forum Under The Painted Sky (O/O CLOSED)

Started March 18, 2019 by Deleted user

tune

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“I would never,” Sterling assured her with a shake of his head. “As for PE… I can handle myself. Trust me.”

Eden didn’t respond. She didn’t nod, either. Didn’t trust herself to make a move and not fall over. So she simply looked at him for a few seconds before turning around, taking out her keys and unlocking her apartment door.

When she was inside, she threw her bag aside, removed her lenses and practically fell on her bed, and it only then did she let her mask crumble and let the pain take her to sleep. She barely remembered getting the ice pack.

When Sterling got home after school that after noon — he'd gone back after taking Eden home — he stepped into the kitchen for a quick snack. His mom was cleaning the counters, which wasn't surprising since she did it at least once a week. What was odd about it was that she'd just cleaned them the other day.

"Mom? What're you doing?" Sterling wondered, giving her an odd look as he grabbed an apple.

His mother looked up from what she was cleaning and gave him a small smile before looking back down at the counter. "Cleaning up a bit for the guests we're going to have over tomorrow night."

Eden was glad it was a Friday. No school tomorrow. The only thing was… her parents. She always went home for the weekend. How would she face them and let them see her like this? The bruise on her cheek was dark. She had a split lip. Even makeup wouldn't hide it very well.

She heaved a tired sigh. It wouldn't be the first time, though. Although she kept her lifestyle a secret from them, injuries were always hard to conceal. They knew what type of girl she had become. They knew she what she did to keep herself from falling. They didn't know she was Crystal. They didn't know she did this just to keep her position at school.

Finally, she unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of her car, hoping her parents wouldn't think of anyone other than the bruises on her face. Lucas wouldn't be home. He had a dance class scheduled, and he offered to take Ashley, his girlfriend and her best friend, along with him. At least, she was her best friend. Eden had pushed everyone away when she had fallen.

She made her way to the house, unlocked the door with the key, and stepped inside.

Her father was not there. Her mother was not pleased.

As much as Eden wanted otherwise, she had to go to her father’s friend’s place. She tried covering her bruise as best as she could, but there were still a bit visible on her face. Now here she was, hands stuffed in her pockets, standing at their door while her father knocked.

And waited.

Marie Ainsley shot up in her chair at the sound of knocking, causing her husband to chuckle at her.

“I’m sure it’s just the McArthurs, love. No need to get so excited,” Daniel Ainsley teased his wife with a grin.

She shot him a playful glare and made her way to the front door. “If you haven’t seen one of your friends in years, you’d be exited, too,” she reminded him as she opened the door to reveal the family, grinning at McKenzie.

(Daniel McArthur? :o)

Eden shifted on her right leg, not in nervousness but more in anxiety. She disliked occasions like these. She was always quiet and her words where always formal, so she came off as rude. God knows how many times she had offended her father’s business partners because of it.

Finally, the door opened and a woman came into view, grinning brightly at her mother.

(My kind was on Huntzie. Lol. Whoops.)

“McKenzie! It’s so good to see you again! And Hunter, too,” Marie welcomes them, stepping aside to let them in. “This must be Eden, then. Where is Lucas? I was thinking it might be good for all of our children to meet.”

Kenzie chuckled softly, gently pulling her hand from Hunter’s to embrace her old friend. “It’s good to see you, too, Marie. Lucas was busy, unfortunately. He couldn’t make it tonight.”

Eden slowly entered, wrapping her arms around her middle. No, it wasn’t good for all of the children to meet. Eden wished she was the one who was busy and not Lucas.

“It’s great seeing you look so well, Marie,” Hunter smiled brightly, nodding his head in acknowledgment before his eyes went to the other male. “Daniel. It’s been a long time. I was hoping to invite you over at ours as a welcome, but you beat us to it.”

Daniel laughed a bit and stood from the couch to smoke his way over. He offered Hunter his hand to shake, returning his smile. “Yeah, well, I knew you’d try to and wanted to get to it first,” he joked. “And Sterling and Thomas should be down any moment now.”

“Thomas is on that school trip to the camp, remember, hun?” Marie reminded her husband gently. “So it will just be us and the two kids tonight.”

Sterling. Eden stiffened, but it went unnoticed by the adults. Her parents never mentioned they were visiting the Ainsley’s. If they had, she would made an excuse to not come.

“Ah, this is my daughter, Eden,” Hunter introduced, reaching out to ruffle her hair. Eden scowled, but forced a calm expression on her features. “She’s the younger twin.”

Eden looked at the Ainsleys and bowed her head.

“Hello,” she greeted in a low voice. “It’s nice to meet you.”

The Ainsleys smiled over at Eden, and Marie reached out to shake the younger woman’s hand.

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Eden,” Marie said. She looked her over for a moment before turning tohee parents. “She has your eyes, Kenzie. And your nose, Hunter.”

Eden looked at Marie’s hand for a second before hesitantly clasping it, grateful that they didn’t comment on anything else.

“She’s actually pretty moody,” Hunter teased, causing Eden to glare at him. “We don’t know where that came from.”

Marie and Daniel chuckled, and a “What’s funny?” was called down the stairs. A moment later, Sterling was making his way down, dressed in jeans and a dark T-shirt. His eyes lighted on Eden, and he blinked in surprise.

“Sterling! Nice if you to finally join us,” his father teased. “This is Hunter and McKenzie McArthur, and their daughter Eden.”

Sterling nodded in greeting to the adults before turning to Eden. “I know Eden. We have a few classes together.”

Eden’s eyes fell on Sterling, looking over him for a few seconds before she turned away, her face betraying nothing. She wanted to go home.

“Oh? Eden didn’t mention that,” Hunter tilted his head. “Well, that’s excellent. Anyway, it’s nice to officially meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you from your father.”

“You as well, sir. It’s good to meet you,” Sterling greeted him.

“I have food set it on the table if everyone is ready,” Marie mentioned, gesturing toward the dining room.

Eden swallowed thickly, running her fingers through her hair. She looked at her father, who patted her gently on the head and bent down.

“Just eat as much as you can,” he murmured quietly. “Don’t force yourself. And please, try to have fun.”

Eden merely nodded.

Sterling watched Eden out of the corner of his eye as he made his way into the kitchen along with the others. She seemed to have tensed yo when he arrive, and he definitely wasn’t surprised about it. She didn’t like him, he knew that. And for good reason, too.

Eden poked her food as the adults talked and joked around, reminiscing about their younger days. She barely paid any attention, her stomach lurching, the bruises on her stomach throbbing again. She had tended to them after she got home and taken a nap, but it would take a while before they fully healed.

Eden was painfully aware of Sterling’s eyes on her, but she pretended otherwise, turning her attention to her barely eaten plate of food.

“Leo was rather upset when I mentioned to him that we’d be going to you first,” Hunter commented, eyes crinkling in amusement. “He was just ready to drop his work and return so he could visit.”

Daniel chuckled and lifted his glass to his lips, taking a sip of his way before speaking. “Ah, Leo… How is he? I haven’t gotten to speak to him in a while. He and Willow have a daughter, right? Ashley?”

“They do,” Hunter nodded, swallowing his food before soeaking. “Actually, she and my son, Lucas, are dating. It did come out as a surprise when they had announced their relationship. It was only yesterday that they were born.”

“Oh, really? Well, they’ll all have to come over sometime. Maybe we could all get together,” Daniel mused.

Sterling’s gaze flickered to his father for a moment, then looked back down at his plate. He took a few bites of food before his father spoke to him.

“Sterling, you’ve hardly said a word. At least talk to Eden. You already know her.”

Eden looked up when her name was spoken, pausing from messing with her food. Her eyes locked with Sterling’s for a brief second before she brought them back on her plate. She took a small bite of her food, chewing slowly.

Sterling cleared his throat quietly, then took another bite. He watched Eden as he chewed, looking down after a moment. “So… Hows your homework been, Eden?”