t,” I tell her. I don't know what she's up to but I can tell it's not good. You'll know. From the curl of her lips to the shaking of her head from side to side?
But she’s already looking at Harper. "Let me guess. You don't know." She stares at Harper.
"Know about what?"
"That Xavier's mom is going to adopt you? Congratulations, by the way. That's a huge step up."
I glance at Harper.
"Are you being serious right now?" Harper eventually blurts out.
“So you didn’t know? Word is, his mom’s trying to adopt you.” Sadie tilts her head. She’s enjoying this. “Which would make you what... future siblings?”
Harper stands absolutely still. “What?”
“And yet here we are,” Sadie continues. "All this tension. All this chemistry. Kinda gross when you think about it, right? Crushing on each other when you might end up family?”
“That’s enough,” I say.
“No, I think it’s perfect,” Sadie says, completely unfazed, a smirk on her face. “Imagine explaining that one. ‘Yeah, we almost hooked up before we became siblings.’ Real cute story.”
It's Harper's turn to ask her to leave. Her eyes, which had been wide, now narrowed. She slowly walks to the door. "Get out."
Sadie huffs, tosses her hair, and fixes me with a look, before she finally, finally leaves. Harper's next question comes immediately. “You had history with her?”
“Yes,” I admit, running a hand through my hair. “Past tense.”
“And you thought it was okay for her to just...” She gestures around my room. “...be here?”
“No. I didn’t know she was coming.” I exhale. "Harper, I swear to you, if I’d known...”
She holds up a hand, cutting me off, her eyes finally meeting mine. “I don’t care about your past. I care about my present. And my daughter. I can't raise my daughter here. Toxic environments aren’t an option.” She looks around the room.
Neither is losing you, I think.