Something There

Chapter Sixty-Two

He holds out a hand for me to shake, and I stare at it for a moment before reluctantly shaking.

"Hi," is the only thing I say to him before closing the door behind him and his parents.

"You all are welcome to head into the kitchen. My father is still cooking," I say, and they all nod to me before heading down the hallway.

I hang up Caroline's jacket in the coat closet before walking after them.

I step into the kitchen to find Holden standing right in front of Blossom.

"Hey, I'm Holden. Nice to meet you," he says, taking Blossom's hand in his.

I expect him to shake it, but instead, he raises it up to his lips, pressing a kiss to the back of her palm.

Oh fuck no.

Her eyes go wide at this gesture, and she quickly retrieves her hand, setting it down in her lap. I notice that her shoulders are suddenly stiff as she folds her hands together, giving him a small nod of her head.

I can't watch this any longer. No one makes my girl uncomfortable, especially not on my watch.

"I'm Lexi," she responds meekly, looking past Holden towards me.

When our eyes meet, I notice her silent plea for help, and I make my way back towards her in a rush.

She stands up as I approach her, and I wrap my arm around her waist. She looks st me for a moment before reaching up to adjust the collar of the stupid white dress shirt my dad made me wear, and I thank her with a squeeze of her hip.

When I look to everyone else in the room, I see that my dad is watching everything unfold, thoroughly entertained. Caroline, Holden, and Felix are all looking at Lexi in confusion, and I would absolutely love to slap all three of them in the face.

"This is my girlfriend, Lexi," I tell them, and they all look confused, needless to say.

My dad manages to distract them, asking Caroline and Felix if they'd like anything to drink. I have nothing against either of them, and I understand that my dad has to be nice to them for business purposes, but Holden has always driven me insane for some reason.

He's standing a couple feet away from Blossom and I now, and it's hilarious how much shorter he is than me. I have a solid seven inches on him, and he's around the same height as Blossom in her heels right now.

"Bryce?" Blossom asks quietly, as if she's afraid to interrupt something.

"Yeah, baby girl?" I ask, and Holden's eyebrows raise from where he's standing at my use of the nickname for her.

"It's 5:01," she tells me, and my eyes shoot straight to hers.

Both of us then look towards the computer, and I log in, opening up Chrome.

"Which school should I check first?" I ask Blossom, who's practically pacing back and forth in anticipation for me.

"Columbia. You already got into MIT and Columbia is the only school that comes above that," my dad answers even though I wasn't speaking to him.

Nonetheless, I do as he requests, opening up the Columbia portal.

"It's Ivy Day, is it?" Caroline asks, to which my dad responds, "Yes, indeed."

I'm not paying attention to what anyone else says next as I type in my login, Blossom rubbing circles against my back to try and soothe me.

My dad is continuing to mix drinks, Holden now taking a seat at one of the barstools. Blossom is the only think grounded as the words I've been waiting for all year pop up on my screen.