Chapter 98

***Chrissy***

~
Mom stares at me with an askant stare, I had told her about Dayle and me.
“For how long has this been going on?” she asks coldly
“Mom... Mom, it's...” I stutter
“I can't believe this is happening. You have no idea what you are doing—you both are lost... Completely lost!” she yells at me
“Mom, I can explain why. It's not as—”
“No Chriss, I'm not so sure I raised you. I didn't raise a pervert, did I?” I attempt to speak but she cuts me off. “Did you think that I'd smile once you return with such a story? Did you think that I'd rather believe you?” she scoff, I see the hurt in her eyes. “We came into this house with our dignity in check, we were not pushovers. Now, how do you think that Owen would think? That I raised a whore?”
“Mom, I'm not a whore. You should at least try to understand what I mean,”
“Understand what, Chrissy?” she raises her voice again. “To shut down all the embarrassment and mishap you are beginning cause, go to Dayle now and end things. Talk things through and END it. NOW!” she instructs
“Mom, it's not what you're even thinking I swear—”
“Chrissy, not another word. I have heard lot of shits coming from you for the past thirty minutes.” she adds.
Respectfully, I carry myself out of the room. Little did I know that Dayle was standing right in front of the room.
He envelopes me within a blink, it is just what I needed at the moment. We head away—to his room in particular.
I sit on the sofa fighting the tears in my eyes, he takes a thick sheet from his wardrobe wrapping it around my body making sure that I'm cuddled up, I'm hugging my legs to my chest.
He sits next to me without a word.
“Doesn't it hurt you?” I ask innocently and he scoffs with a sad smile. “Ain't you gonna cry or something? How do you hold up so good?”
“Chriss, you and I can't be in the same state. How would you feel if I cried with you, who would soothe the other? And besides, this is better than being sent away!” he teases and I give a real smile.
“This is not a joke, we could get kicked out—aren’t you thinking about that too?”
“I am.” he blows out some air. “I'm worried but do you know why I'm not overtly worried?”
“No, you tell me!”
“I don't have to hide my emotions anymore, I can simply spell it out in front of everyone. Now that the most important people in our lives know the truth, isn't it relieving?”
“Heck yeah!”
He moves closer. “You should you know by now that I'm not one to back down easily. The moment I stop loving you is the time I drop dead,”
“That's sensitive!”
“But that's the truth!” he snaps. “I know that you are really exhausted right now, we should go to bed early. We've got another demon to face by morning, sweetheart.” he says. He lifts me up and lands me gently on his bed, he shoves the duvet to my chest.
“Are you going to bed now?” I ask
“I will, once you doze off. I have a speech to rehearse. I'll take some minutes for it before bed!” he explains and then places a kiss on my forehead but it's not enough for me. I cup his face crashing my lips against his salacious lips, I kiss him like I don't want to let go and when I finally let go—I instantly regret. He turns off the lights leaving behind his signature smirk.
“I love you Chrissy, so much!” he tells me as he walks over to the couch and sits on it taking up his laptop, placing it in front of him. I stare at him carefully while he focuses on the screen.
I'm finding it a bit difficult to fall asleep while Dayle is in the picture. When I remember the excerpt he had read earlier, he comes to my mind. I see him. He's one of the reasons I'm reading that novel.
My eyes shift to his features—his face.
His beauty is invincible, from his perfect hairline to his pretty brown eyes then to his roman nose and flawless lips and jawline...
His fingers rake his silky dark hair offhandedly then he extends to rub his face. He's looking bothered and exhausted as well. Staring at him for a long time shifts me into a dream world, until I see blank. Nothing more.

*
Morning time,
06:15 pm,
My eyes are open scanning the room in search of Dayle but he isn't anywhere close, I do the cat stretch before stepping out of bed. My eyes dart on the alarm clock, it's sixteen minutes past six o'clock. I should prepare for school but I don't think that I want to go to school either. Prom is tomorrow and I simply don't have plans as well.
“Dayle? Dayle?” I call but there's no response. I head out the room making way to my bedroom. I took a lot of risk falling asleep in Dayle’s room but then he didn't share the bed with me—he spent the night on the couch.
I enter my room. I see Mom sitting on the edge of my bed sipping from a cup of milk. Damn. What is shebdlimg her?
“Go-good morning, Mom!” I greet her, she lifts her gaze to meet mine as I scarily wall towards her.
“You didn't pass the night in your room, Chriss!” she points up
“Yeah. I uh... I fell asleep in Dayle’s room the was why,”
“What has gotten into you?”
“Mom, you're getting it all wrong. We didn't share the same bed—he slept on the couch!” I lean on the desk beside me.
“You have no shame, do you?”
“Mom!”
“Don’t ‘Mom’ me, you don't have any remorse Chrissy. I don't even know where you got this idea of falling in love with Dayle... There are a bunch of guys out there—what happened to Egan? What happened to Ken or just some good guys out there?”
“Are you saying that Dayle is a bad guy?” my face wings immediately
“I would never. I'm saying that you can't be in a relationship with him,”
“And why?” innocently, I ask
“Why?” she scoffs, “You share a relationship—being siblings is no play Chriss, don't you understand?”
“We are not even related my blood, and he's not even a biological son of this family—Mr Owen, it doesn't stop us from loving each other Mom.” I calmly explain to her, I kneel in front of her taking her free hand since the other is clutching around the glass of milk.
“I know that we hitched the whole thing and we could have just... Mom, I love Dayle very much. I really do and he loves me so much. He saved my life, remember?”
“Is that a debt you have pay, loving him? Couldn't there be anything else we could do to pay it off?” she asks in concern
“He didn't do it because he wanted something in return—Mom how could you think that way? He did it because he loves me! Mom I just need your approval, I'd be happy—”
“And what if I say no? You are asking for the impossible—Owen is mad. He doesn't approve of the idea,”
“What's making it impossible? I've laid out the possibilities—I’m so sorry that we couldn't be the perfect children but it won't change the fact that we love each other.”
“What happened to Egan? He's an ideal pick!” she asks, I sit next to her.
“We’ve been having several misunderstandings, it was getting out of hand. He gets mad at me every little time. When Dayle told him about me yesterday—he called me names. Ugly names. He thinks I'm a whore,”
“No way my darling, you're not a whore, you're my daughter!” she defiantly adds enveloping me like a child that I am to her.
“Ken and Ellen hates me. Everyone hates me...”
“I'm not everyone, Owen and I love you so much my love, don't worry. Go ahead and start preparing for prom, okay?!” she tells me and I nod. “Owen and I will discuss about the whole situation. I want your happiness and I know that there's no harm in your relationship—especially for a fact that Dayle has got his biological parents. I want you to be happy so I'll do this for you!” she adds and I hug her again.
“Thanks Mom, I love you so much!”
“I'm still mad at you for not seeking my advice!” she teases walking out of the room.
“Didn't know how you would react...” I scream a bit. If it had been from the start then Dayle and I would not have had the guts to tell anyone until we found a reason. It's healthier.
A text enters my phone, I haven't used my phone since last night. I take a peek.
*Hurry and get dressed!*
*We are going for a shopping spree!!!*
It's from Dayle, I smile at the text and myself.
*Aye aye, valedictorian!*
I swing into the washroom to shower, I'd rather spend the rest of my day with Dayle than fucking Hemsville.