Chapter 17 #2
“Oh, sweetie,” Dad said sympathetically. He must have misinterpreted my guilt as disappointment, because he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around me. “I know you feel bad, but Violet will come around. Just give her time, okay?”
Nodding against his chest, I closed my eyes and gave myself a moment to enjoy the comfort of his hug before pulling away. “I ran into Alec at the recording studio. He mentioned something about a birthday party for Violet. Are we throwing one here tomorrow?”
Dad shook his head. “A few of her costars are hosting it at their place, and before you ask, the answer is no—you’re not allowed to go. You’re still grounded. We’re celebrating with your grandma next weekend at Vine & Dine.”
“Don’t worry. I wasn’t planning on it.” Heaving a sigh, I gestured toward the back staircase. “Well, I’ll be upstairs. I need to get some homework done.”
“Okay. I’m ordering Pacific Crust for dinner tonight. What do you want on your pizza?”
“Just cheese, but can you get some of those garlic knots too?”
“Sure thing.” Dad turned to go, then paused in the doorway. When he glanced back at me, I could see the uncertainty in his eyes. “I was also wondering… Would you maybe want to watch a movie tonight?”
“With you?” I asked, not bothering to keep the surprise from my voice.
He nodded. “Since I missed the Halloween marathon, I thought we could watch something scary.”
My heart leapt at the suggestion, and I broke out into a grin. “Yeah, Dad. I’d really like that.”
“Good,” he said, returning my smile, and as if to signal the end of our conversation, his phone rang. “Duty calls, but I’ll see you later tonight, okay? You pick the movie, I’ll bring the popcorn.” Then he was off, punching Talk on his headset and heading down the hall to his office.
I watched him go, pleasantly surprised by our exchange. This was still the same Edward Jamiolkowski who reveled in working twelve-hour days, but now he was finding time to fit me in, even if it was only a movie or a quick chat.
Still grinning to myself, I retreated to my bedroom and closed the door. Dad was probably right, I needed to be patient with Violet, but just in case I was wrong about her ignoring me, I sent one last text.
Indie:
Hey, Vi. I know you’re mad at me, but can we talk? I really want to apologize.
Once my jeans were swapped for a pair of sweatpants, I brought my backpack over to my desk and took out my physics textbook.
I’d missed a lab on Wednesday and had to solve an entire packet of practice problems to make up for it.
Before digging in, I checked my phone to see if Violet had responded.
There were no new notifications, but I clicked on our conversation anyway.
When I spotted the tiny gray message below my text, I did a double take.
Indie:
Hey, Vi. I know you’re mad at me, but can we talk? I really want to apologize.
Read 4:12 PM
At some point between texting Violet about coming to New Edge and now, she’d turned on her read receipts…so I’d know she was ignoring me.
Greeeat.
Unlike me, Violet wasn’t normally one to hold grudges, which meant she must be beyond pissed. I had a sinking feeling that a mere conversation wouldn’t be enough to get rid of the wedge I’d driven between us.
But what could I do? I was stuck at home while Violet was clearly avoiding me at all costs.
I slouched against my computer chair and let my head fall back as I mulled over how I could show my sister how sorry I was.
Ten minutes of staring at the ceiling later, an idea came to me.
It wasn’t a very good idea, and I’d most likely wind up serving more time on house arrest if I was caught, but it was all I had.
I scooped up my phone, scrolled through my contacts, and selected Galaxy Rider.
Xander picked up right away, and my ears were immediately assaulted by whatever loud music was playing in the background. “Hey, what’s up?”
“I have a major crisis on my hands, so I figured I’d call the most reliable person I know to help me problem solve,” I told him.
He laughed, and despite my situation with Violet, the sound of his amusement was enough to make me smile. “I’ve never thought of myself as a problem solver, but all right. What’s this crisis of yours?”
“Well, I want to apologize to Violet for being a crappy sister,” I said, and either Xander moved closer to the music or someone cranked up the volume, because it was suddenly blaring. “The issue is, not only am I being ignored, but—”
“Sorry, Indie, I can’t hear you. Hold on a sec.” He must have put his hand over the receiver, because everything suddenly sounded muffled. It wasn’t muted, however. “JJ, stop being an asshole! I’m on the phone.”
A moment passed, but then the music cut off, and Xander’s side of the line went crystal clear.
“Sorry about that,” he said. “What were you saying?”
“That Violet is ignoring and avoiding me.”
“Okay. Is there something specific I can do about it?”
“Actually, there is,” I told him. “Were you invited to her birthday party tomorrow?” I crossed my fingers and prayed he was. If not, my plan wouldn’t work.
“Well, it’s more of a backyard cookout than a party, but yeah. The whole band was,” he replied. “We’re going to play a quick set.”
I grinned. “That’s even better. I’m going to need your guys’ help.”