Declan had won the first game but Selene and Verona teamed up in the second game to beat the boys.
Selene knew that her house would be empty when she came home.
So when she hugged Verona goodbye and kissed Declan quickly, she was surprised to turn to her head and see her house lit up.
Declan honked once in goodbye as Selene headed up the stairs to the front door.
"Dad?" she called as she opened the front door. "Carter?"
"Living room," Carter called back.
"What are you doing home?" she asked as she strolled into the living room.
"Where did you go?" a voice said.
She looked up.
A woman with blonde hair, fake features and way too much botox. She held a glass of pink Moscato in her fragile hand and her pink lips stretched in a smile at Selene.
"What are you doing here?" Selene asked her mom.
Lucille Calloway had once looked like her daughter but her husband quote-unquote "leaving her for a man" and losing custody of her child had taken a toll on her. The only visible similarity between the two was their brown eyes.
Lucille's hair was filled out with blonde extensions. Her lips larger than Selene had remembered, her cheekbones carved from clay, and her body thinner.
"I'm stopping by," Lucille responded.
"Does Dad know?"
Lucille smiled. "Micah!" she called.
Selene's dad, Micah, jogged down the stairs. "Oh Selene, you're home."
She felt like she was in some sort of simulation.
"How was laser tag with... ?" he trailed off as he walked over to the couch. He sat next to Lucille and patted the seat next to him.
Selene sat in between her parents, putting her phone on the table. "My friends," she answered. She looked up. "Is anyone going to answer why she is here?"
Micah opened his mouth but Lucille was already speaking, "Who's Declan?"
"What?" the rest of them said.
Selene turned to her mom.
Lucille was looking down at Selene's phone.
Selene quickly grabbed her phone.
Declan had texted her, probably to tell her that he had gotten home safe--her phone was locked and she couldn't see the message. She regretted letting Declan put a heart emoji next to his name as Lucille asked, "You have a boyfriend?"
"Sort of," Selene said.
"What?" Carter repeated. "Is this a new Declan?"
"No."
"Zoë's ex-boyfriend?" Carter asked. "Is your sort of boyfriend?"
"Sort of?"
"Selene, you need to explain everything right now," Micah said.
Selene sighed. "He broke Zoë's heart so we're... teaching him a lesson."
Carter sighed.
"It's just a simple prank!" she explained quickly.
"Selene," Micah started, "are you catfishing this man?"
"No!" she exclaimed.
But damn, she should have thought of that instead of this stupid plan. It would have been much simpler, and she never would have had to swap spit with him.
Micah sighed. "I hope you know what you're doing."
Her phone vibrated in her hand. Declan had a signature vibrate that was different than the default and she knew it was him, probably starting a conversation with him.
She stood and gestured to Lucille. "I hope you know what you're doing. I'm going to my room."
»
"Knock knock," her father said as his fist rapped against Selene's bedroom door.
"You don't have to say that when you knock," Selene replied, pausing her youtube video.
Micah walked further into her room. "Scoot over," he said as he neared her bed.
Selene scooted over, making room for her dad on her bed.
"I know you're upset about your mom being here--"
Selene scoffed.
"But," he started again, "she just needs a place to stay."
"Why?"
"She ran low on cash."
"So put her in a motel."
"I can't."
"Why not?"
He sighed. "I feel guilty. I told your mother that I thought I was gay and couldn't be with her until I figured it out. I forced her out."
"You can't blame yourself," she said. "You are who you are and you love Carter."
"About Carter."
Selene looked up at her father.
"How would you feel about me--" he shrugged "--proposing to him?"
She gasped. "Really?"
He nodded. "Would you be okay with that?"
Selene had been ten when her father explained that he was bisexual--and what exactly that meant--, she was fourteen when he first introduced her to Carter and he had been living with them for over two years. Ever since the first few mornings that she had woken up to Carter in their kitchen, she had wondered when one of them would propose.
"Of course," she exclaimed. "You know I love Carter. He basically helped me survive high school."
Her father looked down; they both knew how much Carter had helped Selene through the years.
"As long as I get to be your maid of honour."
He chuckled. "So what's going on with Declan?"
She shrugged, "Not much."
"Why don't you invite him over for dinner sometime?"
She shook her head. "He is not worth the embarrassment of you pulling out my baby pictures."
"I don't like the idea of you having a boyfriend that I haven't met."
"Exactly why I didn't tell you about him, you wouldn't even know he existed."
He scoffed, looking away. After a minute, he sighed deeply. "Do I have to give you the talk?"
"Dad!" she exclaimed.
"I can get Carter to do it instead if you would rather he do this."
"I don't need the talk," she said, her cheeks heating up. "I took parenting last year. Plus there was the whole grade nine incident."
He nodded. "Right." He leaned over and kissed her forehead. "I'll spring for extra whip cream on Sunday to make up for everything."
"Night."
"Night." He stood and walked out of her door, closing it softly behind him.
She laid back and reached for her phone.
Declan had sent her a message a few minutes ago. 'i have a question for you'
She unlocked her phone, flipping on her back. 'Shoot.'
'how would you like to meet my family?'
'The number you have messaged is not in service.'
'please' He sent her a photo of him in bed, his lips in a pout.
'Sigh. Send me the deets I'm going to bed.'
Declan sent her a slew of heart emojis and she smiled before turning off her phone.