Chapter 16
“Mom and Dad’s plane just landed,” I say as I step into the living room. Stella is curled up on the couch with Whiskers.
She sits up and he jumps off and trots away, probably to go lie in the kitchen window—his favorite spot.
“Time to put on a happy face and fake some holiday cheer.”
I laugh lightly. “Dad was already asking if we pulled out all the lights for the house. He’s ready to go full Griswold.”
Stella smiles, but it’s so half-hearted that it makes my insides hurt.
She hasn’t wanted to talk about it at all.
We both crashed as soon as we got back last night, and this morning, we watched Hallmark movies and ate junk food.
She’s still attached to her phone, but I haven’t seen her texting as much.
Her willpower is far greater than mine. I haven’t heard from Teddy, and it’s killing me. We left things in such a weird place. I don’t know how to move forward.
“Go take a shower. I’ll pull out the lights and help Dad. Mom will want to unpack and start the laundry before she does anything else. Should buy you an hour or two.”
“Thanks, Holly.” She stands and picks up the discarded ice cream container and chip bag. “Is Teddy coming with Felix?”
“No. He’s going to Emmett’s house for break.”
“Really?”
“He’d already made plans to go there. Plus, we didn’t leave things in the best place.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know. It just felt weird as we were leaving. I know he’s Felix’s best friend, but last night, he made me feel like when we were twelve and Felix’s friends would come over and ignore us.”
“I’m sorry my drama caused trouble for you.”
“Teddy’s actions are not on you.”
She nods. “It was a crazy night. Maybe he’ll change his mind and come here again.”
“Maybe.”
“Have you texted him to ask?”
“No,” I admit.
“You want him to make the move this time?” One side of her mouth pulls up into a small smile.
“Is that wrong?”
“No. I get that. You deserve to have someone make the move.”
The sound of the garage door opening cause both of us to freeze. I glance out the front window in time to see Felix’s orange car pulling up.
I move into the kitchen to greet him as he comes inside through the mudroom. I wait, heart rate picking up speed, for another person to step in behind him, but the door swings closed.
“Hey,” Felix says when he sees me. He drops his bag to the floor and his mouth pulls into a tight smile.
Slowly, Stella gets up and comes to join us. They stare at each other. I can almost see a giant cartoon bubble above my sister’s head, waiting for Felix to apologize or say something. He doesn’t.
She sighs, loudly. “I’m going to shower.”
When she’s gone, Felix says, “You pissed at me too?”
I think for a second. “No, but you two should talk.”
“Yeah.” He comes over and hugs me. I want to ask him about Teddy, but Mom and Dad pull up before I can get the words out. With Stella in the shower, Felix and I are held captive to stories from their vacation.
They’re tan and smiling. I can’t remember the last time my mother didn’t rush off to unpack, but she leans against the kitchen island and stares at Dad with this big cheesy grin.
Eventually, though, Dad’s impatience and excitement break up story time and Felix and I are dragged outside to the storage shed. Dad rummages for everything he needs, handing off items and instructions for where to put the lights. He has a whole system that is not to be messed with.
“You and Teddy, huh?”
I blush. “Yeah. I mean, maybe. I’m not really sure where we left things.”
Felix nods slowly.
“Is it weird?”
He thinks for a couple of seconds. “Not really. A little, maybe, but I can see it. Teddy is the best guy I know.”
“Who knows if anything will happen when we get back to school,” I say. I wait for him to offer up some form of reassurance. Usually I’d get that from Stella, but I haven’t wanted to pile on to her Beau drama.
Felix gives a half-hearted shrug that is the furthest thing from reassuring.
Later, when all the lights are up, I leave Dad and Felix to admire our handiwork and wander back inside. Mom and Stella are in the living room, putting up an artificial tree.
My heart sinks. “I miss having a real tree.”
“A real tree doesn’t make sense this year. And the lots are probably picked over at this point.”
Stella holds out the star for the top. “Want to do the honors?”
I brush off my disappointment and step forward. “Absolutely.”
Mom gets takeout for dinner and then she and Dad head off to bed early, exhausted from their trip.
Felix, Stella, and I move into the living room.
The tree is lit up and I put on Christmas Vacation.
It’s awkward, since they’re barely speaking, but at least they’re not completely ignoring each other.
My brother’s phone buzzes, and he pulls it from his pocket and then stands. “I think I’m going to head up to bed, too.”
“Already?” I whine.
“I’m beat.” He starts up the stairs, already tapping away on his phone.
“Did I miss something?” Stella asks. “Did he meet someone or is he just avoiding me?”
“Not that I know about, but you know Felix, he always has girls blowing up his phone.”
We watch the movie for a few minutes in silence.
“Anything from Teddy?”
“No.” I flip my phone over in my hand to stare at the blank screen.
“I’m sorry,” she says.
“It’s fine.” I smile and go back to watching Chevy Chase.
“I know you’re bummed and trying not to act like it, but it’s okay to be sad or disappointed or whatever you feel.” She takes my hand. “If Theodore doesn’t see how completely amazing you are, then he’s an idiot.”
“Thanks, Stell.”
“Beau has some cute friends.”
I laugh. “Let’s not give Felix a heart attack.”