Love Novel 38

I’m going to be sick.
I cover my mouth with my hand and run out of the living room and into the bathroom. Aiden catches the door before I
can close and he sneaks inside with me, his hands at my sides as I lean over the sick.
My stomach rolls and I groan.
Aiden grabs my hair, tucking it behind my ear as he whispers. “You’re taking this a bit harder than I thought you would.”
I close my eyes, ignoring the saliva that fills my mouth. Tears prick the back of my eyes and I shake my head. “It’s
different.”
He rubs his hand on my back. “What do you mean?”
My eyes hurt as I open them and look at him through the reflection of the mirror. “My father died a year ago. I wasn’t
expecting her to move on so soon.”
That’s partly true.
Aiden’s face falls, and he reaches for the sink, turning the knobs until lukewarm water splashes against the porcelain. He
cups his hand and brings some of the water to the back of my neck. It makes my skin prickle and a shiver runs down my
spine.
I hold onto his wrist. “How are you feeling about this?”
He frowns, swallowing. “It’s weird.”
I nod.
“And your mom’s a bitch.”
I snort, but then my stomach rolls again and I bend down lower to rest my forehead on my hands. “Are we- are we going
to live together?”
He tenses. “Shit. I didn’t even think about that.”
“What are people going to say?” I groan.
He chuckles. “You care about that?”
I shake my head and lift my eyes to his reflection. “Maybe.”
He grips my arms and turns me around, lifting me onto the counter as he settles himself between my legs. “We’ve been
delt a shit card.”
I nod. “Terrible.”
His mouth quirks with a smile. “We’ll get through it.”
His hands cup my cheeks, thumbs rubbing against my skin. It’s soothing, but it’s still not enough to calm the storm in my
body. My stomach twists again and I let my forehead fall against his chest.
Did he go after her on purpose? Becuase she’s my mom? Has he slept with her yet?
Fuck, I can’t think straight. I refuse to acknolwedge the jealous ache in my chest and attribute it to disgust instead.
“They want to get married during winter break.”
I squeeze his biceps, still not lifting my head. “So soon?”
He runs his hands down my spine. “It’s when Zaid will be here.”
Fuck, it all just gets worse.
“Um, they made us dinner.”
I lift my head, eyes widening. “I’m literally going to throw up.”
He cringes. “I’m sorry.”
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He helps me off the counter, and we make our way to the dining room where Jake and mom are already waiting for us.
That dinner is the single most fucking awkward thing to ever happen to me.
The sound of clinking silverware is the only thing to fill the space and I am on the verge of suffocating. I can’t even look
at my mother. She’s smiling to herself but all I can think about is the fact that she’s betraying dad, and Alex.
Don’t even get me started on Jake.
I stare down at my plate, moving the food around, unable to even consider eating. My stomach twists with nausea, and
the bile rises in my throat as mother talks about the wedding.
“And of course, we don;t want a big wedding. I’m happy with just having it in the backyard. Something simple, you
know? It’s both of our’s second wedding, so reason to go all out,” my mother chirps, her voice far too cheerful for the
situation.
Jake clears his throat, his voice indifferent. “Whatever you want, sweetheart.”
I don’t dare lift my eyes from the plate, but I can feel him watching me. I can feel his gaze burning into the top of my
head. It makes my skin crawl.
Aiden’s shifts his hand and rests it on my thigh, offering silent comfort, but it’s not enough to keep the disgust from
settling deep inside me. The idea of my mother marrying Jake… all of it feels wrong.
“And I am so excited to move in together, ” she continues, oblivious to the tension in the room, “It’d be nice to have all
of us under one roof. Like a real family.”
A real family.
The words hang in the air like a bitter joke. I squeeze my fork tighter, the metal biting into my palm, as I force myself to
breathe.
“Isn’t that exciting, Alina?” Jake’s voice cut’s through my thoughts.
I finally lift my eyes from my plate, only to find his gaze locked on me, his dark eyes narrowing as if he’s trying to pull the
truth from me. He’s trying to see what I really think, what I really feel about all of this.
Trying to see if I will break.
Aiden’s hand tightens slightly on my leg, a subtle reminder that he’s here, that he’s with me. But even with him next to me, it’s hard to shake the unease crawling through me.
“Oh, she’s not usually this guarded, I’m sorry Jake,” mother apologizes to him with a forced smile.
Jake grunts, eyes narrow.
“And we need to make sure Zaid is here for the wedding,” she just continues blabbing.
I look at him again, wanting to see Jake’s reaction at the mention of Zaid.
Jake is still staring at me. His face is calm, his smile tight, but his eyes… they’re not smiling. They’re fixed on me, watching, studying.
He clears his throat, breaking the silence. “I’ll make sure Zaid is there,” he says, his voice smooth but strained.
Mother looks between the two of us, her face blanching as she notices her fiance’s intense stare.
I feel like I’m suffocating. The air in the room is too thick, the walls closing in around me as I sit there, pretending
everything is fine, pretending I’m okay with this.
I’m not.
I’m far from okay.
I can’t stop thinking about Zaid, about him coming home, about how everything’s about to get even more complicated.
And Jake. Fucking Jake.
I push my chair back suddenly, the legs scraping against the floor as I stand.
I need to get out of here. Away from the smiles and the lies and the suffocating weight of everything.