See You Around

| Chapter 4 |

Taken aback, I blinked down at my plate before scooping a small amount of salad onto my plate. I could feel Christopher's sullen gaze on me, but I determined to ignore it and place the bowl back in the middle of the table.

The whole situation was acutely excruciating.

"Well, then," my father spoke up, breaking the awkward silence. And just like that, everybody began chattering aloud with bright smiles decorating their faces.

I stared down at my plate, feeling my appetite fade away. Christopher was still gazing at me with nothing other than disgust and I experienced the impulse to grab a plate and throw it at his face.

What had I done for him to abhor the idea of willingly speaking to me? I don't recall doing anything that would result in him hating my gut. But then again, it could be because he despised my existence. Yeah, that had to be it.

Peering up at him, I was relieved to discover that he resumed scarfing down his food beside his younger brother, Noah. Noah and I made eye contact and I detected a faint blush blossoming on his checks. How adorable, I thought to myself.

After dinner, Lauren placed the dishes in the dishwasher while I ambled to the living room and lowered myself on the couch. Christopher was lying down on the couch with the remote on his stomach, watching a football match. "This is boring," I voiced my thoughts.

He didn't bother responding, which was something I expected, to be honest. "Nice house," I commented.

His eyebrows rose. "It's not my house."

I paused and furrowed my eyebrows. "What?"

"Technically, it's my parents house. I'm only eighteen," he stated.

"I was just trying to be nice, an attribute the that you don't have," I retorted.

He stared at me through narrowed eyes. "You know I can kick you out if I want."

"Technically, you can't. It's your parents house; you're only eighteen, remember?" I mocked. Before he could respond, Lauren entered the living room with a bright smile enhancing her features and I anticipated her words.

"I'm so glad you guys are getting along!" she exclaimed. Does this look like getting along to you?  I thought, noticing the wide space between Christopher and me. "Christopher, why don't you show Daniella around?"

Christopher offered a quiet groan, but was instantly silenced by his mother's death glare. Rolling off the couch, he planted his feet on the soft carpet and then stood up, stretching his limbs. His shirt rid up and I averted my gaze to the soft carpet before he caught me staring at him.

"Hurry up," Christopher barked out and I followed him with sheer obedience. We walked up the stairs in tow, but I managed to leave a considerable space between us since I was half convinced Christopher would throw me down the flight of stairs when no one was looking.

We passed a door that had the name 'Noah' imprinted into it with colourful alphabets. As we passed another door, I found myself asking, "Whose room is this?" I lifted a finger in the direction of it.

As I was in the process of taking another step, Christopher blocked me by standing in front of the door and holding up his arms. I got a face full of his chest as I gazed up at him with confusion. "What's wrong?"