The Final Choice

65

I argued with Colby, when he insisted on cleaning the kitchen with Ben's help. As much as I appreciated it, I just had a feeling that I was going to end up redoing it anyway. That was the entire reason that I had stopped asking for help from my family in the first place. 

"No, I've got it!" I huffed out, when he hip bumped me out of the way. "Colby, stop!" He shook his head, with a smirk on his gorgeous face. His hair flopped down over his blue eyes. "Nope," he replied. "Go sit down. Watch Youtube. Read. Talk to your mom. Go do something else and let us HELP YOU, Callista."

I glared at him, when he used my full name. I opened my mouth to reply, but Ben came back inside from taking the scraps out and stopped me. "Mom, just do what he says," he said, exasperatedly. "Otherwise, I'm going to be in here all night, just listening to y'all argue, and I'd rather not spend my time like that."

I snapped my mouth closed and switched my glare to my kid. "No fair ganging up on me," I muttered. Ben smiled, knowing he had won. "Come on," he said, pushing my shoulder gently, to get me to walk. I looked back over my shoulder at Colby, to see him grinning widely. I stuck my tongue out at him, childishly. He let out a deep chuckle that had me rolling my eyes. 

Ben led me to the loveseat and handed me the remote to the TV. "Just relax for a change," he whispered. I sighed and looked at my mother, who was sitting in her recliner. She also had an amused smile on her face. "I don't know why all of you are laughing. This isn't funny," I insisted, as I turned the TV on. 

"Yeah, it is, actually," Ben chuckled. "Shut up, you brat," I muttered. He laughed again, and turned to walk back into the kitchen. "Ben!" I called out, reaching for his hand. "What?" he sighed. "Just make sure he actually cleans the dishes," I whispered, loudly. 

"HEY!" Colby exclaimed, appearing at the doorway. I huffed out another breath. "Aren't you supposed to be cleaning and not spying?" I retorted. "I know how to wash dishes, Cal. I'm not a complete idiot," he replied, rolling his eyes. I shot a glance at Ben, who nodded. "I'll make sure," he whispered, before leaning over to kiss my cheek. 

"You have no faith in me," Colby said, shaking his head in mock disappointment. "For cleaning?" I replied. "Nope, none at all." He laughed and pointed his finger at me. "Just don't move. You'll see, these will be the cleanest dishes to ever exist, when I'm finished." "Whatever," I muttered. 

I knew that I was going to have to redo them. I was a little annoyed, because it was just a waste of time that I was going to need to make up. Maybe I'd wait until he went to sleep or get up earlier than him to get it done. 

My mom's soft laugh caught my attention, while I was watching Colby and Ben disappear back into the kitchen. "Just let them help, Honey. You deserve the break," she said, gently. "Yeah, yeah," I replied, with a sigh. "I like him," she whispered. "He knows how to handle your stubbornness." 

I ignored that and put one of my favorite Supernatural episodes on. Yellow Fever was, by far, one of the funniest episodes they had. Watching Dean Winchester be scared of every little thing always made me laugh. 

I felt my phone vibrate against my leg, so I picked it up to see what notification I got. There was a text from an unknown number. A knot formed in my stomach, making me feel nauseous. I didn't know how I knew, but I did. This was a text from Will. I had blocked his number, so he did what he always does. Found another phone to get in touch with me. 

I couldn't see the preview from the text, so I had no idea what he was saying, or any actual proof that it was him, without opening it. I swallowed hard and swiped my thumb across the screen, making the notification disappear. My emotions had already been through enough today, and I didn't feel like making it worse. I would deal with whatever that was, later.