Clothes in all colors and styles littered my bedroom floor and bed. How was it possible for me to own so many pieces of clothing and yet not find the right outfit to wear for the office party.

I sat on the floor cross-legged as I folded the articles of clothing and placed them all into piles. The sound of my apartment door opening got me to stand up. My legs felt numb from the way I was sitting and I moved to see who came through my door.

Ben walked in and stopped when he saw all of my clothes. "What happened in here. Looks like your closet puked."

"Haha," I glared at him, running a hand through my hair as I turned to look around at the mess I made for myself.

Ben chuckled and sat on my bed as he looked around at everything on the floor. "So what's got you ransacking your closet?" He questioned.

"That work party I told you about is tomorrow," I said putting my face in my hands. I didn't want to wear anything I owned for Saturday. So that meant I had to buy a new outfit. "We have to go shopping," I shook my head as the words left my mouth.

"We-" Ben didn't have a chance to complete his sentence because I grabbed onto his hand and pulled him up.

"Urgh this is the reason I don't have a girlfriend," he groaned stumbling after me as I pulled him to the apartment door. "But just because I love you I'll take you."

I raised an eyebrow as a smile came to play on my lips. "You don't have a girlfriend because you get bored easily. Girls are not video games Benjamin. You can't play with them and then get bored," I stated.

He stopped walking making it hard for me to pull him along with me. I turned around to face him to see him with both hands on his hips as he had on his thinking face. "I don't get bored with you so I guess I can just marry you then," he said swinging his arm over my shoulders, wiggling his eyebrows, and then peppering my face with kisses.

I laughed as each kiss tickled. "Ahhh gross dude," I pushed him away and he laughed holding onto his stomach. Unlike my laughter that can be mistaken for strangled screams, Ben's laughter was almost musical.

"Hey, I am your future husband you will respect me, woman!" He tried to say in a voice of seriousness but couldn't help his laughter when I rolled my eyes.

********

The hanger scraped along the metal rod holding up a bunch of black backless dresses in different sizes. I looked for my size in the particular dress style and Ben leaned against another railing as he stifled a yawn.

"How does this dress look?" I asked him, holding up the dress so that I can have a better look at it.

"Oh just pick one already we've been at the mall for an hour," he whined like a five-year-old shaking his entire body as his face scrunched up like he wanted to cry.

"Now you know how I feel when you take me to buy video games," I smiled vengefully.

"I'm begging you woman. For God's sake pick a dress!" His voice went high.

"I can't just pick any dress it has to be perfect," I sighed. It was my first ever office party and I wanted to make a good impression. Camilla always put effort into her work outfits and so did everyone else in the company.

"Uh-huh," Ben nodded with a raised eyebrow. "So who's the guy?"

I froze momentarily, I tucked my hair behind my ear and put the dress back on the railing before shrugging. "What guy... there is no guy," I laughed as I moved to a different railing that had red dresses with long slits.

"Oh my gosh my future wife is cheating on me," Ben gasped in horror and two women looked up at us giving me a disgusted look.

My eyes widened. "No-" I tried to explain to the strangers but they shook their heads as they walked away. Ben laughed and I gave up breaking into a smile. "Can you keep your voice down you big goof?"

"So what's his name?" Ben asked.

I didn't know how to tell Ben about my little office crush. I never caught feelings for a guy so fast before and I only spoke to Nick a total of three times. It was insane. "His name is Nick."

"I don't like him already because he's got you making that stupid face when you mention his name."

"I do not make a face," I glowered at Ben. "It's nothing serious," I shrugged pulling out a dress and looking over it. It had a sweetheart neckline. "I mean we only spoke three times."

My phone buzzed in my pocket before Ben could say anything and I placed the dress back on the railing as I took my phone out of my back pocket. It was my mother. I swiped my finger across the screen and put the phone to my ear.

"Hello mom," I greeted.

"Hello, sweetheart. I wanted to know if you can come home for dinner later?" My mother asked and I checked the time on my wristwatch only to see that the battery stopped working and the watch was still on one pm. I pulled my phone away from my ear to look at the time. It was four pm. It was a thirty-eight-minute drive from the city to Jericho the neighborhood I grew up in.

"Yeah sure. I'll come over for dinner."

"Great, I can't wait to have all my babies back at home again."

I looked at Ben looking off into space.
"Oh I'm bringing Ben," I said and Ben looked up at me with wide eyes. I put my finger by my lip to shush him from saying anything and he threw his hands up in disbelief.

"Of course dear. Well, I'll see you later. I have to go before the food burns," she chuckled and I smiled.

"Bye, mom."

"Bye Val," she said and I cut the call.

"Where are you bringing Ben?" Ben asked.

"We going to my parents for dinner."

He ran a hand down his face." I swear we already a married couple," he sighed. "But I was meant to go home anyway. My dad wanted me to fix Brandon's bike."

"Wow he broke his bike again," I said with a quirked eyebrow. Brandon was Ben's younger brother. He was spoilt by their parents after Ben left for college and moved out. Mainly because Mr. and Mrs. Evan's realized what little time they had with him after seeing how fast Ben grew up.

"That little shit did it on purpose. Dad said he's been pestering him for the latest bike and dad's been refusing because he just got him this one a few months ago."

My eyes landed on a black off-shoulder dress that had a slit running up the leg. I pulled it off the railing and held it up. "How's this one?" I asked and Ben rolled his eyes.

He walked over to a railing and pulled out a random dress without giving it a second look and shoving it into my hands. "There," he said.

"Seriously you can't just pick any random-" I stopped talking as I held the dress up to look at it. It was a short, black chiffon cocktail dress that had a belt with a lace pattern around the waist. "This is actually beautiful," I said and looked up at Ben.

"Great let's pay for it and leave," he grabbed onto my hand and pulled me to the cashiers.

"Wait my size," I said stopping him and walking up to the railing to look for my size in the dress. I found my size and followed after Ben.

I paid for the dress and then we walked back to his car that was parked in the mall's undercover parking. An hour later, due to the traffic. Ben was pulling into his parent's driveway.

"Vally," Ben's mother smiled from her doorway as I stepped out of Ben's car.

"Hey Mrs. Evan's," I smiled and she walked up to me hugging me. "You get prettier every time I see you, dear," she told me and I flushed. I never could handle compliments without turning red.

I broke the hug. "I'll see you in a bit Mrs. Evan's," I told her and walked over to my house.

I walked into the house and I could hear my mother and Vanessa's voice coming from the kitchen. I walked into the kitchen to see my mother cooking at the stove while Vanessa did homework at the table.

"Something smells great in here," I said and their heads snapped up at me. "Val," my mother smiled and came over to hug me.

"Sup nerd," I greeted my little sister.

"Sup," she said with a little head nod.

"So sweetheart how's work?" My mother asked.

"Great but it's a little too soon to say I've only been working there a week."

"Mom your favorite child is home," I heard Adam announce as he walked into the kitchen with Ben.

"My boys." My mother swelled with happiness to see them and she immediately let go of me and walked over to Adam and Ben hugging them both. I took a seat at the table next to Vanessa to see her studying something about bacterial fungus.

"Too tight- too tight," Adam gasped for air and my mom let them both go. Adam walked over to the table and pulled up a chair next to Vanessa and Ben sat next to me.

"Nessie." Adam ruffled Vanessa's hair and chuckled.

Vanessa huffed and glared at him. "I hate it when you call me that. I sound like some creature in Scotland lake."

"Well, who knows where mom and dad found you," Adam laughed.

"Mom," Vanessa whined.

"Alright, that's enough. Adam stop being mean to your little sister."

"Why are you so quiet over there Val?" Adam asked. "My apartment cave in on you yet?" He chuckled.

"That place is a piece of shit. It's practically a hole," I voiced and Ben snorted.

"Valerie language young lady," my mother warned. I was going to be twenty. I was living on my own and I still got a talking to when I used words like shit.

Adam chuckled. "Why'd you think I moved out."

"I still don't like you living on your own especially in that building. There are too many questionable characters around," my mother voiced her concerns.

"It's fine mom. My floor only consists of an old lady and a married couple. The other old woman passed away a month ago."

"I don't like you being alone especially since you get..." my face paled and my mother stopped talking. My brother, sister, and Ben all tensed but looked away pretending as if they heard nothing.

For once when I came home I wouldn't like to be reminded of those nightmares or asked about my therapy sessions.

I felt like the mental patient in a room filled with sane people. The fact that my mother thought I couldn't be alone due to nightmares unsettled me. Ben took my hand from under the table and gave it a small squeeze.

"It's okay mom. They just dreams," I tried to play it off as if the dreams didn't even bother me anymore but in reality, it terrified me to even think about it.

"It's been a while since I've heard this much talking in the house," my father stood at the threshold of the kitchen with his lab coat on. He had a metal briefcase in his hand.

He kissed my mother on the cheek and then walked over to me and kissed me on the forehead and then my sister. "It's good to have you all home again," he smiled. He began coughing and my mother looked at him gravely.

"I'm just going to wash up," he said between his uncontrollable coughing and immediately left the kitchen. We all turned to look at my mother.

"Like I told Nessa yesterday," my mother started. "Your dad is just a bit under the weather," she nodded and walked out of the kitchen.

"Well that's a load of Baloney," Adam said and turned to Vanessa. "Hey, freaky scientist what do you reckon is wrong with dad?"

Vanessa looked up at Adam. "I'm not sure he won't talk about his symptoms with me."