In Your Wake

Uneasiness

Emily's POV

"Emily." Eras swings his arm over my shoulders, "How are you doing?"

"I'm well." I tilted my head back to look at him, "But that is until I meet Vivian."

Eras throws his head back and laughs, "You haven't met her yet?"

"I'm sure she is delightful." I rolled my eyes, "Where did you take her to first? The hotel room or to the airplane bathroom?"

"Emily." He says, his tone full of seriousness, "I am a gentleman. Of course, I took her to the hotel room first."

"Oh, good lord." I scrunched up my nose in disgust.

"You know, Emily...." He drops his arm from around my shoulders and circles his fingers around my arm, turning me to face him. "Vivian isn't really my type." He backs up until my back is flat against the door and tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear, "We still have a shot."

Ever since Eras has been updated with everything that has happened between me and Jake, he has stopped his advances and has given me some space. He understood why I couldn't give him what he wanted from me. I couldn't give him any attention, and I certainly couldn't have given him my love and affection. He has been very understanding and he even offered to talk to me about it whenever I wished to. Simply put, he has been an amazing and understanding friend.

But every once in a while, he would turn flirtatious and try to spark up something between us. And lately, I still don't understand why I always say no.

"Hmmm.. But Vivian is here." I c**k my head to the side as if in thought, "That would be disrespectful."

His eyes lit up and his lips stretched into a broad smile, "So you are considering?"

"I'm not sure." I answered him truthfully, "I was just thinking that maybe we could--"

"For the love of dear god." Noelle groans as she yanks Eras back, pulling him away from me. "Get off of my best friend."

"Hey!" Eras's voice is laced with pure fury, but Noelle doesn't show any signs of being apologetic. "We were talking, you know."

"Yeah, whatever. Vivian, your girlfriend, is waiting for you inside and she is so f*cking annoying. So go in there and shut her the hell up."

"F*ck you, Noelle." He shakes his head and stomps his way into the house with clenched fists.

"Noelle..."

"I know." She rolls her eyes at me, still with no sympathy whatsoever. "He has got to get over this silly crush of his. You are not interested in him, and I mean he should have understood that by now."

"What if this time I was actually---" She silences me by covering my mouth with her hands.

"Don't you dare say that!" She jabs a finger at my chest with each word, "You don't like him, Emily. You do not like him at all. So do not torture yourself and him along the way."

I pushed her hand down, "But, I do like him, Noelle. I like him so much because he is an amazing person. I don't know if I will love him and maybe I won't be able to, but why can't I try? I need to get myself out of this and focus on myself. There is someone who is willing to try for me and that is all I have ever wanted. He is willing to give it to me and he knows everything that has happened. I want to try with him."

"I know, boo." She sighs, "But what if it doesn't work out?"

"Then at least I tried."

I need to reconsider this before I talk to Eras. I need to be certain about this. I need to be certain that I am willing to try and for real this time. I need to get my head out of his cloud and stop thinking about him forever. And maybe the opportunity has been standing right in front of me all this time and I just haven't really been looking.

"Look, all I am saying is that you should give it some time." She holds both of my hands and squeezes them lightly, "Don't talk to Eras tonight, okay? Let it die down for today and talk to him tomorrow."

"Maybe you're right." I pulled my hands out of hers and ran a hand through my hair, "Maybe it's unfair to him."

"No that is not what I am saying." She says quickly, "Just wait until tomorrow. Think clearly, because you might change your mind later."

I don't know what it is about what she just said that made my stomach turn and not in a good way. I didn't like her words and I don't understand the meaning behind them, but I know for a fact that there was something else behind what she said. And yet I wasn't really sure if I wanted to know, so I kept quiet.

"Okay."

**************************

Dinner doesn't last long, because as soon as Eras clears his plate, his girlfriend runs out of the house crying her eyes out. This happens every time after he brings a girl home after a long trip. She falls for his looks and sweet words and he sometimes likes them back, but it never lasts.

"Tu devais vraiment faire ca? (You really had to do that?)" Ms. Louise glares at Eras for the hundredth time.

"Je suis de retour, non? (I am back right?)" He replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"You are really setting a good example for me." Christopher teases him with a small smile.

"You are a man now." Eras ruffles Chris's hair, "You don't need my guidance."

"Oh, s'il vous plait. (Oh, please.)" Ms. Louise rolls her eyes at him before she rises and carries her plate to the kitchen.

"Vivian wasn't so bad, Eras." Noelle reaches for her plate, "Now, that I think about it, she is the most bearable of them all."

"I agree." Chris and I said simultaneously.

"Give me a break." Eras raises the wine glass to his lips and sips, "She couldn't keep her hands to herself."

"You mean.....?" Noelle leaves the question dangling in the air and Eras nods.

"Right here, right across the table from my mother." Eras laughs, "Don't get me wrong. I am not complaining but she was disrespecting my mother's presence, so that is a no for Vivian."

"What did she do?" Chris looked up at Eras confused.

"Nothing buddy."Eras laughs.

"You wouldn't want to know anyway." I told him honestly.

"Emily, your mom just texted me." Noelle raises her phone to show me, "She says that she wants you back so that you guys can talk."

"No, stay for a while, Emily." Eras holds my hand, "It's still so early."

"One second." I frowned, "Why didn't she just text me?"

"I don't know." Noelle doesn't meet my eyes and chugs down a glass of water, "Come on."

She doesn't wait for me and walks out of the dining room.

What the hell is going on with her?

"I have to go." I slipped my hand from under Eras's, "I'll see you later, I promise."

"Emily." He gets up too and pulls me to him, "We didn't finish talking."

"I know." I placed my hand on his chest and gently pushed him back, "And we will, but right now, I need to go. I'll text you, okay?"

His moves are hesitant as he lets me go and steps back.

"Okay." He smiles at me, "See you soon."

"Bye." I waved at him and Chris with a smile.

"So will you tell me what is wrong?" I asked Noelle immediately after I climbed into the car.

She shakes her head and starts the car.

"I prefer not to."

"Why not?"

She looks at me with so much sympathy in her eyes that it makes my heart drop.

"I don't want to be the one who breaks the news."

"Noelle..."

She interrupts me, "Your mom will explain everything and you can then decide what you want to do. Everyone will do what makes you comfortable."

"Okay." I chuckled nervously, "I hope this isn't as bad as it sounds."

"I hope so too."

There is no playfulness in her tone. All my hopes that this is just another one of her silly pranks have jumped out of the window. I don't know what kind of news that my mother holds for me, but from the looks of it, it is not going to be the greatest of news. Worry laces around the strings of my heart when we stay quiet all the way back to my house. And no matter how many times I try to push the uneasiness away, it still lingers in my heart.