27. Chapter Twenty-Seven
The sudden noise of my bedroom door swinging open startles me, and then I hear it - her voice, piercing and shrieking. Panic overwhelms me as I realize I’ve overslept. And to add to the chaos, Xander is lying naked beside me.
“What in the world is happening?” my mom screams, making me jump out of bed, fully aware of my latest screw-up. My cheeks burn with shame as I stand naked before my mother. But she”s not paying attention to me. Instead, her attention is on Xander, who absentmindedly scratches his groin while frantically searching through the disarray of clothes on the floor. And to add to my shock, he’s sporting a raging erection.
“Get out of here now!” she yells, her voice filled with panic. “Get out or I’ll call the cops.”
Xander’s sudden display of nudity in front of my mother completely catches me off guard, causing me to momentarily forget that I’m also unclothed. It’s only when she glances back at me that I snap back to reality. Hastily, I grab the oversized crumpled t-shirt resting at the edge of the bed and swiftly pull it over my head.
Xander hastily pulls on his jeans, but he’s not fast enough, leaving his ass on display. All I can do is stare at it. Come on, Poppy. Get your shit together. Now is not the time to check out his ass. Your mother is right there, after all.
I suddenly snap out of my daze and nervously shift my gaze towards my furious mother, who is giving me a deathly glare. Yeah, she totally caught me shamelessly checking out his butt.
“I told you to get the hell out of my house,” my mom shouts. She’s super pissed, I think she’s about to explode.
Xander, in a rush, quickly throws on his shirt and then steals a glance at me from across the bed.
“Catch you later, Princess,” he mutters, and heads towards the window.
He opens the window and slips through, leaving me alone with my mother’s seething anger.
As I stand there in the uncomfortable silence, I’m unsure where to direct my gaze. Briefly, my eyes glance at the floor before shifting to the untidy bed. I can’t help but notice that the fitted sheet has once again come loose from the corner, most likely due to the wild night I had with Xander. The mere thought of what he did to my body and the mind-blowing orgasm he gave me sends a wave of tingling sensations rushing through me. Being with him feels like my body is a finely tuned instrument, and he is the skilled maestro coaxing out every sound and sensation it can produce.
I turn my head and watch as my mother walks over to the window that Xander just slipped through. With a firm grip, she shuts it and locks it.
“So, this is how you choose to spend your time when I’m not here,” she remarks, her words dripping with disdain.
Her eyes meet mine, but I quickly divert my gaze, unable to hold her stare. “I never raised you to be a promiscuous little slut, but unfortunately, that seems to be the case now. And to top it off, it had to be with a loser like him.”
Her words cut through me like sharp daggers. While the unfounded accusation of me being promiscuous didn’t bother me, it was when she labeled Xander as a loser that truly hurt. It bugs me she doesn”t have her own point of view and just sees things the way Xander says people see him. It”s not his fault his life turned upside down when his mom passed away.
“His name is Xander, and he is anything but a loser,” I add, feeling annoyed.
“I know exactly who he is, damn it. The entire neighborhood knows about that boy,” she exclaims, ranting and pacing around the room. Suddenly, she pauses, taking a moment to gather her thoughts. “Wait, is he the one who influenced you to change your plans for next year?” Without waiting for my response, she continues her rant, pacing back and forth. “That’s why I couldn’t reach you. It’s all his fault.”
“No, Mother, he didn’t influence me. He simply made me realize the importance of standing up for what I want,” I explain. Her constant blaming of Xander is truly starting to irritate me. I walk over to the bed and neatly arrange the sheets, deliberately avoiding any further discussion on the topic. Yep, she busted me sleeping with Xander, and I take responsibility for getting caught, but I wish she’d move on already.
“I’m amazed at how na?ve you are. Do you truly believe that he actually cares about you? Brace yourself for a harsh reality check because the truth is, he’s only using you, and you’ve fallen for it. Can’t you see that he’s just like your father? That boy will never genuinely care for you, no matter what he says. It’s all just empty lines that they feed you, my dear, foolish girl.”
“Seriously, it’s time to move on. It’s been over eight years since you and Dad were together. Your constant dwelling on him is getting exhausting.” My comment takes her by surprise. “Honestly, I can’t handle hearing about how he messed up and hurt you anymore. It”s totally wearing me out.”
“Do you honestly think things will change with that boy? Wake up. He’s simply toying with you. Can’t you see that?”
“You don’t know who he is, so keep your opinions to yourself. Are we done here?” With the bed now tidied up, I stand, hoping she’ll grasp my subtle hint and leave my room, thus putting an end to this conversation. However, she remains unmoved, giving me a chilling stare.
“No, we can’t just drop this conversation. Come out to the family room immediately. I can’t be in here, aware of what you did with that boy in your bed.”
“Sorry, but I’m done talking about this. Feel free to close the door when you leave, because I’m finished.” I turn and flop on the bed.
“You have two choices here, Poppy. Either you come talk to me now or I”ll call the police and let them know that the scumbag from two doors down broke into our house. It”s your choice.”
Seriously, is she for fucking real? I give her the death stare. I”m so pissed off that it”s come to that. “You can’t be serious?”
“Yes, Poppy, I’m serious. If you don’t get out into that room now, I’ll make that call.” With those words, she walks out of my room.
Standing there, I can’t help but feel a wave of worry as I watch the doorway long after she’s gone. The time has come for me to step out of the safety of my room and confront her anger head-on. It’s a simple decision, really. I have to go out there because if I don’t, she’ll start causing trouble for Xander. And that’s something I absolutely cannot allow to happen.
Xander has so many aspirations, and so many dreams he wants to pursue. Life hasn’t been kind to him so far, and if my mother were to interfere, it would be an absolute disaster. Xander would be stuck with a criminal record before he even gets a shot at chasing his dream of fame, his music career. Just imagine how a record label would view that, especially with a breaking-and-entering charge hanging over his head. It’s no wonder my dad walked away. I’m willing to bet he couldn’t handle the constant turmoil my mother put him through.
I let out a groan as I get up off the bed and make my way down the hallway.
As I step into the family room, the sound of clattering dishes in the kitchen fills my ears, serving as a reminder of the mess I left behind last night. My plan was to get up early and clean it all before my mom came home. But with Xander showing up and keeping me awake all night, everything got messed up.
I”m just standing there, watching her as she fills a glass at the sink.
She drinks the water, puts the glass upside down on the sink, and then turns to look at me. She points to the table. “Take a seat,” she instructs.
I make my way over and sit in my usual spot at the table.
“How long has this been going on?” she asks, taking a seat across from me.
The tension in the room is palpable, like an electric current crackling through the air.
“How long has what been going on?” I play dumb on purpose, acting like I know nothing. If she”s gonna act like a bitch, I will too.
“Stop it with the games, Poppy.”
Glancing at my hands, I can’t help but notice the faint marks left behind by my nails digging into my palms ever since she caught Xander and me in the room.
“About a week or so,” I say, not letting on that it had really been just over three months.
“Can you tell me how it started?” She gets up and slowly walks around the table, her footsteps echoing on the tiles.
“I don’t know,” I shrug, not in the mood to engage in this conversation with her. It was none of her business what I did while I was here alone. If she hadn”t found us this morning, she wouldn”t have a clue about what was happening. There was no way I could tell her that Xander had been coming here for months. She’d be furious if she ever found out. I’ve never had the kind of relationship with my mother where I could openly share things. That dynamic was always reserved for my dad.
“What do you mean you don’t know?” she asks, coming back to the table and bending down to look into my face, as if attempting to intimidate me into answering. “You must know, I’m not that na?ve, Poppy.”
“I don’t know what you want me to say.”
“Well, you’re not to see that boy anymore. You hear me.”
“You can’t stop me.” I get up from my seat, ready to leave the room.
“Oh yes I can, you’re only seventeen.”
“I’m eighteen in two weeks. And then, I’m free to do whatever I want.”
“While you’re under this roof, you will do as I say. Are we clear?”
“Well, maybe I don’t want to live here anymore,” I add. The thought of losing Xander in a matter of weeks was already distressing, but the notion of not being able to see him before he left was inconceivable. Furthermore, even after he left, I still wanted to keep in contact with him to hear about his new life and how things were progressing for him.
“Do you understand what I am saying, or do I need to make that call?”
I fight the urge to scream at her. “Yes, I understand. I will stay away from him.”
I maintain a poker face to prevent revealing my lie. The mere thought of being apart from Xander is unfathomable. The impending end of school fills me with dread, knowing that his departure will shatter my heart. However, for now, I cherish having him in my life, despite the possibility that he might forget me once he achieves his fame. Until then, for the next five weeks, until he departs, we can secretly continue this friendship/relationship without getting caught. We just have to exercise extreme caution to avoid getting caught, like we did this morning.
“Poppy, can you guarantee you won”t break your promise? I can always swing by during work hours to make sure you”re keeping your word.”
Drawing on my personal experiences over the years, I knew that she wouldn’t simply drop by to check on me. Her work schedule lacks flexibility, making it difficult for her to leave whenever she wants. In my younger years, I often longed for her presence at my school events, but she couldn’t leave work. So, why should this occasion be any different?
“Yes, Mom. I will stay away.”
My comment brings a smile to her face, yet beneath the surface, I feel a twinge of shame for deceiving her. As she nods, I can”t help but feel the weight of guilt as her blue eyes remain fixed on mine. But I knew the guilt would fade because Xander would be leaving soon, leaving my lie hidden.
“Can I go now?” I ask.
“I hate to say it, but you”ve disappointed me, Poppy,” she sighs sadly.
I don”t respond because I”m sure she”ll totally see through me, see my lies.
“Hurry up and get to school,” she says.
“I just need to quickly shower before I go,” I explain, leaving her alone in the room.
Thank God, going to school suddenly seems like the best option to avoid her never-ending interrogation. She can”t help herself. She always jumps on the bandwagon about something. But at least this way, I can still hang out with Xander, even if we don”t really have conversations at school.