The Wrong Words

Stefan

The room stays silent, and she watches me.

“Why are you trying to hide everything?” she asks, and my head shakes.

“I’m not hiding anything, Mother.” Nothing at all.

“So you’re not in love with her?” she asks, and her words shock me.

Laughing, I shake my head. “Don’t be so foolish, mother. Why would you even suggest such a thing? It’s ludicrous.” My heart quickens, and I fight back the fear.

“I’ve watched you, Stefan, the way you look at her, the way you always looked at her when you thought no one would see or notice.”

Her words made my body run cold.

“What?” What does she mean by that?

Laughing, she turns to face me more. “Even before she left, when you were young, you may have been harsh to her in person, but from a distance, when you assumed no one would see. Your look towards her spoke volumes,” she explains, and I panicked, my eyes looking around the room.

“What look, Mother?” She could be wrong.

“The look you only had when you looked at Harlyn and were convinced no one wo