Chapter 17

"He's so stupid." I mumble, a sense of excitement bubbling in me as I walk around the house. "He's an idiot. How can he just go and buy a stupid house? What's his problem? He's so mean. How can he leave me like this after showing me our home together?" My words totally contradict my feelings though, as I literally bounce around with a grin.

I continue to talk to myself as I walk through every room in the house. There's already furniture, beds, appliances, security cameras...everything. It doesn't seem like he just bought the house on a whim.

Everything is so nicely decorated, and the marble floors shine so brightly with the sun hitting them.

There's little name tags on the doors of each room, and I let out a small laugh at the thought of Ethan labeling everything so I know what is what. One room, though, I absolutely refuse to go in.

The basement.

I have watched way too many movies, and my black ass is not going to be one of those idiots who goes into the basement for fun then gets killed. We are smarter than that.

With that being said...I'm not going to let the possibility of someone being in there and coming out to kill me happen either. So I grab one of the chairs from the dining table and shove it under the doorknob.

The doorbell rings, making me jump at the unexpectedness.

I hesitate to move to the door, unsure of who it could be. What if it's Ethan's mom? Or maybe it's Ethan himself.

Wait, no. He has a key. He wouldn't ring the doorbell. After panicking for a few moments I quietly make my way to the front door, leaning up on my tippy toes to squint out the peephole.

Huh. I don't see anyone.

I open the door just slightly, and greeting me on the doorstep is a bag. Once I pick it up I realize it was a food delivery. Quickly closing the door, I walk to the dining room and set the food down. Scanning the receipt taped to the sealed bag, I search the piece of paper for the cardholders name just to make sure.

As suspected, Ethan's name is sat right there, typed on the receipt.

A small smile comes over my face, though so does an ache in my heart. I hate that he's not here. Usually if you stay in a house meant for you and your partner, the partner is supposed to be there too.

The doorbell rings again, and I go through that same sense of panic I did before. Quickly going to the door again, I don't even look out the peephole before swinging it open.

A man stands at the door, rubbing his hands. Multiple bags of things sit at his feet.

"Hi, are you..." He quickly takes out his phone, looking at his screen for a moment. "Nova?"

"Yes. That's me." I bite my lip.

"Someone named Ethan ordered these for you." He starts to hand me the bags.

Taking a peek inside of one, I realize they're groceries.

Being too many to carry at once, I set them down on the wall alongside the door.

"Oh, and I was also asked to write this up for you." He says awkwardly, handing me a folded piece of paper.

"Oh, uh. Thanks." I chuckle a bit. "Sorry for the trouble."

"It's no problem at all! Especially not with the tip he offered." The man laughs.

We say goodbye and I make multiple trips to the kitchen to bring the bags there.

Setting the letter on the table, I wash and put away the groceries before sitting down. Now starving, I begin to eat the breakfast food delivered earlier.

"This is so good." I groan, almost crying due to the happiness I feel.

Once I finish eating, I clean up before grabbing the folded piece of paper. Humming, I quickly unfold it, eager to see what Ethan had the poor delivery guy write.

'Hi My Love!

How are you doing so far? Do you like the house? If anything in the closet doesn't fit then let me know and I'll go exchange sizes. Do you like the colors I picked out for the walls? Or the bedsheets? Whatever you don't like we can change.

I already miss you! You probably think that's lame, but I don't care. I can't wait to see you in 10 days.

I'll be waiting for you.

- E.A

Smiling, I fold the paper up and hold it to my chest.

"10 days." I whisper under my breath. "Just 10 more days, and it'll all be over."

Feeling that familiar lump in my throat, I grab a water bottle and go upstairs, wanting to visit my favorite rooms again. I really like our bedroom.

It's spacious and has a big window. The bathroom is super nice too, and the shower water shoots out from the ceiling. I also like the theater room and the 'game room' that's labeled downstairs, though it has more of a man-cave feel to it.

My favorite, though, is the one my feet keep carrying me to subconsciously.

I even find myself in it now, sitting in the middle of the room just looking around.

The walls are painted with gray and white stripes, a crib is placed nicely in the corner, and small toys along with books are neatly decorated around the room.

Though the stripes aren't my favorite...I love it. I love this room the most.

Gosh...I really hope these 10 days go by quickly. I just want everything to be okay and for Ethan to be safe after this. I'll do anything and everything I can so that we can live normally again.

Anything.

~

"But you're okay, right?"

"Yeah. I was depressed and then I looked in the backyard and saw there was a pool and a hot tub. My happiness came back in an instant." I laugh, holding my phone to my ear as I prop myself up on the edge of the jacuzzi.

I had looked through all the clothes Ethan had stuffed in the closet. Some were for him- but most of them were mine.

Though, I couldn't help but to think he bought some of the clothes that are for me, for him only due to the amount it would show if I wore them. Or rather, the lack of what it'd cover.

I mean, hell, even the bathing suits seemed like he was just looking for whatever covered the least.

"I don't like that he just stuffed you in a random house and basically said 'here, this is for us. Now I'm leaving you to prepare for my wedding with another girl. Wait for me, bye!'. That doesn't sit well with me." Callie speaks into the phone, clearly not okay with the situation.

"I don't think he meant anything in a malicious way. He's just trying to protect her from whatever is going on." Cameron's voice comes next.

I had explained very vaguely what was happening- and why in only 8 more days we'd all be attending a wedding.

"I think it's fucking crazy that his mom is trying to have him marry someone else just because she's an ugly bitch with no flavor." Lorena speaks up, her voice slightly more distanced.

"I...would rather not speak on this topic. It's none of my business." I hear Dylan come right after.

I bite the insides of my cheek, looking up at the sky as my friends on the other line begin to discuss the situation.

"Hey, Nova!" Callie yells. I hum in response, letting her know I'm listening. "Have you seen any of the neighbors?"

My eyebrows furrow at the question, but I think about it for a second.

"Hmmm no. I haven't went outside- well except for the backyard. And when we got here it was still kind of early so it's not like people were outside or anything." I note, wondering why she'd ask such a weird question.

"Girl. You better look out your damn window everyday and make sure he ain't bring your ass to a bunch of white people. If this is an episode of Get Out, I'm not coming to help you. They're gonna snatch me up real quick." Callie scoffs, making me laugh.

My laugh slowly dies down though when I realize shes right.

I like Ethan, and I like his aunt and all...but not all white people are the same. Especially upper class white people. And this neighborhood is very nice.

Now, I'm very aware that there's tons of wealthy minorities as well. But Ethan being Ethan and raised in a conservative home...I'm not sure he's too well versed on that subject.

"And that means we'll never be able to come over because we're all minorities. I want to visit my niece or nephew!" Callie shouts, making me smile a bit.

"I'm not a minority." Cameron chuckles.

"Then shut the fuck up."

I'm not even sure who said it, but I burst out laughing.

As we all continue to talk, I can't help but be grateful that I can at least communicate with them while I'm in this house.