Page 30 of The Story Of Us

Instead, I’m going to stare at my ceiling and wonder how I got into this situation where I’m having to fake so much with everyone. I turn to head back up the stairs again, just wanting to be alone for a bit before I have to put on a happy face and be the dutiful son that my parents expect me to be whenever their friends come around.

“Okay, but tell your sister that she has to come down earlier to set the table.”

I hate when they make Izzy get involved in these things. She comes home because she still has some kind of faith in our parents, but she can’t see the fact that they’re lining her up to be just like me. That’s the last thing I want for her, so I do everything I can to prevent it, even if it means making up an excuse to get her out of this dinner. I turn back to my mum.

“I’ll do it. She’s had a busy week. She said she wasn’t feeling too good on the way here.”

My mum’s face sours but the looks she gives me don’t affect me anymore. Whenever she was disappointed in me when I was younger, it would ruin my whole day, and I’d spend so much time working up the courage to apologise for whatever it was I’d done. As I got older, I realised that nothing would ever be good enough, so there was no point wasting my energy being upset about it.

“She won’t get anywhere by sleeping.”

“Mum, it’s ten in the morning on a Saturday, and we had an early start. Just let her rest.”

I don’t miss the way she rolls her eyes before retreating into the kitchen. A sigh escapes me as I trudge up the stairs, and even though I want nothing more than to just lie on my bed in the darkness, I know I need to talk to Izzy first. I turn left at the top of the stairs and knock on her bedroom door.

“Come in.”

I open the door and peek my head in to see her sitting at her desk. She turns in her chair and when she sees it’s me, she lets out a groan.

“I thought you were Mum. Get out.”

“Izzy.”

“I don’t want to talk to you.”

Great, now I’ve heard that from the two most important girls in my life.

“I want to say sorry. I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that in the car.”

I open the door wide enough for me to get through and shut it behind me before I take a seat on her bed. She swivels in her chair to face me, arms crossed as she feigns anger. Izzy gets annoyed with me easily, but she’s never once been actually angry with me.

“No, you shouldn’t have. I didn’t even say anything wrong. I was just talking about my friend.”

“I know.” I take a deep breath, deciding to give Izzy some half-truths that might help explain why I’m always so on edge whenever Violet’s name is mentioned. “The thing is… I kind of had a crush on Violet.”

“Oh my god, you’re lying.” She uncrosses her arms, leaning forward in her chair, and scooting closer to where I’m sitting. “Tell me everything.”

“There’s nothing to tell.” The biggest lie I’ve ever said.

“I had a crush on her. I told her, she didn’t like me, and that was it.”

Izzy stands up then, coming closer to me and staring me dead in the eyes. She’s trying to figure out if I’m lying, but luckily for me, she’s never been good at that.

“When did you tell her?”

“Like two years ago.” Truth.

“What did you say to her?”

“I just said, ‘Hey, I think I like you’.” Half-truth.

“Oh my god, no wonder she rejected you.”

I resist the urge to put her in a headlock like I used to do when we were younger.

“Okay, yes, not my finest moment, but it’s fine. I’m over her now.” Lie.

“That’s a lie, but okay.” She sits back in her chair, and the look on her face scares me. She’s plotting something. “I think you should try again.”

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