Reclaimed and Restored

The Right Thing

Ava woke up from her poorly-timed nap when school had long since started and was greeted by the four text messages and one voicemail Molly had left on her phone. The four texts asked where she was and had all been sent around the time that Ava usually met up with her for breakfast on school days. Feeling guilty for leaving her friend hanging, Ava listened to the voicemail.

“Came to find you and your mom said you’re sleeping, and she decided to give you the day off,” Molly said questioningly. “I know you’re mad at her right now, but that’s pretty cool of her if you ask me. So anyway, while your lazy ass is sleeping in, I’ll be suffering through class without you.” She paused after her dramatics, and when she spoke again, she sounded worried. “I hope everything’s okay. Text me when you wake up.”

Ava smiled sadly. She was grateful for her friend’s concern, but she felt bad that Molly was worried about her. Ava sent her a text to fill her in on all the juicy and tragic details but downplayed how badly Marcus’s contradictory behavior had affected her.

Surprisingly, after venting about her mate’s inability to stick to his indifferent persona, Ava felt better, at least emotionally. But unfortunately, angry texts didn’t fix the fact that she was still physically exhausted.

She rubbed her dry eyes and stretched out her stiff muscles before crawling out of bed and stumbling into the bathroom. She felt somewhat more human after brushing her teeth, and a long and hot shower did wonders for her already improving mood.

She should have felt miserable after Marcus’s brushoff that morning, but for some reason, the dying embers of her hope had rekindled. She hadn’t imagined the interest he had taken in her art or the soft concern that had briefly escaped his hard shell. Marcus wasn’t as disinterested as he would have liked her to believe, which meant she had a chance. A chance to change his mind. A chance to convince him that her father was wrong about them. And as long as that chance still existed, she wouldn’t give up.

Marcus had become an expert in keeping people at a distance, but she would find a way to break through his walls. Ava didn’t know why he pushed people away, but she needed to show him that there were people who cared about him and wanted to be in his life. All he had to do was let them in.

She had secured her hair with a claw hair clip, changed into a cream knitted sweater, light denim mom jeans, and a pair of lilac―not pink, never pink―sneakers, and was securing the ankle bracelets that Molly had given her when someone knocked on her bedroom door.

“Come in,” she called out.

Ava’s good mood shrank when her dad opened the door and walked in with a guarded expression.

“Hey, honey. How are you feeling?”

“Better,” she replied honestly.

“I thought we could go out for lunch.”

“Lunch?” Ava asked. She had been waiting for a reprimand for missing school because she’d stayed up all night, not an invitation to eat out.

“Yeah, just the two of us. I think we need to talk. Clear the air, you know.”

“I don’t know if I have much to say to you, Dad,” she told him honestly. “I needed you this past month, and all you could think about was what Marcus snubbing me meant for you and what you want.”

Her father’s gaze lowered to the floor, and he swallowed. He looked the picture of remorse, but Ava wasn’t sure if she was ready to believe he felt guilty over what he’d said to Marcus or how he’d treated her.

“I needed you and mom,” she whispered after wiping an errant tear from her cheek.

“You’re right,” he admitted quietly. “I’ve handled this whole thing badly.” He sighed heavily and ran a hand through his hair. “I was just trying to―”

“To protect me,” Ava finished for him in a clipped voice. “Yeah, I know.”

“Ava,” he pleaded.

“I’m going to go find the twins,” she said. “We can do lunch another time, maybe.” She didn’t have it in her to play nice after the previous night’s fight and that morning’s negligence, especially if he was only going to repeat the same tired excuse instead of actually apologizing.

Her dad looked like he wanted to argue, but he simply pursed his lips and nodded. “I think they have a lesson with Medial Stewart soon, but you can probably catch them before it starts.”

“Thanks, Dad.” She wished she didn’t, but she felt a tad guilty about not taking him up on his offer. “Look, I think it’s time to tell the twins the truth,” she said. “I don’t like lying to them, and they deserve to know why things have been so… tense.”

“If that’s what you want.”

“I’ll tell them everything, but I want to keep Marcus’s name out of it, and you and mom need to keep it that way,” she warned him. “Marcus doesn’t need more people attacking him for something he can’t control.”

“Alright,” her dad agreed, although he didn’t look too happy about it. “See you for dinner?” he asked.

“Yeah.” She had been staying at Thomas and Daniel’s apartment a lot lately and having dinner with them, but she couldn’t bring herself to decline another one of her dad’s offers, no matter how angry she was with him.

“Great,” he said with a relieved smile. “I’ll let your mom know you’ll be here. She’s missed having you around, and she was worried about you this morning. She said you didn’t even stir when she came into the room.”

So maybe her parents weren’t as oblivious or uncaring as she’d thought. Still, Ava wasn’t ready to forgive and forget yet. It remained to be seen how they would continue to handle the Marcus situation.

“Cool. I’ll see you guys later then.”

She grabbed her phone off the bed and her camera bag off her desk and rushed off to the twins’ apartment, hoping they hadn’t already left for their class. It was time to tell them the truth about why she’d been moping around like a depressed zombie and constantly fighting with their parents.

“Ava,” Daniel greeted her in surprise when he opened the door. “Mom said you missed school. What’s going on?”

“Is Tom here?” she asked.

“Yeah,” he replied with a frown. “Come on in.”

“Hey, sis,” Thomas said from the couch.

“Hey. Dad said you have a class soon?”

“Yep,” Thomas replied. “Medial Stewart has started giving us lessons on all the ins and outs of being a Council member. It’s all procedures and guidelines, so it’s boring as shit.”

Ava chuckled. “You poor things.”

“We appreciate your heartfelt sympathy,” Thomas said with a grin.

“So, what’s up?” Daniel asked. “We only have a few minutes.”

Ava chewed on her lip and played with the edge of her sweater while she tried to find the right words. “What would you guys say if I told you that I found my mate, and he’s older―a lot older?” she finally asked.

The twins traded a wide-eyed look, neither of them looking very pleased with what she’d said. Ava shifted nervously on her feet.

“How much older?” Daniel asked long after the silence had become unbearable.

“Eleven years or so.”

“Christ,” Thomas swore as he stood from the couch. “Is this some kind of joke? You can’t be serious.”

“It’s not a joke.”

“Is this why you and dad have been fighting?” Daniel asked.

Ava nodded. “Dad and mom found him with me the morning after my shift. Dad didn’t take it so well.”

“No s**t,” Thomas said.

“Tom,” Daniel said in warning.

“Ava’s barely an adult,” his brother argued. “She should be with someone her own age. Not some old dude who’s probably very experienced and will want all kinds of things that Ava’s not ready for. You can’t tell me you’re okay with this.”

“I’m not saying I am, but that’s not what’s important right now,” Daniel said, sending a pointed look at their sister.

Ava couldn’t say she was surprised by their adverse reactions, but she couldn’t help but feel disappointed. It would be hard for them to stay on her side when they agreed with their dad and not her.

“It doesn’t really matter anyway. He’s not interested in having a high school senior as his mate, so you don’t need to worry.”

She didn’t tell them that he hadn’t rejected her yet or that she was still holding out hope that he would change his mind. She’d save them from the stress in case she ended up being wrong.

“Oh,” Thomas said, his anger turning to sympathy.

“Is he someone we know?” Daniel asked.

Ava had been right―telling them who her mate was would be a mistake. The twins were too protective, and they’d only make the situation worse if they confronted Marcus. “No,” she lied. Though technically they only knew of him, they didn’t know him personally, so it was more of a stretch of the truth. “Anyway, you guys probably need to get going, but I thought it was high time you knew what’s going on.”

“Why didn’t you tell us earlier?” Thomas asked.

Ava winced. “Dad asked me not to,” she explained. “He didn’t want to distract you from your training.”

Both twins scoffed. “You’re more important than the Council,” Thomas told her. “He shouldn’t have asked you to keep it from us.”

“It’s not all his fault,” Ava admitted. “I was scared you’d take his side and make things worse with my mate.”

“You know he’s an i***t for not wanting you, right?” Daniel said. “Whoever he is.”

Ava grinned. “I know.”

“Want us to beat him up for you?” Thomas asked.

“No, that’s okay,” Ava replied with a laugh. “He wasn’t trying to hurt me. I think he’s just trying to do the right thing,” she explained.

She may have been angry with him for pushing her away, but she knew that Marcus wasn’t a bad guy. Or at least she was pretty sure. She supposed it was time for her to find that out for sure.