Page 87 of This I Know
I set the plates down, taking my cue from Avery. “She’ll notice me, right?”
“Of course.”
Damn.
Suddenly, she turns to me and places her hand against the center of my chest. “She’ll love you.”
Without thinking, I set my hand atop hers. She doesn’t respond much; just looks from me to our hands resting together comfortably where we’ve placed them, but then she pulls her hand out from under mine, leaving my hand to hit against my chest, empty.
She turns away.
I shouldn’t have done that. The no-thinking thing was a mistake.
“Avery…” I move the few steps over to where she is now. “What is it?”
She’s avoiding my eyes. “It’s nothing.”
I put my fingers to her chin and turn her to me.
She sighs against my hand. “It is something.” She perks up. “Sorry.”
“You should know better than to ever apologize to me.”
She musters a crooked smile, one that’s not very genuine, but at the same time her eyes light up so I know I’ve gotten through to her. I want to ask her if it’s because of my hand, if she sees something in me that she thinks is better left unspoken … something that reminds her of her attacker.
“You’re so kind to me, Ethan.” She’s speaking quietly, with a meekness that I’ve never before heard from anyone, not to mention such a beautiful girl. It doesn’t necessarily fit her, but it just contributes to the beauty and mystique that I’m coming to learn is Avery.
I take her hand again and re-place it against my chest. I want her to know I mean what I’m about to say. “I don’t want to be any other way,” I tell her.
And in the comfort of her love, I forget all about the pounding of fear that’s still going on behind my ribcage.
Avery
“Mom, we’re over here.”
We’ve finished setting out everything we need for dinner, and since then Ethan and I have been watching TV while waiting for her to arrive. I couldn’t help but to keep checking my phone; the last time my mom texted me she said she was stuck taking over another hospital room for one of her co-workers and she’d be home as soon as she could.
The sound of the front door closing, along with a sigh that we heard even from our distant place in the living room, finally announced her presence.
Now she appears in the kitchen.
“Avery,” she says. I can hear the fatigue in her voice. “Sorry I’m late. You know how it is at that place. I tried, though. I really did. Did you get my text?”
I nod. “I know. No worries.”
She coos when she sees the food we’ve laid out, “Oh, you two are too much,” then she approaches us in the living room.
Ethan stands and extends his hand.
“Ethan,” she says. “I’ve heard a lot about you. It’s nice to meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you, too. It’s a beautiful house you have here.”
She looks around. “Do you think so? It’s too big for us, if you ask me. Hard to keep clean with how much I work these days. And too much space in general, I’d say.” She sets one hand on her hip. “Well, I’m hungry. What about you two?”
As we eat, my relief is overwhelming. I can’t believe how well these two are getting along. Ethan’s saying all the right things, and my mom isn’t nearly as uptight as I thought she would be.
If I didn’t know any better, I’d think she actually liked him.
