Page 38 of More To Us

"Then why did you go out with him?"

"He offered to show me around Chicago. He's from here so he knows all the good places to go."

"Oh. Well, that's nice of him. So what else is new?"

"Not much. We just talked this morning so there's not much to say. Maybe we should cut our calls down to once a day, or once every few days."

"Honey, I need to check in with you more than that. You know how I worry. This is the first time you've been away from home."

"I know, but I'm fine. I'm 21 years old. I don't need you to check on me all the time."

"What if something happened to you? I wouldn't know unless I called."

"Amber would you let you know. She's constantly keeping an eye on me, asking where I'm going. She's almost as bad as you." I say it jokingly.

"She's being a good friend. And you should do the same for her. A city as big as Chicago can be dangerous. You two need to keep an eye on each other."

"We will. I should go. I have some things to do before bed."

"Before you go...how's your leg?"

I sigh. "Mom. Don't ask. Please."

"Of course I'm going to ask. Just last week you were limping around the house."

"Because I tripped on one of Luke's toys. It had nothing to do with my injury."

"And if it did, you wouldn't tell me."

"Do we have to do this now? I don't want to fight with you."

"Kira, your father and I need to know if your leg is bothering you. If it is, it could be something serious, which means you'll need to see a doctor there."

"There's nothing wrong with my leg," I say, tensing up. I get so mad when she does this. She makes me feel like I'm five years old and can't take care of myself.

"Honey, I just—"

"Mom, I can't do this. Let's just talk later. I love you. Bye." I end the call, then wait, knowing she'll call back, but then she doesn't.

"Shit," I mutter, tossing the phone on my bed as I lie down. I don't want to fight with my mom but I can't listen to her go on and on about my leg. I'm trying to forget it even happened but I can't do that when everyone keeps reminding me of it.

I pick up my phone and search for Austin's number and call him. I'm not even sure why. I just need to talk to someone and he's the first person who came to mind. Truthfully, I haven't stopped thinking about him since I met him.

When he dropped me off tonight, I really wanted him to kiss me. In fact, I was waiting for him to, but then he didn't, probably because I kept telling him it wasn't a date.

He answers after a few rings. "Hey, this is Austin."

He doesn't recognize my number because I never gave it to him.

"Hey. It's Kira." I lie back on my bed.

"Kira." He laughs a little. "You miss me already?"

"Would you think I'm weird if I said yes?"

"No," he says in a serious tone. "Actually, I felt the same way about you. You want me to come over?"

"No. I just wanted to talk."

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