Little White Lies

I woke up in a daze that morning, unsure of where I was. It took me a few seconds to realise that I had fallen asleep on the couch last night. I rolled over and noticed that I had been covered by a blanket and that there was a delicious aroma coming from the kitchen.

I flew off the couch, nervous that Evander would probably hurt himself if he was cooking alone. I didn't even notice that my makeup was smudged everywhere and that my dress from last night was hiked up to my upper thighs.

When I saw who was at the stove, I froze in place. Lucian, who didn't even have a key, was somehow in my apartment cooking at nine in the morning. He turned to me with a smile and I immediately noticed that he was wearing my apron. Evander was standing next to him wearing the matching one. Together they said "best son" and "best mom" in a curly font.

Lucian didn't even register the shell-shocked expression on my face and simply walked over. While I was still in a state of confusion, he pressed a kiss to my forehead and said, "Nice banshee costume you have going on there."

At that point, I sprinted out of the kitchen and to my bedroom to change. I saw my dishevelled state in the mirror and gritted my teeth in shame. By the time I finished putting on something more comfortable, breakfast was done and on the table.

Lucian had taken his apron off while Evander still pranced around in his like a queen. I looked around but didn't see Luca anywhere. It was strange because every time Lucian came here Luca wasn't far behind.

I was about to ask where he was when Lucian forcefully pulled me to sit down at the table. The food on the table looked inedible but smelled better than anything I've ever cooked. The two boys looked at me anxiously as I took a bite of the discoloured waffles. I expected to taste burnt flour when I bit into it. However, I was in for a pleasant surprise.

It turns out that they had added different seasonings and ingredients than what the instructions on the mix box said. I gave them a thumbs up with my mouth full and they both high-fived each other.

The harmonious atmosphere that settled over us kept the silence going as we all ate. To be honest, I wanted to say something but had no idea how to start. Breakfast soon finished without any one of us speaking up. I cleaned up, not forgetting to thank them for cooking.

All three of us chatted mindlessly for a bit about the latest news in the living room, but nothing special happened. I was starting to stress out about how boring I am. Luckily, Lucian saved the day by telling us that he had a meeting to be at. I sighed internally and sent him off. But before he left the apartment he turned to me and said, "Dinner at the Viridian Palace at 7:30 tonight. We have some stuff we need to talk about."

With that, he shut the door. I glared at it and stuck out my tongue. Tch, who does he think he is being all domineering like that! I grumbled under my breath as I strode back to the couch.

I let the sound of the TV wash over me as I finally got to think about the text I read last night. In two weeks I'd be going back to the one place I swore I would never enter again: my parent's home. Just thinking about that manor and its gloom made me shiver a little…

I looked up train tickets, sighing mentally as I saw how cheap they were. It seems the fates were telling me that I needed to go on this trip. Then I recalled how Percy said that they didn't want Evander to come. I wasn't all that surprised when I read that. After all, they had flipped their sh*t when they saw him as just a newborn.

You see, my family is that shi-shi religious family that lived in the giant house at the end of the street. We were the family that would be whispered about whenever Percy or I showed up to school with suspicious bruises. Those had all been from falling or playing outside but that didn't stop the gossip from spreading.

Our household wasn't abusive, though. It was just… cold. Neither Percy or I had ever received love from our two parents during our entire lives. It was always "you should've done better" or "we don't accept anyone that's not first place here."

Percy grew up exactly how our parents wanted him to: subservient to them and domineering to others. He could hide it all he wanted, but we all knew that deep down they had left a psychological scar on his heart.

Me, on the other hand, reacted the opposite way he did. I decided to pursue my dreams instead of finding a stable but boring job like Percy. That was strike one for me. Strike two came when I decided to move all on my own to the city and proceed to date men that I had met around there.

Strike three was when I had arrived home with a newborn baby and no husband. As soon as they saw me standing there on the porch with a crying baby my fate was decided. Both Mother and Father swore that the next time they saw me with my "demon spawn," they would kill me.

Me getting pregnant had effectively severed all ties between me and my family. Until now, I hadn't even entertained the idea that I would ever see them again. Part of me hoped so for Evander's sake, but even the optimistic side of me thought it was impossible.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by Evander tugging on the corner of my shirt. He had a troubled look on his face. I swiftly pulled him into my arms when I saw that he was almost in tears. "What's wrong, Ev?" I asked.

He stared at me for a bit before asking, "Are you okay, Mommy? You look really sad…" I guess my thoughts had shown on my face. I hugged him tighter before whispering, "Yeah, everything's okay. We're gonna be just fine." I stared at him a little longer while I debated in my mind. Finally, I asked, "How would you like to go meet grandma and grandpa in a few weeks?"

Evander looked confused for a second. "Grandma and grandpa? What are those?" I mentally smacked myself for being such a terrible parent before responding. "Well, they're my mommy and daddy. I haven't talked to them in a while but now they want to meet you!"

Little white lies won't hurt anybody, right?

His eyes widened in excitement. "Does that mean we have more family?" He asked. I could feel my heart breaking at his words. He was too young to have to understand this mess. So all I said was yeah.

We spent the rest of the day inside playing games and watching TV. I double-checked our reservation for tomorrow night and checked what time it was. It was 6:56 p.m., just thirty minutes before dinner with Lucian. Based on the restaurant, it was going to be about business and not a date.

I made sure Evander was all set for the night before leaving. He knows that the neighbours are always there if he needs anything and that there's always leftovers in the fridge. The kid may be a bit slow but he knows how to take care of himself.

Lucian was waiting for me just inside the restaurant. When I entered, he smiled and walked towards our table. He pulled out my chair and sat down across from me. Without any prelude, he launched into business.

"I heard that Saga did exactly as planned at its opening event. There's been a lot of talk about it among different socialite circles as well. It seems that this business will be able to stay afloat without me. However, I just want to know what you plan on doing next."

He didn't even breathe once during that entire monologue!

I thought about his last question, already subconsciously knowing the answer. "I want to make kids clothing. There'll be little suits and dresses for the rich kids to wear. It'll be adorable, don't you think?" I said with shining eyes. He seemed to deflate a little at my lack of ambition, but agreed with me nevertheless.

We ate dinner while I gushed about my plans for all the designs. Finally, just before we were about to leave, he texted me a link. I looked up at him bemused. "It's an entry form for a contest I want you to enter. It's for newbie designers, models, artists, singers, and more that I don't want to list. You'll obviously be participating in the designing portion, but I want you to make connections during the contest. Try to get a model or artist on your side."

I thanked him for his advice before telling him I needed to go to the restroom. When I came back, he was gone. All that was left was a lone gardenia and a cheesy birthday card. Before I realised it I was grinning from ear to ear.

That shorty idiot… I left the restaurant with the flower in hand and a light blush on my face. What is happening to my heart? Why is it beating so fast?