Midnight Shades

Chapter 26

This question keeps crashing my mind during the entire day, popping and eating me alive because what if he knows? What will happen?

Groaning from the headache, I stop in my room to take a deep breath before putting on my clothes for the night. Just like every time I go there, I wear my hair down and smile when I remember what Louis said about liking it down. Fuck, I can't wait to see him again.

He didn't leave my mind this entire week. Not for one second. But neither did my father, I wasn't able to get him out of my mind, too. These two men ate away my mind and thoughts that I couldn't go to the training on the next day, and frankly, I didn't want to in the first place.

My mother told me that it was okay, so I couldn't pass the opportunity. With a heavy sigh, I leave my room to join my family on dinner before leaving to meet Louis. Cronan is already eating — like always — when I get to the kitchen, and my parents are chatting.

Once I sit down, Cronan tugs down on my ear by his fingers — very painfully — and I hiss in pain before he gives me an apologetic look. With his mouth full of food, he whispers, "can you bring me Cheetos tonight?"

Rolling my eyes, I say, "I will bring a fucking full box. Man, don't you get bored of it?"

"Bad word," he lowers his eyes at me and I raise my hands up in defence. "But yes, I don't get bored. However, if you happened to find something else nice and good for me, I won't complain."

Blinking once and twice, I keep staring at Cronan and his choice of words. It shouldn't be a surprise, Cronan has always been way too smart for his own age, and like me, he likes books way too much. "Okay, okay. Damn."

With a pinch to my hip, he says, "bad word."

"Ow!" I hiss in pain and glare at him. "If you keep doing this I won't bring you anything."

His looks at me again and says, "Yes, you will. Now, eat, I'm hungry."

Childishly, I pinch his arm and say, "apologise."

He glares at me — almost darkly — before saying, "no."

I arch my eyebrow at him before focusing on my plate as I say, "nothing for you tonight."

I can see his constant stare at me from the corner of my eyes. I take a bite of my food before I see him staring again; his eyes turn red and his lower lip start trembling. Fuck, what have I done?

Taking a full breath, I turn to meet his eyes again, catching the tear that falls. "Fuck, I'm sorry, buddy. I'll bring you everything, just don't cry."

"Do you promise?" He asks as his voice breaks.

I lower my head and press a kiss to his forehead, "I promise." I reply.

"Good," he says before hitting me on the back of my head. "Don't make me do this again."

With my jaw open in shock, I find the words to reply but I'm interrupted by the loud laughing from my parents. I look over to them to see them looking at Cronan with full adoration.

"He fucking hit me, won't you say something?" I say, blinking.

"Bad words, Tallulah," my father laughs. "Bad words."

I'm very thankful for this family, for what they have given me so far and for everything that they have done for me. Honestly, I can't picture myself being the daughter of someone else, not even Peter, my real father. I like this specific father and this specific mother, and that's all I want in life, nothing more and nothing less.

The air gets a little bit chilly as I near the city, making me thank Lyara for bringing the jacket with me. As I wrap the jacket tighter around my body, I keep huffing in my hands to keep them from freezing. I never liked the middle of November.