Dreamer Chapter 7

We walked up to the house, our fingers intertwined together. Abbie opened the door and gestured for me to enter first. Without letting go of the other's hand, we slid through the narrow opening sideways and straightened out in the wider main entrance. It appeared as though Abbie and Lucy weren't satisfied with decorating just the driveway- every wall inside had been painted in the same style as the outside pavement. I could usually tell which sister painted which murals, but there were a few flowery, romantic ones that didn't seem to fit in with either of their styles. I guessed that was their mother's doing, wherever she was now. The distinctive lump was present inside as well; about twenty feet into the house, I could feel the floor slanting upwards beneath my feet.

 

Following the sound of Lucy's voice, I found myself in what I guessed was the kitchen- there was at least a stove and a refrigerator present, but a laptop and a TV had also been shoved into the corner, making it hard to tell for sure. It made me wonder if there were even designated areas in the household. The family's eccentric habits considered, it wouldn't be surprising if the entire house was one big chamber.

 

At the center of the room was a table covered with stacks of books, and there sat a tall and muscled man. He held himself impressively, and the effect was emphasized by his body build and his squared facial features. If it hadn't been for his friendly smile, he would've been absolutely terrifying. It wasn't his affable expression that kept him from being intimidating, however; one of his eyes was dirty hazel, a spitting image of Lucy's eyes, and the other a clear blue that resembled Abbie's. This familiar sight, above anything else, comforted me.

 

"So, I take it you're Dyer?" His British accent was a little bit more pronounced than either of the sisters', and he had a pleasantly resonant tenor voice. He leaned over the books to shake my hand, knocking a few off the top of the piles. "I've heard a lot about you."

 

I took his massive hand in my own. "Yes, sir.” I paused, wondering if what I was about to say would be offensive to him. “Good or bad, sir?"

 

He chuckled genially. "A little bit of both." Letting go of my hand, he added, "Don't start with any of that 'sir' crap either. Call me Mr. Randall if you must, but I'd really like it if you just called me William."

 

"Cool. William it is." Already, I was feeling right at home.

 

"That's more like it." He picked up a newspaper from the mess in front of him and started scanning the headlines.

 

Since William wasn't carrying out an active conversation, I supposed that it wouldn't be impolite of me to go and stand by Abbie, who stood next to the entrance, watching us. Halfway across the kitchen, my foot caught on the uneven ground, and I nearly fell onto a cactus on top of a boom box. Lucy made a sort of strangled noise, trying unsuccessfully to keep her laughter quiet. William looked up from his paper, looking halfway amused and halfway concerned.

 

“All right there? Didn't hurt yourself, did you?”

 

"Nah. I'm fine.” Glaring at the little spot of flooring that I tripped over, I said, “I don't mean to be rude or prying or anything, but what's up with the house? Was it hit by a hurricane or earthquake or something?"

 

Lucy groaned as William crowed triumphantly. Confused by the unexpected reactions, I revolved towards Abbie, but she was looking downwards, fishing her wallet out of her pocket.

 

"Um, guys? Did I say something?"

 

William laughed. "Sorry about that. It's just that every single time somebody comes to our house, they either ask if it'd been hit by a hurricane, or if it was the house of some bohemian madman. I thought that the hurricane was a bit more plausible than the psycho, but Abbie and Lucy didn't agree. We decided that when people came over, we'd keep track of which theory they asked about. The first one to get to fifty wins the bet, and you're the fiftieth person to ask about the hurricane. So, Abbie, Lucy, if you two would please pay up..."

 

So this was where Lucy learned how to distort sentences. Though I wouldn't have ever admitted it out loud, I had been wondering if it was a learned behavior, or just another personal oddity. Abbie reached past me and reluctantly handed William a few small bills. "I'm still going to win the one about the washing machine, so it doesn't make much of a difference that I lost this."

 

He snickered. "In your dreams."

 

Still bewildered, I just kept quiet.

 

"So, Dyer, about the house. No, it didn't fall victim to any natural disasters, and it wasn't home to any mentally ill people. At least-” he looked around the kitchen- “I don't think any of us are mentally ill. Okay, I'm going to disobey my English teachers and digress a little bit, but it's a necessary digression. I'm a construction engineer, which basically means I design and help build houses. You know what a contract is, right?"

 

I nodded.

 

"Okay, well, in construction, a contract letters out just how much money and what resources a project gets. When we were building this neighborhood, there was a big plot of land in the back that was a pretty big mess. Our master blueprints wouldn't have worked for that section, but the contract stated that there were to be a total of ten houses on this particular stretch of road. We only had nine, and the only space we could build on was this back lot. By then, we'd almost hit our budget limit, so instead of hiring an outside guy, the white suits decided to let me build my own house there. That way, they wouldn't be sued for contract violation, they wouldn't have to spend money hiring an outside designer, and I would have a house for my family for little to nothing. It was a win-win situation." He paused to catch his breath. "Still following me, or do you want me to back up?"

 

"Nah. I get what you're saying."

 

"It doesn't look too bad right now, but I'll show you pictures later of how rough the land was when we first started building. Loads of complications. But I managed to level out most of the ground, save for that signature bump in the middle. After spending a month trying to flatten the ground , we hadn't gotten anywhere with the bump, and I was pretty tired of trying every method I could to even out the ground. Even better, the deadline was coming up, so I decided to base all my blueprints off of that jut. That's why our house looks so unusual. I had to compensate everything else off that anomaly."

 

"That's pretty cool.”

 

"Yeah, pretty much pretty cool. So, Dyer, have a seat.” He gestured towards the chair on the opposite side of the table and waited for me to struggle through the kitchen again. “As a responsible father-" he winked at me- "I feel the need to interrogate all my daughter's boyfriends, because the last thing I need is some juvenile delinquent kid showing up all the time around here and being a bad influence on my daughters."

 

Smirking, I said, "Alright. Hit me with your best shot."

 

From behind me, Lucy tittered, and William let out a low chuckle before saying, "So, going back to what I've heard about you... Most of the good things came from Lucy, and a lot of the bad came from Abbie. Lucy seemed to think you were a lonely, misunderstood soul, and Abbie thought that you were just a little lying freak. So, tell me, how is it that you end up dating Abbie? I mean, it'd kind of bother me if you asked out Lucy, since she's a grade younger than you two, but you and Abbie weren't exactly on the best terms."

 

I wasn't sure how worried I should be, so I looked over at Abbie, who'd strategically positioned herself behind William. She gave me a thumbs up, so I figured that any story would work. "Well, we just... Miscomprehended each other's words. Nothing big, on reflection. She thought I said something I didn't, and I thought she was just lying and twisting my words around, and things blew up from there. We worked it all out though, with help from Lucy, and then I discovered that I kind of..."

 

William's expression hadn't changed. "Yeah?"

 

"Do you know how awkward it is to talk to your girlfriend's father about this kind of thing?" I asked playfully.

 

"Yeah, I do." He made a face. "Miranda's father was the same way to me when we first started dating. It was a nightmare having him as a father-in-law. But, anyways, please, keep going."

 

Miranda? I didn't remember either of the sisters mentioning that their father was divorced.

 

"Well, I figured out that I liked her all along. Though we were arguing, there was just... A feeling. And once we talked out our fight, she discovered that felt the same, so... Here we are."

 

"Cool. It's about time Abbie dated somebody with a brain." He rotated around to grin at Abbie. She stuck her tongue out at him. With a snort, he turned back around to face me. "Take good care of her, will you? She's the only Abbie I've got."

 

Weird way to put it. "I will."

 

"Alrighty, glad to see that's taken of, then." He stood up, and without explanation, walked over to the refrigerator, examining the many magnets and pictures adorning it. "Hey, Dyer, call your mother and ask her if she's alright with you having dinner here. We're having chicken and salad tonight, if you want to stay. I promise it'll be edible." I couldn't tell if he was joking; he kept a poker face just as well as Lucy did.

 

"Sounds good. Where's the phone?"

 

William seemed preoccupied with with his thoughts, still looking at the pictures pinned on the refrigerator, so Lucy spoke up. "It's on the table."

 

"Where? I don't see it."

 

Abbie laughed. "It's supposed to be on the table. Probably buried under all of the books. Hold on, though." She dug into her pocket and pulled out a cell phone.

 

"Excuse me a minute." I walked out of the kitchen to what appeared to be a living room. Another TV, a couch, a fireplace, and... Was that a washing machine behind the couch? I shook my head and dialed my home phone number.

 

Caroline picked up on the first ring. "Hello? Caroline Keegan speaking."

 

"Hey, mom, it's me, Dyer."

 

"Oh, hi, darling! I just got back from work a minute ago. How're you?"

 

"Pretty good, but could hold on with the pleasantries for a second? I'm at Abbie's house right now, and I was wondering if I could stay over for dinner."

 

"Oh! Of course." She paused for a second. "Do you think it'd be an intrusion on my part to visit?"

 

I thought it over. "I don't think so, but I'm not positive. William's pretty lax about... Everything, so I don't think he'll have a problem with it. Do you want me to go ask?"

 

"Please, if you will."

 

"Hold on." I made sure that the mouthpiece was covered, then walked back into the kitchen area. "Hey, William," I called, "my mother wants to know if it'll be alright if she comes over to dinner as well."

 

"Sure! More the merrier. I might have to clean off the table though..." He looked forlornly at the huge mass of books, and then shrugged. "Does this mysterious mother of yours have a name?"

 

"Yeah. Caroline Keegan. I think you know her from college or something?"

 

A brightness abruptly shone in his eyes. "Caroline? You're Caroline's kid? I haven't talked to her in years... It'd be great to see her again... Sure, she's welcome anytime. Is your dad coming too?"

 

The words stung. Although I knew he didn't mean anything by it, I couldn't find in myself to say anything.

 

"Um, dad... Dyer's dad committed suicide a few years ago... He's still upset about it." Abbie was trying to be subtle so that I wouldn't be able to hear, but failed. Each word bit at me, shook me as though the news was fresh, as though it had happened only yesterday...

 

"Oh." William's voice became hushed. "I didn't know-"

 

"It's okay," I said quietly. "You didn't know. It's not your fault." His chagrined eyes looked down at me, mortified and unconsoled. "Honestly, it's not. Don't worry about it." For his benefit, I tried to smile, but it probably ended up looking more like a grimace more than anything else.

 

Unable to think of anything more to say, he just nodded to himself and said, “If you kids want to go hang out upstairs, go ahead. I've got a lot to cook for our distinguished guests tonight.” He opened the refrigerator door and added, “But I don't hear to hear long, extended periods of silence.”

 

I had nothing to say to that.

 

Abbie walked out of the kitchen, and gestured for me to follow her.

 

"So," I said, "that was educational. Fathers would rather be called 'dude' than 'sir' by their daughter's boyfriends. Interesting. I'll have to remember that one."

 

She smiled widely, letting her teeth show, which was unusual for her. "I told you that you didn't have anything to worry about. He's just like a male, adult version of us."

 

We passed through what I thought was the living room and went around the corner to find ourselves at the base of a metallic staircase that spiraled up to the next floor.

 

I raised my eyebrow as we began to transcend it. "Nice. Your room's upstairs?"

 

"Yeah. Lucy's room is downstairs, because she wanted to have a room linked to the garden, but dad knew that I prefer rooms on the second floor, so he built mine right on top of hers. There's a little trapdoor, so sometimes we talk to each other at night when there's nothing else to do."

 

"Heaven forbid that you two don't gossip like old women every night." That reminded me. "By the way, I have a question for you."

 

"Yeah?"

 

"Back when you weren't talking to me, Lucy mentioned something about how you saw me pacing my room at night, wondering what was wrong with you. Did you ever come and, you know... Stalk me?"

 

She snorted. "No. I have better things to do. I just saw it through your eyes the next day at school.”

 

"Thought you were trying to avoid looking at my eyes?"

 

"Can't help a wayward glance every once in a while."

 

Well, I was relieved that she hadn't been coming to watch me sleep, but there was another question on the tip of my tongue. "So, what was it that you were trying to keep quiet during lunch and at the shack? I've been dying to know."

 

Abbie didn't answer the question, and stepped off of the top stair to the hallway. "Come on. My room's right here."

 

By now, I knew that it was close to futile to argue with a Randall, so I just followed her through a door. My first impression was that we'd stepped into the wrong room- this looked more like a library room or a study room than a bedroom. Directly across the room from the door ran a huge bookcase that covered the entire length of the room, filled to the brim with books. Wordlessly, I drifted over to look over all the titles.

 

"Great collection, isn't it?" Abbie's hands wrapped themselves around my waist. "Took me forever to find some of this stuff. I even have original, first-edition copies of Madame Bovary and Lolita."

 

"I might have to show Caroline this. She refuses to buy me any books, because she thinks I can just check out books at the library. Drives me nuts."

 

Abbie laughed and pulled me away from the bookcase to her bed. Not frilly or girly or anything- just a plain bedframe and sensible-looking, thick blankets. She lay down on top of the blankets and sighed contentedly. "Dyer, don't just stand there. Sit down."

 

I looked around for a chair, but could only see a bean bag.

 

"Where?"

 

She giggled. "On the bed, of course."

 

"And, oh, say if William comes to check on us..."

 

"He won't care as long as our clothes are on." She sounded pretty confident in that, so I gingerly set myself down at the edge of her bed. No need to tempt myself.

 

"So, are you going to tell me what's going on now, or should I just keep waiting for a few more days?"

 

She closed her eyes and put her hands behind her head without saying anything- I wondered if she was planning on falling asleep. Even with eyes closed, she was easily the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen. Her hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail, but a few loose hairs still stuck out. I didn't know what it was about that that made her look so endearing. Like a cute little sleeping puppy dog. I'd never noticed before, but she didn't wear a lot of makeup. Just a little bit of eyeliner and lip gloss, and that was it. It was almost surreal to me, because all the other girls at the school caked on huge amounts of makeup. Enough to turn their skin orange. Disgusting, and pretty unattractive.

 

I felt a strange urge to stroke her face. To touch her, make sure that she was really there. My hand lifted up from the bed, and froze midair. Should I? Would she mind? Would it wake her up? Though my mind told me to restrain myself, my fingers decided that it was worth the risk. Gently, I ran a single finger down her cheek. Just as I had remembered it, her skin was cool and left goosebumps on mine, but wonderfully so. She opened her eyes. So she hadn't been sleeping.

 

"That feels so good..." Abbie's voice was full of desire.

 

I kissed her lightly on the lips, and I intended that to be it. A small peck. But our lips had their own ideas. Her lips locked onto mine, and she pulled me on top of her. I gasped, unable to believe that-

 

"Don't be ridiculous, Dyer. I'm not looking for that." Abbie couldn't even muster irritation, and she smiled in spite of herself.

 

"William-" I spluttered. He was easygoing, but I was sure that it'd bother him to see us like this...

 

"Dyer, you worry too much," she said, and pressed her smooth lips to mine once again.

 

I wanted to submit. I wanted for her to continue like this for a long time. I didn't want this to stop. But I also knew that this wasn't right. Not now. Pulling myself away, I forced myself to get off of her and her bed, and Abbie sat up like she'd been hit by a bolt of lightning, breathing heavily and looking shocked.

 

"Dyer. I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. I shouldn't have- I- I didn't mean to-" She kept stammering and stopping herself, trying to find the right words to say.

 

"I know. I'm not angry." I smiled. "It was just a little bit out of my comfort zone.”

 

"I know you're not angry, but that was... That was unacceptable. I don't know what's going on with me lately. I just... The line's getting smudged between what I know my limits are, and what I want."

 

I took her in my arms. "Abbie, you worry too much."

 

We stood there like that for a while, unmoving, each savoring the presence of the other. Somehow, I could stand perfectly still like this, but not get bored or twitchy. The difference it made to be with somebody I loved... It made all the difference in the world. Abbie gazed at my eyes, soaking in everything I was feeling and thinking, mouth slightly open, and lips glistening in the light...

 

There was a loud knock from below us, and we both jumped. It was far too easy to get caught up in one another. Far too easy to forget the outside world.

 

Without waiting for a reply, Lucy came out from the floorboard a few feet away. "Hey, lover birds. I was going to give you two a little bit of privacy time to sort out your issues-" she winked- "before I intruded, but it's been twenty minutes. Enough is enough, even in the hands of young love. So, let's get Dyer up to date."

 

I unwillingly let go of Abbie, and we all took a seat on the hardwood floor. "Oh, so you guys are going to tell me what went on at lunch now?"

 

Abbie nodded. "I couldn't do it in front of Ellie, because this directly involves her."

 

I frowned. "Does this have anything to do with her unexplained hatred of me? What's her problem with me anyways? Did my great-great-grandfather murder her great-great-grandfather?"

 

Lucy made a wry face. "I doubt that any of our ancestors went around murdering one another, but good guess anyways."

 

"Here's the thing, Dyer..." Abbie started. "It might be hard for you to understand right now, but..."

 

"Yeah? What is it? I've been waiting all day to hear this.”

 

"Remember when you asked if any of your 'other female friends' might be a problem?"

 

"What about that? I thought you told me that Julia was the only-"

 

"Friend, Dyer. The only friend."

 

My brain almost made an audible click as all the pieces came crashing together.

 

"That can't be right. That's... It doesn't make sense! Why would- But-" I didn't even know what to say. Surely, this had be some sort of cruel joke!

 

"It's not a joke Dyer. What's the big deal anyways? So your girlfriend's best friend likes you. Just another typical teenage situation."

 

Lucy piped in, "I don't think you understand why he's freaking out, Abbie..."

 

"So... She... Finds me attractive."

 

Abbie pushed the hair out of my eyes and took a long look. "Dyer! That's absolutely not true!"

 

Lucy looked confused. "What's not true? Keep in mind that I don't read minds."

 

"I'm having a problem with Ellie... You know... Okay. Why would Ellie find me likable? What do I have that others guys don't? I'm not especially good-looking, and there are plenty of other guys who're smarter, and funnier, and..." I racked my brains to see what else I could use for ammunition against myself. "More talented, and guys who're romantic and know what to say at all the right times, and..."

 

"Oh." Lucy didn't look discomposed by my outburst. In fact, it looked as though she'd been expecting what I had said.

 

I looked at Abbie, but she had faced away from me.

 

"Abbie? Are you okay?" How ironic. I was asking her if she was alright.

 

The air made a whipping sound as she twisted herself back in my direction, and looked at me with something close to fury in her eyes. Surprised, and a little afraid, I scooted away from her. Did I say something wrong?

 

"Yes," she snapped at me, "in fact, you did say something wrong, Dyer Anthony Keegan. Do you seriously think you're still my little science experiment?"

 

Uh oh. Was this where she was going? "That's the only reason I can think of why you're still my girlfriend. If you weren't so interested in my dreaming, you would've left me by now. In fact-" I stood up, agitated. "Look, Abbie, you could have any guy you want. You can try to deny it, but you know it's true. You can be as modest as you want, but... You're beautiful, and witty. You're intelligent and street smart. You're a lot of fun to be around. And..." I exhaled, trying to figure out where this rant was headed. "Look at me. I'm nothing next to you. Why? Why would you settle for me, when you could have anybody you wanted?"

 

Abbie's voice was no longer angry. "Dyer... Look at me."

 

I didn't. No, that wasn't right. I couldn't.

 

"Dyer, I know you're a bookworm too, so try to think things through in that regard. Romeo and Juliet, considered one the greatest love stories in history. They knew each other for a day, and yet, their love was enough to drive them to suicide when they believed that the other was dead. Wuthering Heights. Heathcliff and Cathy were... They were both fiends, but their love transcended human nature. Pride and Prejudice. Mr. Darcy used to be-"

 

I cut her off. "That's enough. You know just as well as I do that classic writers romanticized everything they could. War, love, life itself. Love isn't like that."

 

She took my shoulders in her hands and spun me around. "Dyer, I don't-" she stopped, sounding unsure of herself. "I don't know why I love you, and if I'm going to be completely honest, I don't know if I really do love you. There wasn't a love anvil that fell out of the skies and conked me over the head. But the way I feel- it's different. I've had a lot of boyfriends before, and I genuinely cared for most of them. Was it love? I don't know. But don't you think, that if we do love each other, that our love would look like this? You were right about one thing. This is reality, Dyer. Love won't magically solve all of our problems. There's no happily ever after. We're going to fight, and we're going to go through tough times together, but in the end, we'll love one another, won't we?"

 

As much as I hated to admit it, she had a point. I didn't have any tangible proof that I loved her, but... I did love her, didn't I? Just like she was unable to explain why she was in love with me, I was unable to explain why I loved her. The superficial character qualities I had listed meant nothing in love. I had been wrong. I wasn't a lab rat to her. She... Loved me.

 

Love. Such an interesting concept. Broad, and encompassing. I loved Abbie, yes, but I also loved Caroline, Lucy, Julia, Winnie, Rich. Caroline was family, and she had loved me before I knew how to love her... It was a love based just as much on debt as it was on bonding. Don't get me wrong- I would love her unconditionally, regardless of her love towards me. She was family. My friends... Why did I love my friends? There had been a common interest, or lack of one, that bonded us together, and from there, we all loved each other. But I loved some more than I loved others, and I knew that. I valued some loves higher than others, but I could not explain why.

 

Abbie looked at the floor, respecting the privacy of my mind. "Well?"

 

"I... I'm sorry. You're right. I shouldn't have... I shouldn't have doubted you."

 

She smiled and kissed me gently before saying, "I've got to say, this has got to be one of the rockiest beginnings to a relationship I've ever gone through. If we survived that, we don't have to worry about anything else tearing us apart."

 

“Yeah. You're right.” I looked around. "Where'd Lucy go?"

 

Muffled by the flooring, the sound of her laughter came from underneath us. "I decided to give you guys some privacy. If I didn't actually see it, then I wasn't a witness." Climbing up from the trapdoor, she added, "By the way, I'd like to remind you that Ellie's not a fool. I think that she knew that we were going to talk about this."

 

Abbie's brow creased. "Yeah, she did. I don't know what to do though. She's resentful at me for dating Dyer, and she's resentful at Dyer for taking up so much of my time. It's hard on her. The way she sees, it, she's lost a potential love interest and a best friend, all in one blow."

 

That brought up another question. "Wait, for how long has she liked me? I only met her because of you guys. Before, I didn't even know that she existed."

 

"She didn't know you existed either." Lucy looked reflective and detached as she thought it over. "I'm pretty sure it's just infatuation though. She hasn't gotten to know you very well, so she's just basing everything off your looks. It'll come to pass soon."

 

"I hope so," said Abbie, leaning against the bed, jealousy tinting her facial expression. Even in envy, her voice was mellifluous.

 

Our musing was interrupted by the sound of somebody walking up the metal stairs. A few seconds after the footsteps were muffled by carpet, William appeared at the door. He took a careful assessment of the way we'd positioned ourselves. Looking pleased at how our bodies were not in contact with one another, he said, "Hey, guys, Dyer's mom's here, and dinner's going to be ready soon."

 

"We'll be down in a few," said Lucy, and William headed back downstairs, whistling an unfamiliar tune. She glanced at me. "By the way, have you told your mother about Abbie?"

 

"Not yet... But I guess it'd be a good idea to tell her tonight."

 

Abbie punched my arm playfully. "Ashamed of me?"

 

"Nah..."

 

Lucy stood. "Well, I, for one, would be delighted to meet my sister's boyfriend's mother. Toodles you guys!" She hopped down to the first floor through the trapdoor.

 

With a exaggerated sigh, Abbie followed suit, and after making sure that she wasn't in the way, I did the same, wondering if Lucy had ever been dropped on her head.

 

***

 

Caroline was in the kitchen, talking to William when we walked in. They were so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't notice when we seated ourselves at the table in the center of the room, which had miraculously been cleared of books.

 

Lucy winked at us, and said loudly, "Hey dad. Is dinner almost done yet?"

 

Caroline and William simultaneously jumped. Heading over to Caroline, Lucy took her hand and vigorously shook it. "So, you're Dyer's mother, are you? Dead pleased to meet you!"

 

Looking a little alarmed by the greeting, Caroline nevertheless exclaimed, "Abbie! Is that you? You've grown so much since I last saw you! Well." She stopped to cough consciously. "The last time I saw you, you were just a few months old, but you get what I mean."

 

Lucy grinned her wide-lipped smile. "Actually, I'm Lucy. You've never seen me before. That one, holding hands with Dyer, is Abbie."

 

I winced a little as Caroline's jaw dropped. Her eyes darted back and forth between me and our hands, and she kept deathly still. After a few seconds had gone by, I felt a little concerned. Was she about to have a heart attack?

 

"Dyer? Is... She your...?"

 

"Yeah. Sorry I didn't tell you, but I was going to surprise you."

 

"...Well then. What a... Pleasant surprise. I wasn't expecting this. When I heard that-" To my astonishment, she laughed. This wouldn't have been so shocking, but it wasn't the half-hearted, fake laugh I'd become accustomed to. No, this was much better. This was the laugh I hadn't heard ever since Christopher died. "Dyer, you dog! Well, isn't this just lovely! You two are just so cute together! And Abbie! Abbie, darling, you've become such a lovely young lady! Dyer, if this had been anybody else, you would've been in-"

 

"Hey, guys, dinner's all done," interrupted William, coming to my rescue. "I'd advise that we eat before the food gets cold. We can talk about boyfriends and girlfriends anytime we please, but chicken is only warm once.”