Then again, since he didn’t know that she’d made a video…
It was probably for the best if she didn’t mention it at the moment.
His eyes narrowed on her as he said, “There was something in my eye,” before he took a shuddering breath and waved it off as though it was of little consequence. “For the sake of our relationship–”
“Ah, we don’t have one,” she pointed out only to have him continue as though she hadn’t said anything.
“–I’m willing to forgive you.”
And with that, Jonathan turned around and walked away, leaving her sitting there, shaking her head in disbelief as she turned her attention back to Uncle Trevor to find him rubbing his hands roughly down his face as he said, “I really just can’t with that kid.”
“Understandable,” Mikey murmured, nodding solemnly as she glanced down to find Sebastian on his back with one arm thrown over his face, fast asleep on the bed next to her.
God, he looked exhausted, Mikey thought even as she couldn’t help but smile. He’d stayed up all night, helping her get through her book and when she’d been too tired to make out the words, he’d taken over, reading to her while she’d curled up next to him with her eyes closed as she’d lost herself to the soft timbre of his voice as he’d made the story come alive.
At some point, she’d fallen asleep only to wake up to find Sebastian’s arms wrapped around her, holding her close. When she’d tried to roll over onto her side, he’d growled as his arms tightened around her and pulled her closer until she gave up trying to roll over onto her side and snuggled in closer only to fall asleep within minutes. He really was a demanding bed hog, Mikey thought, biting back a sigh when she once again turned her attention back to Uncle Trevor to find him watching her, looking as though he was debating his next words.
Finally, he said, “Mikey, I really don’t think this is a good idea.”
“What’s not a good idea?” she absently asked as she shoved the blankets off and swung her legs over the side of the bed while she reached over and grabbed her book that wasn’t as bad as she first thought, off Sebastian’s nightstand.
“Sleeping in the same bed with Sebastian,” he said with a pointed look at them.
“Would it help if I told you that I hadn’t planned on sleeping over, but that boy,” and this is where she paused so that she could point a damning finger at Sebastian, “wouldn’t let me borrow a dictionary without an interrogation?”
Frowning, Uncle Trevor asked, “Wait. Why don’t you have a dictionary?”
“Because my religion forbids it,” she said with a firm nod that had him narrowing his eyes on her.
“But your religion is okay with you sleeping in the same bed with a teenage boy?” he countered.
“It does when I have a book report due on Monday,” Mikey said, holding up the thick book as proof.
“And you couldn’t have asked your parents for help?” Uncle Trevor asked as she slipped her feet back into her sneakers.
“Not if I wanted a passing grade,” Mikey admitted with a sad shake of her head that had his lips twitching.
“I see,” he murmured, looking thoughtful before asking, “And how exactly did you get in here?”
“I feel that it would be in my best interest not to answer that question,” she said, tossing the book on the bed so that she could reach down and grab the sweatshirt that really was quite comfortable off the floor and pulled it on.
“And I’m assuming that you’re not going to tell me how you got out of your house without your parents knowing either?” Uncle Trevor asked, clearly understanding her need for survival.
“You assume correctly,” Mikey said, sighing in relief as she grabbed her book.
“And I also assume that you’re going to want to go tell your parents about this before I get a chance to,” he said, making her wince.
“And just out of curiosity, when will that be?” Mikey asked, licking her lips nervously as she started to slowly move closer to the door, really hoping that he was kidding.
He wasn’t kidding.
“When I’m done talking to my son,” he drawled with a look that told her that she better move her butt and since that seemed like a good idea at the moment, she nodded, cleared her throat, and murmured, “That’s probably not going to end well for me.”
“Probably not,” Uncle Trevor murmured as she stood there, debating her options only to decide that she really didn’t have a choice in the matter. With that in mind, Mikey nodded to herself, murmured, “Okay,” for some reason and turned around and did what she had to.
*-*-*-*
“Did…did she just hide in your closet?” his father asked, looking stunned while Sebastian sat up with a resigned sigh.