A week went by fast and even though I was sad my time with Laurel was going to end, I also liked that time was just flying by. It meant that Evan and I could go home soon. Emily was going to give birth soon, I knew Evan didn't want to miss that. And there was also my parents who we needed to deal with. Dad wasn't going to be happy about the fact that Evan and I were dating. I wanted to tell him off, but Evan told me we were going to deal with it together. That it would be alright. He didn't know my parents, but I wanted to believe him. I wanted to believe we could have our happily ever after where everything was perfect.
"Zoey, are you even listening to me?"
"Hm?"
Laurel shook her head at me, "Of course you're not listening to me." She muttered.
"I'm sorry, there were some things on my mind." I reached for my cup and sipped from my green tea, "What were you saying?"
"I was saying that I saw that text and I couldn't ignore it!" Laurel sounded exasperated which caught my attention, "I mean how was I going to ignore that? I didn't question him about it, but I think he didn't realize I saw it in the first place. I did kind of sneak a peek, you know."
I wasn't understanding a word she was saying. She was talking fast, so fast I think she didn't even catch her breath. She was making big hand gestures, obviously upset about whatever text she saw. She also referred to a 'him', so I was going to assume she was talking about Evan. I needed to calm her down so she could tell me exactly what about my boyfriend upset her like that.
"Laurel, take a deep breath, please." She pushed Laurel's glass of water toward her, "And take a sip. You need to calm down because you're making no sense at all. You're worrying me and I'd like to know what I'm worried about."
Laurel did take a deep breath and reached for her water. Gulping it down, she placed the glass back down and let out a tired, long sigh.
"Okay, the other day when we were having dinner at your apartment, Evan left his phone on the table while he helped you do the dishes. He didn't realize he left the screen unlocked and I couldn't help myself. He left a text open which was from a girl named Priscilla. I couldn't read all of it, but I did read the words I miss you so much and I wish you were here, love you lots." Laurel shook her head, "Sounds like some teenager who has an obsession with him. Anyway, a girl was texting him crap like that!"
I didn't want to accuse Evan of anything, Evan was very social, it could be a text from a friend. He was close to Emily and I knew he'd never go there. He was faithful, yet the little doubt I had was making me lose my mind just like Laurel had a second ago.
"You shouldn't have gone through his phone," I muttered, clenching my fist, trying to keep my emotions at bay.
"I didn't even touch his phone, I more or less hovered over it to read the text."
I smirked at Laurel who tried to make it sound like she did nothing wrong. I knew she only did it because she was my girl, wanting to make sure my boyfriend didn't do anything wrong. But I had to be rational about it. She did invade his privacy.
"Laurel."
"I know." She rolled her eyes at me, "It wasn't right, but screw that! Who is the girl?" Laurel asked me, a question I couldn't answer, because I had no freaking clue, "Don't you want to know?"
I did want to know, but I wasn't going to invade his privacy and go through his texts. I had to be grown-up about it and face Evan. Ask him straight out who the girl was. And also apologize for the fact that my girl read his text.
"I'll ask him," I told Laurel.
She slumped back in her chair, "You will?"
I nodded, "Yeah, I want us to work." I admitted to Laurel, but she already knew that. It was why she came to see me in the first place. She was my moral support, talking some sense into me if Evan wasn't right for me.
"Me too." She told me quietly, "That's why I'm so upset. I mean he seemed so perfect. Always so kind to you and treating your friends right. I was thinking he is the one, you know."
"The one?" I asked confused.
Laurel smirked at me, "The one who you'll settle with."
She was talking marriage which was definitely not something I was thinking of right now. That was way too soon. We were just starting out, getting to know each other and each other's friends and family. Frowning I realized I didn't know much about his family either. I knew Nick and I spend a lot of time with Emily as well. Evan loved them, saw them as his family. But they weren't actually his family.
"I don't know anything about him," I whispered, causing Laurel to frown as well.
"What?"
"I mean I know what he does for a living and I know his friends. I know where he lives." I reached for my tea and gulped it down, it was hot and burned my throat, but I needed the heat to calm me down a bit, "But what about his family? Nick and Emily are not his family. I mean he keeps referring to them as his family, but they're not."
"Some people don't stay in touch with their family." Laurel pointed out, "Bad memories and shit."
"He has a past like that?" I asked quietly, afraid someone would hear us.
Laurel leaned closer to me, "You don't have to whisper, I'm sure that no one around here understood a word of what we're saying. And if they do, they don't know us or your boyfriend."
I rolled my eyes at her, "That's not the point. Don't you think that if we are serious Evan should tell me things like that? If he has bad memories he should share them with me, right?"
Laurel sighed, "I shouldn't have said anything." She muttered, "Listen, Zoey, maybe he didn't tell you anything yet because it's sensitive. You just started dating and sharing bad memories like that is a commitment. Don't confront him about his past yet. Just ask him about the text. If he shares his past with you, it's a plus, if not then let him pick his own pace. If he is serious about you, he'll tell you eventually."
We finished our girl talk at the small restaurant and parted ways. Laurel was going to pack her suitcase, ready to leave Tokyo tomorrow morning. I went back to the apartment, trying to think of a way to talk to Evan. He was currently meeting with Chris at the club, going through their weekly update. Things were going fine for Chris and Nick. The club was doing okay, they always hit their target. Evan and I didn't have to do much anymore. It made Evan restless since he was used to working hard, always having something to do. So instead of waiting around, he decided to ease the workload on Chris.
I was going through tonight's dinner, wanting something simple yet filling. I knew Laurel didn't mind, she wasn't a picky eater and neither was Evan. Since it was the last dinner we'd have together with Tokyo I wanted Laurel to have a good time. It wasn't going to be easy since I knew she was suspicious of Evan. She tried to play it off at the restaurant because I was losing my mind over his issues. Maybe he didn't even have issues, but I knew she tried to calm me down.
"Zoey?"
Hearing his voice made my heart race. Taking a deep breath I spun around and met up with him in my living room, "What's up?"
"You preparing dinner?"
"I was just going through my stuff, thinking what I should make."
"I know you wanted a quiet night in, but Chris and his girlfriend have some free time tonight. So I was thinking we could do dinner with them and Laurel. You know, your friends meeting my friends. When we're back in New York she can also meet Nick and Emily. I'm sure they'll get along."
I nodded, "Sounds good. I'll text Laurel our change of plans."
Evan smiled, "Great, I'll tell Chris to make the reservations."
"Oh, there is also something I want to talk to you about."
Evan glanced up from his phone, meeting my gaze, "Sure." He sounded unsure, but his face didn't give it away. He was good at hiding his emotions when he wanted, having the perfect poker face.
We both informed our friends about tonight and then settled on the living room couch. I pulled my feet under me and faced Evan, who was patiently waiting for me to tell him what was on my mind.
"Okay, don't freak out-"
He chuckled at me, "You do realize that people usually start to freak out when you tell them not to freak out, right?"
I smiled, glad he was trying to lighten the mood between us. It made it easier for me to speak up, "The other night Laurel saw a part of your text when you left your phone on the table."
"Okay?" He sounded even more uncertain than a minute ago.
"She saw that it was from a girl who was being overly familiar with you."
Now he just looked confused, "Excuse me?"
I buried my face in my hands and took a deep breath, pulling my hands away I stared straight in his confused eyes, "She saw that some girl told you she missed you and wished you were together. She was worried and now I'm worried."
Evan's look told me he had no fucking clue what I was talking about. Reaching into his jacket pocket he grabbed his phone and scanned through his messages. He apparently found the text I was talking about because he burst out in laughter.
"Okay, I shouldn't laugh, because I understand it would appear to be bad." Evan told me, "It's a text from my sister."
Now I was just blown away, not knowing how to react or what to say. So I said the first thing that came to mind, "You have a sister?!"
"Yeah, a little sister, Priscilla." He showed me a picture of them together, "She travels the world. She's currently staying in Thailand, being irresponsible." He shook his head at that, his eyes told me he didn't find it that awful though, "She lives off my money, but you know, I can actually miss it."
"But don't you think that as her older brother you should teach her to be more responsible?"
"Maybe I should." He pocketed his phone again and leaned back against the couch, staring up at the ceiling, "But since we didn't have a happy childhood I figured she deserves a little fun in life now. Since I can afford it I don't mind letting her do whatever she wants." He trailed his eyes to me, "She is rarely around though. I'm sure she'll be there for the wedding. She does love Nick. She'll also be there for the baby."
I reached for his arm and held onto his bicep, "You have a sister."
He smiled at me, "I have a sister."
"Who is exploring the world, living off your bank account."
He nodded, "Basically."
"And you're not complaining because of something that happened in your childhood."
He pulled away from me and got to his feet, looking restless as he paced the living room. It was cute seeing him behaving out of character. Evan always seemed so put together. Like nothing could get to him at all. Him showing me his weakness meant something to me. I just wouldn't admit it to him yet.
"I'm not ready to talk about that yet." He told me as he kept pacing back and forth, "Priscilla and I only have each other. But we're fine now."
"Whenever you're ready, I'm here." I told him quietly, "I'll listen."
He stopped pacing and faced me. He looked at me like I just told him unicorns were actually a thing.
"Thank you."
Without warning he walked around the table and pushed me down on the couch, hovering over me to kiss me. When the kiss got too intense and he was ready to undress me, I pushed against his shoulder to stop him.
"We can't! We need to get ready." I reminded him.
He didn't look happy about that, but he did pull away from me. He got to his feet and held his hand out to me. Smiling I took his hand and let him pull me to my feet as well. He surprised me by wrapping his arms around me and pulling me in for a hug. He tightly held onto me as he buried his nose in my hair.
"You don't know how much you mean to me, Zo."
Warmth spread across my body, making it hard for me to breath. He couldn't say the words yet, but I knew what he meant. I felt the same way. He didn't know how much he meant to me either.
"Evan-"
"Be patient with me, okay?" He asked me quietly, "We'll get there eventually, I promise. Just don't give up on me yet."
I tightly held onto him as well, my heart hurt for him. Whatever happened to him broke something in him. I could tell by the pain in his voice. He didn't want to go there yet, because he mentally wasn't ready. I wouldn't push him. Laurel was right, he'd tell me eventually.
"Don't worry about it." I told him, "We'll be okay."