Page 101 of Rebound
If anything, the ones apologizing should be the people who made her feel unwanted. I grew up in a household where a simple mistake from my mother or me resulted in continuous apologies and worries of how my father would react. He was never physically abusive, but abuse doesn’t need to be physical in order to leave a lasting impact.
“Where’d you go with Kai?” I lean back against the counter and cross my arms. I’m trying to distract her, though I don’t think I can hide the jealousy I feel.
“It’s not up to me to tell you.” Lavinia sits down on the stool vacated by Kita. Salem rolls over in front of her, offering her his belly and Lavinia’s eyes light up with joy. I feel a brush against my leg, and I look down to see Buffy rubbing herself against me.I bend down and pick her up, cradling her in my arms. Sabrina can’t stand that both her siblings are getting attention, and she isn’t, so she cries from the chair where she’s sitting.
“I love you, too,” I call out. I walk over and kneel in front of her, using two fingers to scritch her head. She closes her eyes and tilts her head back.
“Of all things, I never imagined you as a cat dad,” Lavinia says. I look over my shoulder at her.
“I didn’t, either.”
Lavinia walks over, Salem in her arms, and kneels beside me. “I like that you have them. How come you never mentioned them before?”
“We talk about a lot of things. It’ll be ages before we’re done talking.”
“We’ll be dead before we’re finished talking,” Lavinia says with a laugh.
“I always admired your knack for positivity,” I say. Lavinia bumps her shoulder against mine.
The intercom buzzes and I go answer it. “Food’s probably here, unless another Titan has decided to join us.”
“I think they’re coming around to the idea of us being married,” Lavinia says.
I really admire her positivity or her delusion. Because I shared a dressing room with those guys, and they’re definitely not any closer to accepting this marriage.
Sure, they joked about it and things were a lot easier than they used to be. We weren't going to be exchanging friendship bracelets any time soon.
I let the doorman know it’s okay to send the food up. Lavinia is in the kitchen, washing her hands and grabbing the plates.
“Do you want something to drink?”
“Yeah, there’s beer in the fridge, alcoholic and nonalcoholic. Surprise me.”
I accept the food and give the delivery guy his tip before closing and locking the door. If someone knocks tonight, we’re pretending we’re not home.
“Where are we eating?” Lavinia asks.
“Media room is this way.” I lead her down the hallway to the media room. It’s one of the reasons I liked this apartment. It’s the biggest one on the floor and comes with the media room, and a large terrace that Lavinia hasn’t seen yet. I need to give her a tour of the place after.
The movie is already cued up and Lavinia excitedly settles onto the couch, crossing her legs.
“It’s been so long since I’ve watched Practical Magic,” she says excitedly, wiggling a little.
I sit down next to her, putting the food on the table in front of us. I hit play on the movie and sit back.
“Are the guys being nice to you now? I thought you all looked amicable,” Lavinia says, picking up a piece of cheesy bread. If the team trainer finds out what I’m eating, I’ll be on a boiled chicken diet for the rest of the season. It’s worth it for Lavinia, though, and I ordered myself a caesar salad with dressing on the side.
“They haven’t threatened to kill me, and no one’s punched me. They were almost joking with me today, but I don’t know if they’re any closer to accepting me.”
I pick up my salad and dig in. “What about you? Are you having fun being more active on your social media?”
“I am! Every second comment on anything I post wants to know who you are and why I won’t show your face. A lot of them think it’s Josh. A lot of them think I shouldn’t share you and keep you all to myself.”
Even the sound of Josh’s name is like nails on a chalkboard. Lavinia makes a puke face.
“I have gossip magazines reaching out to our agent to find out if it’s true I’m married,” Lavinia says. “Jules has told them not to comment.”
We eat our dinner, focusing on the movie. Having her here is nice. It’s almost like how it used to be when we were young, the two of us in a semi-dark room, eating junk food and watching her favorite movies. Even back then, Lavinia filled the quiet places in my life.
