Saving Summers (Books 1&2 combined)

12

Peter's backyard was filled with seniors from Summerville High that came to celebrate Liam's return.
Emma was not feeling the party mood but she still went because this was for her boyfriend.
What happened with Jay earlier still bothered her. She called him to ask if he was going to attend the party but he said no, which was understandable because people didn't want him around.

"Emma? Are you even listening to me?" Josslyn asked. She and Emma were seated on the lawn in the Masons' backyard.

"What? Sorry, I zoned out for a second." Emma said truthfully.

"I'm saying... is it a white thing for parents to allow their kids to throw parties in their backyard, on a weekday no less?" Josslyn asked. "As someone who is half Asian and half black, this would never happen."

Emma chuckled. "I think it's a Mason thing. Peter's parents are just as bubbly as he is so they let him do what he wants."
The Masons were nice people. The few encounters Emma had with the family were positive.

"Do they though? They are planning on shipping him off to London to study. Even my mom is not that extreme. I expected her to flip out when I told her I want to be a prosecutor and not a businesswoman like she is." Josslyn explained.

"I'm sure Peter will figure it out and eventually say something. His entire life is here after all." Emma said and hoped. She recalled how stressed Peter seemed about leaving the country to study:

"I don't know. Some parents are crazy and want to dictate their children's entire lives. What they do, where they live, who they marry. Isn't life a journey of self discovery?" Josslyn asked.

"It should be." Emma started. "But I think sometimes parents just want to protect their children. There are so many disappointments out there and they hurt."

"I get that but it's not like we are running out to go ruin our lives, we are just trying to find our own way and rhythm to the dance that is life. Parents cannot protect us forever and that is the sad truth, not to mention dictatorship causes a lot of resentment and fractured relationships." Josslyn said. She let out a soft laugh after a few seconds.
"We are at a party and we are talking about parents? Laaaaaame."

"Hey, you brought it up." Emma joked. She looked at the crowd of kids. She could see Connor, Peter, Brock and the rest of the guys, but no Liam.
"Where is Liam?"

Josslyn looked around. "No idea."

Emma got up from the lawn chair. "I'll go check inside." Her worry was getting the best of her. She needed to make sure Liam was okay and not feeling sick somewhere.

"Sure. Remember the rules, no one is allowed upstairs." Josslyn pointed out.

Emma nodded and headed towards the sliding doors that led to the inside of Peter's house.
The Mason house had quite a traditional inter decor. It was elegant and very English. The colors were dull and the furniture was of wood. There was a fireplace in the living room, a carpet covered the parquet flooring and couches, some of which consisted of patterns.

The front door opened and a group of guys with pizza boxes walked in. One of the guys was Marcus.
He and Emma stared at each other awkwardly.
"Yo Mitch, can you take these? I'll be right out." Marcus said to one of the guys who nodded and took the four pizza boxes.

The guy left, leaving just Emma and Marcus in the living room.

"Hi." Emma greeted. "I'm surprised to see you here. You weren't at school today."

"Yeah, I was just out of it today." Marcus said and dug his hands into the the pockets of his denim jacket.

"Are you okay?" Emma asked with genuine concern. She noticed that Marcus was not dealing with his grandma's death as well as she expected. He refused to tell people that she was gone.