Page 16 of Your Fault

They glowered at both of us.

“Could you all keep it under control? We’re in a public place,” Mom reprimanded us, with an accusing look at Nick. She’d been doing that kind of thing a lot lately… And I didn’t like it one bit. We’d need to have a talk about that. William appeared a moment later, glaring alarmingly at his son.

When we went inside, I realized we weren’t the only ones who had chosen that place for our graduation dinner. Several classmates waved to me as we passed. I smiled at each and every one of them. The maître d’ led us to the terrace. We were seated next to a swimming pool. Lit candles stood in the center of all the tables. Itwas a cozy place with relaxing piano music in the background—a live musician, as I would realize some time later.

Nicholas sat down next to me, and our parents sat across from us. For some reason, I felt suddenly uncomfortable. One thing was the four of us eating a pizza in the kitchen, another was having dinner in a place like that, especially since Nick hadn’t eaten with the family for months, and the tension in the air was palpable.

Everything was fine at first. My mother couldn’t keep her mouth closed—nothing new there. We talked about my new car, college, Nick, his job, William’s new firm, which I knew Nick was anxious to lead someday… I started to feel more comfortable. My mom ignored the fact we were a couple. In some sense, that was irritating, but it also smoothed things over.

It wasn’t until the end of dessert, when I’d swallowed the last bit of my chocolate cake, that my mother decided to blurt out something she must have been keeping under wraps for weeks:

“I have another surprise for you,” she announced when we were all sitting there stuffed. I brought my glass to my lips, so happy, I didn’t see coming the bomb she let off a second later: “You and I are going to Europe for a girls’ trip for four weeks!”

Wait…what?

6

Nick

No fucking way.

The look I gave that woman was enough to knock my father off guard. Noah glanced at me for a few seconds, unable to speak.

“Mom, have you lost your mind?” she finally managed to whisper.

Why is she being like that? Why the hell isn’t she telling her that not in her wildest dreams would she go to the other end of the world and spend the whole summer without me?

“You’re growing up. Soon you’ll be off to college…” Raffaella said, carefully avoiding me. Good for her. I’ll bet one look at me would have made her freeze from terror. “I think it’s the last chance we’ll have to do something like this together, and maybe you’re not as excited about it as I am, b-but…” Then she burst into tears.

I took a sip of wine, trying to control my rage. I was squeezing Noah’s hand so tight, it must have cut off her circulation, but it was either that or lose my shit and start blurting out all the curse words I was struggling to keep down.

My father looked askance at me for a moment and broughthis glass to his lips. Had this been his idea? Had he been the one to put that ridiculous notion into his wife’s head?

Why the hell was I even asking? Of course it had been him; he was the one paying for the damn trip.

Just then, my last hope faded away.

“Of course I want to go, Mom,” Noah said, and her words were like a slap to the face.

Did I not have any say in that decision? Why the hell was I even sitting there?

I let go of her hand. I was getting more and more pissed off. I had to go, or else I was going to let everything fly. But going wouldn’t solve a thing, I realized, nor would starting a scene; not if I wanted to be taken seriously, anyway… What I needed to do was stay there and make my opinion known, tell them they weren’t just going to up and steal a month from my girlfriend and me.

Noah turned to face me. I could see she was as tormented by the news as I was… that, at least, was something.

Before Raffaella could say another word, I interrupted her.

“You don’t think you should have checked with us before booking the trip?”

It had taken all the willpower I had to formulate that question in the calm tone of voice I’d used.

Raffaella looked at me, and when I saw her eyes, it was evident that any hope I’d had that Noah’s mother would accept me as her boyfriend had vanished. She didn’t want me to have Noah. There was no more doubting that.

“Nicholas, she’s my daughter and she’s just turned eighteen. She’s still just a girl, and I want to take a vacation with her. Is that so hard to understand?”

Before I could reply, Noah jumped to my defense:

“Mom, I’m not a girl anymore, okay?” She flicked her hair back and continued. “And you shouldn’t talk to Nick that way.He’s my boyfriend, and he has every right in the world not to be happy about the trip.”

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