Rain Check?

~97~

Chris POV

  "Do you trust me?"

  It's a loaded question. It will always be a loaded question when I ask her those simple four words. I'm not stupid enough to think otherwise.

  I watch her eyes gaze into my own. If desperation can bleed from ones heart our of their eyes, then I know that's what she would see coming off of me right now. Her own eyes almost portraying fear.

  "Yes," she answers me quietly. I lick my lip, wanting to exhale the sigh of relief against her own pout but instead I remember where we are, and who all is inside.  

 "Good," I tell her before standing up and opening the door. 

 "Hi beautiful!" Scott takes one step out, grabbing the front of the chair while I handle the back, to lift Dempsey up over the threshold. She smiles sweetly at him as she holds on tight to the chair. 

  As soon as she's back on level ground my brother leans down, hugging her tightly. "You keeping him in line?" he asks her. 

  "I think it's the other way around," Dempsey teases back, giving a small glance over her shoulder. "I can be a bit of a witch with a capital B to some of the therapists." 

  "I could never imagine that," Scott says with disgust.

  "Come by Monday morning and you can witness it," I tell him with a wink as Dempsey scoffs. 

  Before Scott even has a chance to move out of the way Ethan comes barreling over, practically jumping into Demi's lap, making the chair move a bit on its own. "Easy, bud!" I remind him. 

  "Sorry! I just miss her."

  "It's alright," she assures the little boy. "Not like you can actually hurt me." She hugs him back before he runs off again in search of something to do that doesn't include the adults. "Okay, Evans. Let's get this meet and greet over with so I can go to dinner with my mother. Where is she?"

  Scott and Carly both give me a strange look. "Your mom? She's in the kitchen."

  "No," Demi answers, shaking her head. I see her chest rise, knowing she's taking a deep breath. "Chris' new girl. I guess he figured his birthday was the best time for y'all to meet her. I'm still confused as to why I am a part of it though."

  "Oh," Carly's eyes grow wide, probably only adding to Demi's apprehension. "Well, we'll leave you to that, Chris." She starts to walk away, having to come back and grab Scott by the arm, pulling him out of the room as well. 

  I maneuver the chair in further, wondering if Dempsey has noticed the differences to my mother's home since the last time she was here.  Rounding the corner into the living room we come face to face with a handful of my friends and the rest of my family, a 'Happy Birthday' banner swung across the back door to my mother's patio. 

  "Hey!" several of them call out to Dempsey, coming closer to speak to her since they've already spoken to me. 

Demi POV

  "Yeah, good to see you too," I tell Nick who happens to be the last of this group to speak to me as I now feel like I've been put on display. I finally see a small space that I can wheel off to the side of the room rather than being smack in the middle where Chris left me. 

  I don't like this at all. I don't want to be the center of attention, and yet here I am. I finally catch my sister's eye from the kitchen, begging her to come over with a plea in my eyes. 

  "I want to leave," I tell her as soon as she gets close enough to hear me. Luckily there's enough noise and commotion with separate conversations taking place that no one is really listening to me. "Now."