Page 35 of Fourth Wall

“Lying little bitch. I bet it is some mail-order husband. You would never find anyone as good as I was to you. No one wants to live with you because you're unorganized and a mess.”

Christian now gripped the handrail to the stairs so tightly that his knuckles were turning red.

“Hey, Tyler. Thanks for the conversation.” I straightened and spoke in the most confident voice I could summon while staringstraight at Christian. If I didn’t look down at the screen, then I knew I had the strength to hang up from Tyler’s beratement.

“Now,” Christian whispered, and I quickly only briefly looked down at the phone.

“I gotta go. Bye.” I hung up just as he raised his voice. Christian stayed where he was and kept white-knuckling the staircase. He stared at me with a face that was so impasse.

“Do not answer it when he calls you again.” I shook my head.

“He isn’t going to—”

Sure enough, my phone rang, and I looked down to see Tyler’s number pop up. I hesitated with my finger over the button.

“The girls are in bed. You owe him nothing. Listening to what he has to say to you isn’t healthy.” I slowly looked down and then back up again and nodded in agreement. Christian walked up the remainder of the steps where he reached his hand out in my direction.

“Just like you saying that I am an addiction isn't healthy,” I retorted.

“Got me there. I didn't mean it like that. It was just a saying…”

“Yeah, but maybe subconsciously you did. I cannot be a replacement for you, Christian.” He nodded while looking defeated and down.

“No, I get what you’re saying,” He rubbed his elbow anxiously. “If he calls and it’s a true emergency, I’ll answer it. You don’t need to hear it,” he reiterated, changing the subject.

“Okay.” I handed him my phone at the same time the doorbell rang.

“Are you expecting anyone?” Christian shook his head, went to drop off my phone in his room, and walked downstairs with me.

“I gotta admit having the girls in bed at seven o’clock leaves a lot of room for nighttime activities.” He tried to joke and lighten the very thick atmosphere.

“Yeah, perfect time for you to leave for your fuck buddies,” I muttered when we reached the bottom of the steps, and I reached out to grab the handle of the front door. He pulled my hand away, holding on to my wrist. His bright blue eyes locked with mine.

“I promised you I would never do that shit with the girls around. That fucking hurts, Maeve.” His voice cracked at the very end of the sentence, and I knew that hit was a low blow. I used my free hand to stroke his bicep, which was hard and bulging. But I wasn’t thinking of that right now. I was just doing it for comfort.

“I’m sorry,” I finally whispered. He offered me a quick nod before letting go of my hand and opening the door.

“Congratulations.” My parents came in with a “Congrats Grad” balloon, and Christian and I passed a questioning look between us.

“What?” I looked back up at the balloon. I was so very confused.

My dad pushed us aside and walked in with my mother in tow.

“We couldn’t find a normal congratulations balloon at the store, so this one will have to do.” My father shoved the balloon at Christian, who grabbed it.

“Why do you have this?” My mom walked to the back of the house where the kitchen was and opened the fridge door, grabbing herself a soda.

“It's for Christian. He survived his first real day of being your fake live-in boyfriend.” I gave them a pointed look.

"Come on, Maeve. We love you, we raised you, and we know better than anyone how challenging it can be to live with you. Let's just say you have a unique sense of organization," my mom remarked, just as the soda can hissed open.

"Mom," I exclaimed while Christian burst into laughter.

"Thanks, Pat and Sarah," he managed to say through his laughter, tears streaming down his face. "I have to admit, nothing seems extraordinarily out of place... yet."

I looked at all three of them and threw my hands up in surrender. "Whatever," I mumbled, taking a seat on one of the high stools by the countertop. My mom pushed me up.

“What the fuck has gotten into you, Mom?” I looked back at her.

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