A Stone Heart: Chapter Three
(Sorry for the delay. I’ve been in chat with the provider trying to get into the site.)
How strong IS Dex? He’s about to find out.
There was a cab stand near the restaurant, and I was able to get one right away. I had the driver take me to my parent’s house. She was already there, kneeling in her garden, her hands buried up to her wrists in the dirt. My palms sweated at the thought I’d ruined our relationship. I tossed twenty to the driver, told him to keep the change, then hurried for the door.
As I approached, she sighed. “I’m sorry.”
“Tell me what’s going on, Mom. You’ve never acted like that before.”
She pulled her hands out of the earth, the granules sliding off as though her skin was teflon. She turned, and I could see the sheen in her eyes. “Huey’s not for you, Dex. He’s going to hurt you even more than he already does, and I can’t stand by and watch it happen.”
That anger from earlier surged up again. “Isn’t that my choice? I know it’s more than likely Huey will never feel for me what I do for him, but that’s up to me to decide, not you. Why are you and Dad so set against Huey? He’s never been anything but polite to you.”
Her lip wobbled a bit. “We want you to go out and live, and you can’t do that with Huey around. I wish… I wish he’d move away and let you get on with your life.”