Homecoming 9

"Stellar, wait." Beau reached out his hand to grab her by the wrist, yanking her a step back. "Do you trust me?" His eyes locked with hers, and all Stellar could see was her reflection on it.

"The heck no," she gritted. The audacity of this guy to ask her that question. And what did he expect from her? That she would welcome him with open arms as if nothing happened? That she would let things slide because her love for him was greater than the hurt he caused her?

"Stellar," Beau exasperated. "I didn't intend to leave you hanging. I was half expecting you would understand why I left without a word. Please… please. Let the thing slide. We have bigger issues to talk about."

Seeing desperation painted on his face, Stellar was intrigued. Beau was always sure of himself. He was raised that way.

If there was even a hint of uncertainty in him, nobody would see it, what with how he carried himself with so much power and confidence as if it was his second skin.

Yanking her wrist back, she sighed in relief when Beau released her from his grasp. "Speak," she commanded, raising a single eyebrow at him.

She fought the urge to look away like she always did whenever she was speaking with other people. Eye contact was never her strongest suit, but at that moment, she hated herself for meeting him eye to eye.

With Beau, she could stare at his eyes for hours, exploring the depths of his obsidian orbs. Now, if she could poke those annoying hypnotic pools of ink, so she would stop drowning herself in it, she would.

"Our moms might hint about an impending engagement…"

"Your eng…" Stellar interjected and choked before she could say the word. "Your engagement? With Cassy? Is that why you were spending time with her for the past months?"

"Yes and no. Bottom line of the matter is Cassy's pregnancy."

Stellar's eyes widened. Her jaw slacked and opened into a big 'O'. "Are you the father?" Stellar's eyes watered.

She took a step back when Beau tried to wipe the tears that streamed down her cheeks.

"No, precious. It's not me. Listen to me. Please," Beau pleaded. He didn't know if he should be thankful that Stellar was calm after hearing the news or he should be worried because maybe she was thinking of ways to run away from him. His heart ached at the thought. There would never be anyone else for him but her.

"Beau… what is going on? I don't understand." Stellar covered her face with both of her hands. Her shoulders started to shake as she silently cried.

How could he act so cool with all the bombs he just dropped on her? And why wasn't she aware of her sister's pregnancy but he was?

Stellar started blaming herself. It was her fault that she was out of touch with the lives of those surrounding her. She always cooped up inside her bedroom, wasting her time away. Had she took time to mingle with her family, perhaps she would notice the differences.

Pinching her chin, Beau tipped Stellar's face so they could meet eye to eye. "The child is not mine but a Spencer and deserved to be named as a Spencer and not an illegitimate child."

"What the heck does that mean? If you're not the father, then which Spencer knocked her up?" She swatted his hand off of her, disgusted at what his family did to her sister.

Beau's lips pressed into a thin line as Stellar searched for the truth in his eyes. "It's Uncle Baron, isn't he?"

She found the answer when Beau nodded his head. Uncle Baron, Beau's dad, was the father of Cassy's child. She wanted to scream in her head and she wanted to pull her sister's hair until Cassy turned bald.

Why the F did Cassy sleep with a married man? With her freaking godfather nonetheless! Red with anger, Stellar's fingers curled into a fist.

"Who else knows about the truth?"

"Nobody else."

"Is that why you had to fly back earlier than scheduled? Uncle Baron summoned you? And let me guess what… He wanted you to take responsibility for his child."

Stellar's shoulders dropped. She didn't have to hear the answer from Beau. His silence indicated that he was thinking how to properly string the words for his sentence.

"Stellar, I'm trying to sort it out with my dad. I can't marry Cassy. You know that. For now, we have to take this problem with a clear mind and tame down our volatile emotions."

Stellar sneered in derision. The nerve of this guy to tell her about clarity of mind and emotional breakdowns. What did he expect from her? Agree to every word he would say?

"I have a clear mind, Beau. You don't have to say anything. It is you who have to make a decision, and I know exactly which one you chose. You picked saving your name over us—you and me, our future together. You did it once when you left me without a word, and you would do it over and over again. Honestly? It's a blessing in disguise if you leave me the heck alone because I'm tired of being an afterthought. I'm done. We're done."

Stellar shook her head. There was no way she would waste another tear for him. All she had in mind now was her sister who had been hiding the biggest secret of all.

She steeled herself and took long strides outside her bedroom, fighting the urge to look over her shoulders and see what she guessed was Beau's solemn face.

From her bedroom, she traveled down to find her mom in the backyard. However, she diverted her flight and stopped by the dining room.

Grabbing a bottle of wine on the table, she popped the cork open and took a swig straight from the bottle's mouth.

It had been months since she sobered up and this was the first time she indulged herself for a drink.

Finding a quiet spot that was as far away as possible from the guests, she found herself in the foyer where a grand piano was waiting to be played. At that time, it was the quietest part of the house since everyone gathered in their backyard.

Beside the grand piano was a twelve foot Christmas tree. Lit and decorated by Aster after All Soul's Day.

It was pretty to look up that Stellar tipped her chin and let her gaze travel from the base of the tree up to the star sitting on top of it.

Downing another gulp of wine, she let her mind spiral back to her conversation with Beau that evening.

"Stellar!" Cassy exclaimed. "Oh noooo… nooo… nooo…"

Stellar smiled at her sister's panicked voice. She spread her arms in a wingspan and welcomed Cassy in a giant bear hug. "Oops, sorry baby," she apologized when she bumped her head by accident on Cassy's belly.

She wondered when Cassy would tell her about her pregnancy, but seeing Cassy ignore her belly rubs, it was obvious that her sister would rather bring the news to her grave.

"Stellaaaar," Cassy exasperated. "Were you aware that you finished a bottle of wine by yourself?"

"I did?" Stellar slurred. Letting go of Cassy's waist, she reached for the bottle sitting on top of the grand piano and hiccupped. "Oh shoot. I did. Ha!"

She peered up to Cassy and saw how worried her sister was. "Here. I'll help you get into your room. You can't face Mom like this."

"I can face her!" Stellar snapped, yanking her arm from Cassy. She could feel the spirit of alcohol slowly take over her body that her feet felt wobbly and her head lighter.

She dragged her body to the backyard, and could faintly see through her drunken hazy vision. Behind her, she could hear Cassy pleading for her to get back inside their home, but she ignored her sister with a wave of her hand.

At that moment, Stellar felt invisible, for the power of alcohol consumed the timid girl inside her.

"Oh, there she is!" Aster exclaimed, but the smile on her face disappeared upon noticing Stellar's confident demeanor and how the latter zigzagged towards their direction.

"How would I miss gift giving? Yeeeey!" Stellar giggled. She stopped short upon seeing her brother holding a thong and Holden standing beside him. They were grilling a kebab on the barbeque grill, oblivious of the party behind their backs.

"Later, Mom!" Her feet naturally dragged her to where Aki and Holden were. Maybe, it was the barbeque that made her gravitate to their direction.

"Ooooh… bbq… can I have some?" Stellar dramatically fluttered her eyelashes.

Aki shook his head and passed her a stick. But before Stellar could receive it, Aki caught a whiff of the alcohol oozing from Stellar's skin. "I'll give this stick to you, but promise me you'll stay by my side tonight. Is that a deal?"

"No deal!" Stellar swiped both of her hands and made a giant 'X' with her forearms. She started giggling, and her knees started to wobble like jelly as she shook with glee.

Suddenly, Stellar's knees buckled, but Holden was quick to hoist her up, hooking his hand on her waist. Her head fell back, and she started laughing a little loud upon feeling butterflies in her stomach at the sudden motion.

"Okay. That's it. You're going back to your room," Aki reprimanded, and hastily suspended the thong on the hook beside the grill to assist his drunken sister.

"Akiii," Stellar huffed, annoyed that her siblings were forcing her to retire for the night. "I'll behave here. I promise. See?" She stood on her feet and walked to the chair behind Aki.

Sitting down on a chair, her knees were pressed together and her hands were planted on her knees to prove her point on how well-behaved she was.

For a second, Stellar felt an eye boring a hole on her back, so she looked over her shoulders to see who it was. True to her instinct, Beau was brooding in his seat beside his mom.

She scoffed. How annoying. That guy was devastatingly handsome, even when three lines creased on his forehead.

Noticing Beau didn't want to break eye contact, Stellar waved her kebab in the air before suggestively popping the olive in her mouth.

The poor guy coughed in his seat. But instead of backing down, Beau cocked an eyebrow at her, as if taking on Stellar's challenge.

Breaking the standoff between her and Beau was someone clearing a throat behind her. Shifting in her seat, she saw Aki's narrowed gaze.

After sending Stellar a warning glare, Aki scanned the vicinity. When his eyes landed on their mother, he smiled at her as if telling her he had everything under control.

None of what Aki conveyed pacified Aster, though. Because in her eyes, Aster didn't see Stellar. She saw Orion—Stellar's father—who loved beating her to death whenever he was intoxicated.