A few hours away
860 Words
Selene POV
The Milwaukee Public Market was crowded despite the cold outside. People moved between vendors carrying shopping bags and cups of coffee while Christmas decorations still hung from different corners of the building.
“Do we need these too?” Louis held up a bag of locally made cheese curds.
I barely glanced at it. “Sure.”
A small crease appeared between his brows. “You didn't even look.”
“Huh?”
“The cheese.”
My attention snapped back to him.
“Oh… yeah, yeah, we definitely should.”
He lowered the bag to get a better view of my face. “You've been somewhere else all afternoon.”
I forced a smile. “Sorry.”
Louis didn't immediately respond, he simply placed the cheese into the cart and continued moving. “You don't have to apologize.”
I exhaled softly and trailed behind him. The truth was my mind had been somewhere else all afternoon.
More specifically….
Back at the house.
Back to this morning.
The morning from hell.
After breakfast, Mom had practically shoved me upstairs.
“Go get ready,” she'd said. “I need you to get kitchen stuff in the market. You can take Louis along too.”
I hadn't argued. In fact, I'd been relieved.
A few hours away from Edward sounded like the best Christmas gift ever.
“Mum never mentioned they were staying for a few days,” I'd muttered while getting dressed. “What a betrayal.”
Unfortunately, that information explained why my mother looked so excited all morning.
Apparently, she was thrilled to have guests.
Meanwhile, I was trying not to have a nervous breakdown.
“You're taking forever, Selene!”
Mom's voice had echoed from downstairs.
“I'm coming!” I grabbed my coat and hurried toward the staircase. “Mum, I'm...”
The words had barely left my mouth when my foot landed awkwardly on a step, causing my ankle to twist badly.
“Oh no—”
A horrified scream escaped my throat as I stumbled forward, almost hitting the ground.
Then I got caught by some strong arms around my waist.
Regardless of gaining additional support, the impact still sent both of us crashing onto the floor.
I blinked.
Edward was underneath me, his golden eyes staring directly into mine.
Neither of us moved nor said anything.
The memory of that night flashed through my mind before I could stop it.
The club.
The drinks.
The terrible decision we'd both agreed to forget.
Heat rushed into my face.
I scrambled away so quickly I nearly fell again.
“Sorry.”
Edward immediately sat up.
“Are you hurt?”
“No.”
My answer had come out far too quickly like I had something to concede. Maybe.
“Selene.”
He was looking at me again, with a more concerned look though.
“Sorry.”
His expression softened.
“That's the third apology in ten minutes.”
“Has it?”
He nodded.
I looked away. “I'm fine, really.”
He was quiet for a second.
Then he simply said,
“Okay.”
Not because he believed me, but because Louis wasn't the type to force answers out of people. Deep down, I hated that I was making him worried about me.
He checked the list again.
“We've got vegetables.”
“Yep.”
“Coffee.”
“Yep.”
“The bakery order your mom wanted.”
“Got it.”
He nodded.
“Good.”
We continued through the market.
At some point I rubbed my hands together. The cold seemed to seep through my body despite the thick coat I was putting on.
Louis noticed immediately and without saying a word, he stepped into line at a nearby coffee stand.
A few minutes later he returned holding two cups and handed one to me.
I blinked.
“I didn't ask for this.”
“You’re welcome.”
I chuckled slightly.
“Thank you.”
“It’s nothing.”
The rest of the afternoon passed surprisingly easily.
Once I forced myself to stop thinking about Edward every five seconds, I actually started enjoying the shopping with Louis. He may look calm and reserved, but that's what makes spending time with him even fun and easy.
By the time we finished shopping, the cart was overflowing.
Louis glanced over the list one final time.
“I think we're done.”
I leaned closer.
“You sure?”
He checked again and nodded.
“Pretty sure.”
I immediately pulled my coat tighter.
“Oh, it's freezing.”
A faint smile touched his lips.
“Now that, I believe.”
“We should've stayed inside.”
“You said that thirty minutes ago."
“And I meant it.”
He chuckled softly.
“Let's head back.”
“Okay.” I forced a smile. The thought of returning to the house made my stomach twist so bad because Edward would still be there.
Mom would still be trying to play matchmaker and I'd still be pretending everything was fine.
I rolled my eyes inwardly. Can't the holiday just end now?
- Writer
