Page 65 of Ruling Scar
Lennie: Why is the thought of you scrolling the internet so weird?
Lennie: Do you like it when I wear my hair up?
He never explained why he was adamant I put my hair up into a ponytail the other day.
Pen Pal: I like it when you don’t try to hide.
Fuck this bastard and his ability to make me melt.
Pen Pal: Almost as much as when you come on my tongue.
“Oh fuck.” An incoming call from my mother appears. I swipe quickly, clearing my throat. “Hey, hi.”
“Good morning, my darling daughter.” A faucet runs in the background. She’s got to be in the kitchen, her favorite place.
“Morning, Mom,” I say a tad calmer. “What’s going on?”
“What’s going on?” she asks. Gia tends to talk with a bit of sarcasm in her voice. It’s where Adeline gets her theatrics from. “You tell me, my darling daughter.”
“What do you mean?” The words are dull and I wiggle in my seat. No wonder Dad never talks business in front of me. Don’t ever put me on the stand.
“You think I don’t know when my daughters are keeping things from me? I’m your mother.”
I tap a pen up and down. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Uh huh. How was your sleepover with Nat?”
Nat wouldn’t give me away. “It was fine.”
“And the boy you’re dating? How is he?”
“What are you talking about Mom?”
She makes a noise under her breath. A pan rattles in the background. “Leopold.”
“Leopold?” The walls close in and I turn toward the window. There’s a spotless sky outside, the light bright against my eyes.
“He sent some beautiful flowers.”
“What?” But I already know what she’ll say before she goes on.
“Carnations. Your dad said you should expect nothing less than peonies and while he’s not wrong, I don’t think they’re anything to turn your nose up. The color is beautiful. I’ll send a picture. Is he who you were with last night?”
I grit my teeth. “I told you mamma, I was with Nat.”
Who I’m texting the minute we get off the phone, reminding her to cover.
Mom tuts under her breath. “Why don’t you tell me about this Leo, honey. He’s the one who you went out with last weekend?”
“Mom.” I’m saved when my boss sticks her head in. “I’ve got a work meeting, I’ve got to go.”
My boss couldn't care less about phone calls during the work day. She drops off a file and leaves, but I take the excuse to drop the call and text Elijah.
Lennie: Leopold sent flowers to my house!
Dots don’t even appear.
Once again, Leopold’s shadow looms over my shoulder. He continues to not give a fuck, though, Elijah told me he’d deal with him. But what if I miscalculated? What if Leopold calls Elijah’s bluff? Or sees it as a challenge?
