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58 • behind her mask • 58

"With all due respect, I think I have some say in this." Peter responded calmly. "I've come to know Charlotte, and so have the boys. I don't think it's fair to make her leave everything she's come to know."

"Peter, we discussed this last night. I've made my decision." My Mom told him.

"And I reject it!" I said, raising my voice slightly. The anxiety was rising up inside of me, making me realise I was facing a potential reality that I didn't want.

I heard footsteps behind us and looked over my shoulder to see the boys had come outside after hearing my raised voice. My parents and Peter ignored their presence completely, focusing only on the tension that was going on between us.

"Why don't we give Charlie a chance here? She knows what's at stake if she steps out of line. There's no reason she has to go anywhere. Give her a chance to show you that she can get on well here." Peter suggested.

"Charlie's going where?" I heard Tommy question from behind me, confusion laced his words, but no one offered to explain to him what was going on.

"I've given her plenty of chances." My Mom continued, shaking her head. "She already knew she'd go and stay with her Dad if she kept getting herself into trouble. It was Charlotte choice to get involved with that boy, who the boys had already told her to stay away from. It was her decision to ignore them and do what she wanted to do anyway. Charlotte has to live with the consequences of her action."

My jaw practically dropped as I heard the words come out her mouth. "You said I could date whoever I wanted to, despite what the boys said. I told you they didn't like him. I wasn't hiding anything there."

I heard the sound of someone scoff behind me, but i ignored them. I could guess it  was either Harry or Sebastian, but I was pretty sure it was Harry. He was probably referring to how I wasn't open about it to start with, but what he didn't know was that I had talked to my Mom about it.

"Yet you knew they didn't like him. Why didn't you listen to them when they told you they didn't like him?" My Mom questioned, but she didn't even let me answer the question before she continued. "In fact I know why, it's because you're stubborn and you don't listen to other people because you think you know everything."

I scoffed. "I think I know everything? I know nothing." I said, getting irritated. "The boys told me they didn't like him and to stay away from him. They made it out to me as if I was betraying them by going out with him, but I just thought they were trying to control me or it was about their pride. I was completely in the dark, trying to figure out whether Billy was the person I thought he might be or the person they were describing. They never gave me a valid explanation until recently."

"And what was that?" My Mom questioned, looking at me like I was making something up. There was a glint of amusement in her eyes as if she was thinking this should be good.

I glanced to the boys who were looking at me almost utterly speechless. Now I didn't know what to say. I wondered if I can tell our parents about what happened between Molly and Milo, but I was done talking about something that had nothing to do with me. I didn't want to tell them.

"Nothing." I replied, looking to the boys.

Their promise to Molly and Freya was now my promise. I wasn't going to talk about it anymore. It wasn't my place.

"Nothing?" My Mom questioned now looking to the boys. "Why don't you like Billy then?"

The boys shifted, looking to each other nervously and unsurely. I could tell they were having a conversation with their eyes. They were strategising.

"It's okay, boys. Whatever it is, you can tell us." Peter pressed, looking at them with his kind crystal blue eyes.

"It's not Charlie's fault." Tommy said, "We should have told her sooner and none of this would have happened."