Zayden Lopez

That day was an absolute nightmare for me. Not only did my precious flower my mother had left behind was now damaged, but I also committed the grave mistake of laying my hand on a girl, and not just any girl. I've never done it before, even when I threatened to do it, I was never serious. 

The guilt weighed heavily on my conscience, eating me alive even more when we sat at the dining table, and my eyes fell on the faint red bruise on her cheek.I had been needlessly harsh and unreasonable towards her.

But to my surprise when she got asked about it she lied. She didn't tell my father nor her mother anything. But instead she just said that she fell.

The guilt that gnawed at me grew even deeper as she lied to protect me. Why would she do that after what I'd done? It felt wrong, and it only made me feel more conflicted and ashamed. I wanted to apologize, but something held me back. Maybe it was fear, embarrassment, or just plain pride. Whatever it was, it left me feeling like an even bigger jerk.

She didn't eat anything while sitting there though, she just kept playing with her fork, moving the food randomly. Our eyes didn't meet at all, not even by accident.

"So how is your new school Amelia?" Suddenly dad broke the silence.

She didn't look up from her plate. "It... It was nice sir, I made two new friends." She faked a smile. 

Dad nodded, his eyes filled with a hint of concern as he noticed the strained atmosphere. "That's good. Making friends is Fun. I am glade it worked out fast dear."

The tension in the room was suffocating, and I could feel Divan's piercing gaze on me, silently judging. I knew he had seen what happened earlier.

Dad took a bite of his food then started again. "Did you guys have a fight again?" I almost spat the water I was drinking, and started coughing.

But she shook her head coldly. "No sir... We don't talk much in the first place." 

Dad shot a disapproving glance my way, his disappointment evident in his eyes. I fidgeted uncomfortably under his gaze, feeling the weight of his judgment. It was true that Amelia and I didn't communicate much, but his disapproval amplified my guilt and shame.

"My son could be a little difficult sometimes. So let me know if something happened." Father said as he looked back at her. 

Amelia smiled weakly, nodding. "Of course, sir."

Her smile didn't reach her eyes, but her answer seemed sincere. Even though she had every reason to expose what I had done, she was covering for me. It made me feel even worse.

___________

It was 10:30pm now. Father was in his office while the twins were just annoying the crap out of me. I didn't see the woman father married around, maybe she had a night shift or something. And Amelia... she was just in her room.

"Zaid! I want to see the parrot. Where is it." I felt Dylan tugging on my shirt.

"Oh shut up, no parrots is going out now." I said annoyingly.

"Ugh, come on please!" He tugged again. I was starting to get really frustrated now.

"Get out of my room! I said no." I yelled, but he didn't care. They were used to my sudden lash outs. I saw Devin standing with his arms crossed. "Huh? Are you actually upset with me?" I asked.

He glared at me. "Yes! You hurt sisy Lia." He pouted. "She was crying because of you!" He yelled.

I rubbed my forehead. "I know... but what should I do now? She hates me even more now."

Dylan raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" He tugged on my shirt for the third time. I let out sigh, trying not to yell again. "Nothing Dy. And you shut up, you're just a kid. I am not taking advice from a 10 year old."

Dv, rolled his eyes. "Even as a kid, I know that you should apologize when you hurt someone. Come on. Dylan, Let's go do something more fun." 

I watched as Devin took Dylan away from the room. For a kid, he was quite mature and sensible. His words about apologizing hit me hard. He was right – I needed to apologize to Amelia.

With a sinking feeling, I stood up and walked to Amelia's room. My heart was pounding with anxiety as I reached her door. 

I hated apologies, so much. It made me feel weak. But I should at least give her an apology since she didn't rant me out. With a deep breath, I curled my hand into a fist. And knocked softly on her door.

There was a moment of quiet before I heard her weak voice from behind the door. "Who is it?" Her voice sounded sad and tired.

I hesitated for a moment before replying, my own voice feeling strained. "It's me. Can we talk?"

"No go away... " After she said that, I heard a click. She locked the door.

I couldn't blame her for not wanting to see me, but her rejection still stung. I leaned against the door, feeling a mix of frustration and regret. "Okay... You don't have to open the door. But please listen to what I have to say," I lowered myself to the ground, with my back still leaning on her door.

She didn't respond, but saw the shadow under her door stop. "Listen... I am sorry, I was harsh. And stupid... The..." The words were stopping in my throat but I kept going anyway. "The flower you broke... was a gift from my mother, she loved flowers so much... We even had a huge garden filled with all different types of flowers... roses, tulips and sunflowers etc." I started feeling a lump in my throat at the memory.

"I-... I loved that garden so much. We used to make tea parties there. Elegant people would come, and It was fun because mom would make the most delicious desserts..." I clenched my fists trying to continue. 

"I used to be nice back then... I was kind and calm. I never hurt anyone. I was happy... But she f-cking lied." I uttered in a strained voice.

"She promised she would get better... She promised to come back home and continue taking care of the garden, She f-cking promised to always be by my side, but she left. I didn't even get the chance to...."  A tear trickled down my cheek.

"To say goodbye...." Suddenly I heard her continue the sentence for me. With a voice as shaky as mine.

I went silent for a moment, taken aback by the unexpected continuation to my sentence. She was actually listening on the other side of the door.

Finally, I swallowed the lump in my throat and slowly continued.

"I know it's no excuse for what I did. It doesn't justify my actions. I was filled with anger, and I took it out on you. I'm sorry for hurting you, physically and emotionally and I was wrong to react like that."

Again, silence. My words hung in the air, and I waited for her response. Then again she spoke softly with a mixture of vulnerability and sadness in her voice.

"I'm sorry too... I didn't know. I didn't know your mother gave you that flower. I didn't know how much it meant to you. I was wrong for touching it without permission and for breaking it. I'm sorry."

Hearing her words, a flood of emotions filled my chest. I was touched that she finally understood, and even more touched that she apologized.

I finally heard the click sound again as she unlocked the door. I pushed myself off the ground and slowly pushed open the door. She stood in front of me, her face stained with tears. She had been crying too, a sight that made my chest ache even more.

Without a word, I stepped towards her, pulling her into a tight embrace. She buried her head into my shoulder. I held her tightly, feeling a wave of guilt and remorse for ever hurting her.

Gradually, her sobs began to subside, I felt really weird. I was never this nice to anyone since the day mom... left. I faked a cough and let go of her. "D-don't think I will stop calling you beggar girl." I joked, trying to hide my embarrassment for being that vulnerable in front of her.

She wiped her tears away with the back of her hand, a small, genuine smile on her face despite the situation. "Yeah whatever." she replied.

We stood there, our eyes locked onto each other for a moment, before my embarrassment overtook me. I looked away quickly and hastily exited her room, feeling both relieved and uncomfortable in that moment. "Good night." I muttered as I walked away.

"Good night," she replied quietly. The moment was awkward, filled with lingering hurt and unspoken emotions. As I walked away, I knew nothing would be exactly the same between us, but for the first time, I felt maybe that wasn't entirely a bad thing.

Thoughts on Zaid now?