Ella woke up in the morning while Leon was half-naked and getting changed for work. Her eyes widened before she scrunched them closed. Eep! Don't blush, don't blush... She peeked as he continued getting ready. Damn, what am I doing? But it's not like I haven't seen all of him before... She scrunched her eyes closed again. When she finally opened her eyes, Leon was right beside her.
"Enjoying the morning show?" Leon snickered as he adjusted his tie.
"Um..."
"Don't worry; I'm yours to enjoy." He winked at her. "Look all you want; no need to hide it."
"Well, I..."
He kissed her forehead. "No fever at least. Alice is already here, so ask if you need anything. I'll try to be home during lunch to check on you. I'll see you later."
"B-bye..." He's like a whirlwind, sometimes.
Alice peeked into the room once he was gone. "Aren't you two just the cutest couple?" She giggled and pushed a trolley in. She let out a deep sigh. "I'm so glad things have been working out. I wasn't sure with how it started, but now, now it seems like it'll it was meant to be." She clasped her hands together, her eyes sparkling. "Such a fairy tale, if you ask me."
"How are things going with Zeke? Are you two still dating?" Ella asked, having not heard anything about it since she found out about them.
Alice shrugged. "We're having fun; isn't that enough?"
"How long will fun be enough for you?"
"Hopefully, forever."
"Never plan to change that?"
"Not anytime soon, no. So when we grow old, I totally expect you to keep a room in your house for me, so I can live with you."
"So that's your plan? I don't know if Leon would agree to that."
"Are you kidding me? If you asked, I know he'd let me stay."
"Why do you think that?"
Alice's eyes widened. "Seriously? He's totally head over heels in love with you; he'll give you anything you ask for."
"I don't know if I'd say he's head over heels..."
"If you don't think that, then you're blind. That man loves you more than anything."
"But... Sebastian was like him before everything changed..."
Alice gagged. "How can you even compare them? I didn't know Sebastian back in the day, but I've had to deal with him enough now to know they're nothing alike."
"He was sweet and caring... and we were engaged for a while, too."
"Is that what's been worrying you? Is that why you're so stressed?"
Ella sighed. "I'm stressed because of everything, not just one thing. It's all so... overwhelming, and I don't feel good enough."
"Take it from someone who has a lot more experience with men—"
"I've been proposed to four times; who has more experience?" Wait, does Leon make it five?
"Fine, I have more experience with a variety of men, and I can tell which ones are the good ones who mean what they say, and Leon is one of them. Where else will you find a hottie like him who's willing to wait for his first love to come back into his life before getting serious with a woman? That is dedication there."
"But it also meant he was in love with the girl in his memories." Ella sighed and rubbed her forehead. "What if things change down the line?"
Alice tapped her chin as she stared hard at Ella. "I still can't see him changing, no matter what. But what does this mean? Are you going to run away again?"
"I... I don't want to—"
"Then don't. It's as simple as that. Face the future head-on with Leon, and I'm sure you'll be alright."
"I don't think I can be like his mom and schmooze up to all these business people and whatnot... that are going to be at our wedding." Ella sighed and grabbed a pillow to hug. I should've grabbed Penny from my room.
"Has Leon asked you to?"
"No... he just wanted me to let his parents invite whoever they wanted."
"Then I don't think you have to worry about it. As far as I can tell, Leon wants you to be happy. That's it. Well, he hopes he's a major part of that happiness. Relax, Ella; you've caught a good one. Now, I should probably do some work instead of chatting with you."
"Mental health." Ella pointed at herself. "It could be considered doing work."
"I love that way of thinking." Alice laughed and sat down on the bed beside her. "The girls would be so jealous..."
Ella's expression dropped. "Don't go bragging about slacking today to anyone, or you might never get another chance."
"Noted! Although, it'd be the perfect thing to tease Charlie with..."
"Alice..." Ella called to her in a threatening tone.
"I know, I know. Now, let's eat breakfast and watch some TV."
---
The front door opened, and Alice shot up into a sitting position, her hair a mess after falling asleep beside Ella, who was wide awake watching TV still. Alice hopped out of bed and pushed the cart of dirty dishes out of the room to go grab lunch. "She's awake and fine," Alice said as she sped past Leon.
"Good to know..." Leon frowned, thinking about what Alice was up to. He knocked on the bedroom door before opening it. "Have you gotten any rest, or has Alice been keeping you up?"
Alice is the one who's been sleeping. Ella shrugged. "I just have trouble sleeping extra. I'm used to keeping myself busy, and I don't feel super sick, so it's hard to stay here like this."
"I see..." Leon nodded as he thought. "Well, if you're up for it, my mom has been pestering me to go tastes cakes during lunch, and I think it'd be better if you were there."
"Tasting cakes?" More wedding stuff...
"You love dessert, don't you?"
"Of course, I do."
He reached out to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "Then what's wrong?"
"Nothing." She shook her head, and he frowned. "I just don't know how much dessert I can eat right now, and I hate to waste."
"Oh, I'll eat anything you don't. I know you prefer a clean plate."
"Wouldn't that be too much sugar for you?"
He smiled. "In case you've forgotten, I have a sweet tooth, too!"
"Ah... Okay then..." Better than lazing at home... I think.
"Here, I'll help you get changed." Leon smiled and rifled through her closet.
"Pretty sure I can dress myself... Isn't that too flashy for tasting cake?" Ella asked, looking at the dress he picked out.
"I thought you'd look good in it; wasn't thinking about the occasion."
"Scoot." She pointed at the door and gave him a light push. "And tell Alice what's going on."
"Okay, okay." He chuckled and winked at her before he left.
Ha... He's such a flirt, but I guess it's okay if it's only with me. Maybe Alice was right, and I'm overthinking everything.
She quickly threw on a blouse and skirt and got ready to leave within a couple of minutes.
"Okay." She walked into the living room to find Leon chatting with Alice, who was eating the meal she brought for Ella.
"Eat lots of cake for me," Alice said. "And no coconut pieces in the cake, please; it makes my throat itchy."
"I know." I probably know way too much about her preferences and allergies.
Leon picked up Ella's jacket and held it up to her.
"Thank you."
"You two are so cute." Alice giggled and continued eating Ella's sandwich.
"Goodbye, Alice; I'll have her back in an hour." Leon waved to her and kept his hand at the small of Ella's back as he escorted her out.
"How could Sebastian ever have been like Leon?" Alice muttered.
---
They got into Leon's car, and Ella stared at him with a raised eyebrow.
"What's wrong?" Leon asked as he buckled up.
"You're driving?" Ella asked.
"Yes, is that a problem?"
"Well, no, but..."
"Zeke normally drives? I know, and he likes driving, but he's busy today. Besides, it's not the first time I've driven us, so you know I'm good." Leon refrained from saying that Zeke was busy keeping an eye on Sebastian. "It's also nearby, so it won't take long to get there either way."
They took off, and like Leon said, it only took ten minutes to arrive at the bakery his mother was waiting at as she stared at her watch.
"Hello, mother," Leon said as they entered together.
"Hello, dear." His mother's gaze turned to Ella. "I hope you're feeling better."
"I'm okay; just tired."
"I see... Well, you'd do well to take care of your health. We want grandbabies—"
"Mother," Leon called to her in a low voice.
"Right, sorry." His mother sighed and turned to the owner of the cake shop, who was also the baker. "We'd like to start now."
"Please, have a seat." He led them over to a table before bringing out a slew of cake samples for them to try.
I love cake, but this seems like a lot to try, even for me...
Leon grabbed her hand under the table, linking his fingers through hers.
"First is a lemon mascarpone cake." They set a small sample out for each of them.
Ella went to release Leon's hand, and his grip tightened. She looked at him with a raised eyebrow. How am I supposed to eat if I can't use my dominant hand? I'd rather avoid making a mess.
As if in answer to her thoughts, Leon held his fork up with cake on it, ready for her to try. Knowing Leon wouldn't give up, and not wanting to make a scene, she ate it. Her eyes widened. Damn, this is good.
"You don't need to feed her," his mother whispered, nudging his elbow.
"I don't have to, but I want to."
"It's okay; we're used to lovebirds doing this by now," the owner said, a soft smile playing on his face. "It's always heart-warming to feel the love between a couple."
After trying more cake than she cared to remember, and the flavours started to blur in her mind, Ella sat around drinking water for a while. "How do we choose just one?" she asked.
"If there isn't one, but rather a few, we can get them all," Leon said. "That should be doable, right?"
"Yes, and we have it as you want to order a five-tier cake, so you can choose five different flavours if you want. Keep in mind, the bottom one will be the largest and should be your top choice."
"Did you find one you like the best?"
We tried so many though... She thought back to the ice cream they ate together as kids. "How about a strawberry one for the biggest, but also a cookies and cream one too?"
Leon's face lit up, instantly recognizing it. "Okay, and how about an apple cinnamon and brownie one?"
Ella smiled. "And for the last one..."
They stared at eat other for a moment. "Chocolate peanut butter," they both said.
I wonder how we managed that? We haven't eaten that combination together before.
His mother stared at them. "Quite the variety... Are you looking for a Frankenstein cake?"
"Oh, don't worry, ma'am, the outside of the cake will all be cohesive," the owner assured her.
"Well, that's good; I don't want there to be any eyesores."
She makes me want to make bad choices for the wedding... Although she had narrowed down the other things so much; I don't think I could've. "I guess we're done now?" Ella looked at Leon and his mom.
Leon pulled out his car keys and handed them to her. "I have a few things I'd like to talk to him about, so you can wait in the car," he said.
"Talk to him about what?" his mother asked.
"About more desserts to be there, but Ella looks like she's had enough. Go get some fresh air." He kissed Ella on the cheek.
"Okay, thank you." Ella excused herself and stood outside of the shop. She took a deep breath of fresh air. She's going to be my mother-in-law, and expect a lot out of me.
A sudden chill ran down her spine. She looked around and spotted a few groups of people, but none of them seemed to be paying any attention to her. Not wanting to chance anything, she hopped into the car and locked the door.
I'm probably just imagining things.
Tap, tap.
"Ah!" She nearly jumped out of her skin. At her window was Leon. Oh, thank goodness... She rested a hand on her chest, her heart racing, and rolled the window down.
"Sorry, did I scare you?" Leon asked.
"Ha... Just a bit startled. Are you done?"
Leon held up a bag and smiled. "I got you some ice cream. I know you've had enough sugar for now, but we can always have it another day." He handed her the bag.
She peeked into the bag. "Strawberry shortcake ice cream?"
"A little twist on your favourite flavour."
"Thank you." She handed him his keys back. "Oh, what about your mom?"
"Don't worry about her; she has her own ride."
"I figured I should've said goodbye..."
"Seriously, Ella, I love that you're trying to get along with her, but you don't have to worry so much about every little thing."
"But... She's your mom, and you should cherish family."
Leon froze, his hands gripping the stirring wheel. "You know she neglected me as a child, they both did—"
"But I saw the way she looks at you. She may suck at showing it, but she does care."
"She cares about using me for their business, that's it."
"I hope I'm not out of line, but have you talked to her about it before? Or tried to talk to her in general about life?"
Leon swallowed hard. "You're not out of line. You're free to ask me anything you want, but no, I never talked about the incident with her. I didn't see the point. That day we met on the beach, you changed my life, and I strived to become a man you could be proud of. It's probably silly that I attached myself to you so much even though we only spent one day together, but you helped me... continue living. The bright light of hope I never got from anyone else." Leon sighed and rubbed his face. "I admire your relationship with your mom, but I could never be that close to mine."
"If you wanted to be closer, you can always try to talk to her. Even if she was a certain way when you were little, doesn't mean she'd still be that way."
"Would you want to talk to your dad?"
Ella clammed up. "It's not the same and you know it. He left us..."
"So you're saying you wouldn't want to ask why he did it? Wouldn't want to confront him?"
"He's not in my life, and I no longer have a connection to him, so no." That would feel disrespectful to my mother. I know how much she suffered when he left, and I know she doesn't want a reminder of the past.
"I'm sorry. You're right; it's not the same. It can be hard to deal with your parents when you don't really get along. I think all that built up resentment from the neglect put a rift between us that can't be fixed."
"If you're both willing to try, you might be able to, but that requires both people to be willing."
"I get my stubbornness from my parents, so I don't see that happening. It's fine though; I have you now. You're all I need."
"You have Zeke, too. You are friends, right?"
"Yes, he is both my assistant, friend, and the closest thing to a brother I've ever had. But he's hard to deal with! Like a controlling older brother," he muttered. "He is way more than an assistant. I wish I could give him another title."
"Can't you?"
"I tried, and he declined."
Why would he do that? Ella frowned.
"I think he's actually afraid to leave me alone for too long. Since you came into the picture, we've spent less time together, but before you, we were almost attached at the hip. I also think he doesn't want to be a leader, despite how controlling he can be. I think he'd be perfect in a leadership position, and with how much he does for me, you'd think he was the VP or something. Anyway, how about we head home?"
"Sure."
I can't help but wonder, is Zeke his only friend? I've never seen him close to anyone else.
Ella woke up in the morning while Leon was half-naked and getting changed for work. Her eyes widened before she scrunched them closed. Eep! Don't blush, don't blush... She peeked as he continued getting ready. Damn, what am I doing? But it's not like I haven't seen all of him before... She scrunched her eyes closed again. When she finally opened her eyes, Leon was right beside her.
"Enjoying the morning show?" Leon snickered as he adjusted his tie.
"Um..."
"Don't worry; I'm yours to enjoy." He winked at her. "Look all you want; no need to hide it."
"Well, I..."
He kissed her forehead. "No fever at least. Alice is already here, so ask if you need anything. I'll try to be home during lunch to check on you. I'll see you later."
"B-bye..." He's like a whirlwind, sometimes.
Alice peeked into the room once he was gone. "Aren't you two just the cutest couple?" She giggled and pushed a trolley in. She let out a deep sigh. "I'm so glad things have been working out. I wasn't sure with how it started, but now, now it seems like it'll it was meant to be." She clasped her hands together, her eyes sparkling. "Such a fairy tale, if you ask me."
"How are things going with Zeke? Are you two still dating?" Ella asked, having not heard anything about it since she found out about them.
Alice shrugged. "We're having fun; isn't that enough?"
"How long will fun be enough for you?"
"Hopefully, forever."
"Never plan to change that?"
"Not anytime soon, no. So when we grow old, I totally expect you to keep a room in your house for me, so I can live with you."
"So that's your plan? I don't know if Leon would agree to that."
"Are you kidding me? If you asked, I know he'd let me stay."
"Why do you think that?"
Alice's eyes widened. "Seriously? He's totally head over heels in love with you; he'll give you anything you ask for."
"I don't know if I'd say he's head over heels..."
"If you don't think that, then you're blind. That man loves you more than anything."
"But... Sebastian was like him before everything changed..."
Alice gagged. "How can you even compare them? I didn't know Sebastian back in the day, but I've had to deal with him enough now to know they're nothing alike."
"He was sweet and caring... and we were engaged for a while, too."
"Is that what's been worrying you? Is that why you're so stressed?"
Ella sighed. "I'm stressed because of everything, not just one thing. It's all so... overwhelming, and I don't feel good enough."
"Take it from someone who has a lot more experience with men—"
"I've been proposed to four times; who has more experience?" Wait, does Leon make it five?
"Fine, I have more experience with a variety of men, and I can tell which ones are the good ones who mean what they say, and Leon is one of them. Where else will you find a hottie like him who's willing to wait for his first love to come back into his life before getting serious with a woman? That is dedication there."
"But it also meant he was in love with the girl in his memories." Ella sighed and rubbed her forehead. "What if things change down the line?"
Alice tapped her chin as she stared hard at Ella. "I still can't see him changing, no matter what. But what does this mean? Are you going to run away again?"
"I... I don't want to—"
"Then don't. It's as simple as that. Face the future head-on with Leon, and I'm sure you'll be alright."
"I don't think I can be like his mom and schmooze up to all these business people and whatnot... that are going to be at our wedding." Ella sighed and grabbed a pillow to hug. I should've grabbed Penny from my room.
"Has Leon asked you to?"
"No... he just wanted me to let his parents invite whoever they wanted."
"Then I don't think you have to worry about it. As far as I can tell, Leon wants you to be happy. That's it. Well, he hopes he's a major part of that happiness. Relax, Ella; you've caught a good one. Now, I should probably do some work instead of chatting with you."
"Mental health." Ella pointed at herself. "It could be considered doing work."
"I love that way of thinking." Alice laughed and sat down on the bed beside her. "The girls would be so jealous..."
Ella's expression dropped. "Don't go bragging about slacking today to anyone, or you might never get another chance."
"Noted! Although, it'd be the perfect thing to tease Charlie with..."
"Alice..." Ella called to her in a threatening tone.
"I know, I know. Now, let's eat breakfast and watch some TV."
---
The front door opened, and Alice shot up into a sitting position, her hair a mess after falling asleep beside Ella, who was wide awake watching TV still. Alice hopped out of bed and pushed the cart of dirty dishes out of the room to go grab lunch. "She's awake and fine," Alice said as she sped past Leon.
"Good to know..." Leon frowned, thinking about what Alice was up to. He knocked on the bedroom door before opening it. "Have you gotten any rest, or has Alice been keeping you up?"
Alice is the one who's been sleeping. Ella shrugged. "I just have trouble sleeping extra. I'm used to keeping myself busy, and I don't feel super sick, so it's hard to stay here like this."
"I see..." Leon nodded as he thought. "Well, if you're up for it, my mom has been pestering me to go tastes cakes during lunch, and I think it'd be better if you were there."
"Tasting cakes?" More wedding stuff...
"You love dessert, don't you?"
"Of course, I do."
He reached out to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "Then what's wrong?"
"Nothing." She shook her head, and he frowned. "I just don't know how much dessert I can eat right now, and I hate to waste."
"Oh, I'll eat anything you don't. I know you prefer a clean plate."
"Wouldn't that be too much sugar for you?"
He smiled. "In case you've forgotten, I have a sweet tooth, too!"
"Ah... Okay then..." Better than lazing at home... I think.
"Here, I'll help you get changed." Leon smiled and rifled through her closet.
"Pretty sure I can dress myself... Isn't that too flashy for tasting cake?" Ella asked, looking at the dress he picked out.
"I thought you'd look good in it; wasn't thinking about the occasion."
"Scoot." She pointed at the door and gave him a light push. "And tell Alice what's going on."
"Okay, okay." He chuckled and winked at her before he left.
Ha... He's such a flirt, but I guess it's okay if it's only with me. Maybe Alice was right, and I'm overthinking everything.
She quickly threw on a blouse and skirt and got ready to leave within a couple of minutes.
"Okay." She walked into the living room to find Leon chatting with Alice, who was eating the meal she brought for Ella.
"Eat lots of cake for me," Alice said. "And no coconut pieces in the cake, please; it makes my throat itchy."
"I know." I probably know way too much about her preferences and allergies.
Leon picked up Ella's jacket and held it up to her.
"Thank you."
"You two are so cute." Alice giggled and continued eating Ella's sandwich.
"Goodbye, Alice; I'll have her back in an hour." Leon waved to her and kept his hand at the small of Ella's back as he escorted her out.
"How could Sebastian ever have been like Leon?" Alice muttered.
---
They got into Leon's car, and Ella stared at him with a raised eyebrow.
"What's wrong?" Leon asked as he buckled up.
"You're driving?" Ella asked.
"Yes, is that a problem?"
"Well, no, but..."
"Zeke normally drives? I know, and he likes driving, but he's busy today. Besides, it's not the first time I've driven us, so you know I'm good." Leon refrained from saying that Zeke was busy keeping an eye on Sebastian. "It's also nearby, so it won't take long to get there either way."
They took off, and like Leon said, it only took ten minutes to arrive at the bakery his mother was waiting at as she stared at her watch.
"Hello, mother," Leon said as they entered together.
"Hello, dear." His mother's gaze turned to Ella. "I hope you're feeling better."
"I'm okay; just tired."
"I see... Well, you'd do well to take care of your health. We want grandbabies—"
"Mother," Leon called to her in a low voice.
"Right, sorry." His mother sighed and turned to the owner of the cake shop, who was also the baker. "We'd like to start now."
"Please, have a seat." He led them over to a table before bringing out a slew of cake samples for them to try.
I love cake, but this seems like a lot to try, even for me...
Leon grabbed her hand under the table, linking his fingers through hers.
"First is a lemon mascarpone cake." They set a small sample out for each of them.
Ella went to release Leon's hand, and his grip tightened. She looked at him with a raised eyebrow. How am I supposed to eat if I can't use my dominant hand? I'd rather avoid making a mess.
As if in answer to her thoughts, Leon held his fork up with cake on it, ready for her to try. Knowing Leon wouldn't give up, and not wanting to make a scene, she ate it. Her eyes widened. Damn, this is good.
"You don't need to feed her," his mother whispered, nudging his elbow.
"I don't have to, but I want to."
"It's okay; we're used to lovebirds doing this by now," the owner said, a soft smile playing on his face. "It's always heart-warming to feel the love between a couple."
After trying more cake than she cared to remember, and the flavours started to blur in her mind, Ella sat around drinking water for a while. "How do we choose just one?" she asked.
"If there isn't one, but rather a few, we can get them all," Leon said. "That should be doable, right?"
"Yes, and we have it as you want to order a five-tier cake, so you can choose five different flavours if you want. Keep in mind, the bottom one will be the largest and should be your top choice."
"Did you find one you like the best?"
We tried so many though... She thought back to the ice cream they ate together as kids. "How about a strawberry one for the biggest, but also a cookies and cream one too?"
Leon's face lit up, instantly recognizing it. "Okay, and how about an apple cinnamon and brownie one?"
Ella smiled. "And for the last one..."
They stared at eat other for a moment. "Chocolate peanut butter," they both said.
I wonder how we managed that? We haven't eaten that combination together before.
His mother stared at them. "Quite the variety... Are you looking for a Frankenstein cake?"
"Oh, don't worry, ma'am, the outside of the cake will all be cohesive," the owner assured her.
"Well, that's good; I don't want there to be any eyesores."
She makes me want to make bad choices for the wedding... Although she had narrowed down the other things so much; I don't think I could've. "I guess we're done now?" Ella looked at Leon and his mom.
Leon pulled out his car keys and handed them to her. "I have a few things I'd like to talk to him about, so you can wait in the car," he said.
"Talk to him about what?" his mother asked.
"About more desserts to be there, but Ella looks like she's had enough. Go get some fresh air." He kissed Ella on the cheek.
"Okay, thank you." Ella excused herself and stood outside of the shop. She took a deep breath of fresh air. She's going to be my mother-in-law, and expect a lot out of me.
A sudden chill ran down her spine. She looked around and spotted a few groups of people, but none of them seemed to be paying any attention to her. Not wanting to chance anything, she hopped into the car and locked the door.
I'm probably just imagining things.
Tap, tap.
"Ah!" She nearly jumped out of her skin. At her window was Leon. Oh, thank goodness... She rested a hand on her chest, her heart racing, and rolled the window down.
"Sorry, did I scare you?" Leon asked.
"Ha... Just a bit startled. Are you done?"
Leon held up a bag and smiled. "I got you some ice cream. I know you've had enough sugar for now, but we can always have it another day." He handed her the bag.
She peeked into the bag. "Strawberry shortcake ice cream?"
"A little twist on your favourite flavour."
"Thank you." She handed him his keys back. "Oh, what about your mom?"
"Don't worry about her; she has her own ride."
"I figured I should've said goodbye..."
"Seriously, Ella, I love that you're trying to get along with her, but you don't have to worry so much about every little thing."
"But... She's your mom, and you should cherish family."
Leon froze, his hands gripping the stirring wheel. "You know she neglected me as a child, they both did—"
"But I saw the way she looks at you. She may suck at showing it, but she does care."
"She cares about using me for their business, that's it."
"I hope I'm not out of line, but have you talked to her about it before? Or tried to talk to her in general about life?"
Leon swallowed hard. "You're not out of line. You're free to ask me anything you want, but no, I never talked about the incident with her. I didn't see the point. That day we met on the beach, you changed my life, and I strived to become a man you could be proud of. It's probably silly that I attached myself to you so much even though we only spent one day together, but you helped me... continue living. The bright light of hope I never got from anyone else." Leon sighed and rubbed his face. "I admire your relationship with your mom, but I could never be that close to mine."
"If you wanted to be closer, you can always try to talk to her. Even if she was a certain way when you were little, doesn't mean she'd still be that way."
"Would you want to talk to your dad?"
Ella clammed up. "It's not the same and you know it. He left us..."
"So you're saying you wouldn't want to ask why he did it? Wouldn't want to confront him?"
"He's not in my life, and I no longer have a connection to him, so no." That would feel disrespectful to my mother. I know how much she suffered when he left, and I know she doesn't want a reminder of the past.
"I'm sorry. You're right; it's not the same. It can be hard to deal with your parents when you don't really get along. I think all that built up resentment from the neglect put a rift between us that can't be fixed."
"If you're both willing to try, you might be able to, but that requires both people to be willing."
"I get my stubbornness from my parents, so I don't see that happening. It's fine though; I have you now. You're all I need."
"You have Zeke, too. You are friends, right?"
"Yes, he is both my assistant, friend, and the closest thing to a brother I've ever had. But he's hard to deal with! Like a controlling older brother," he muttered. "He is way more than an assistant. I wish I could give him another title."
"Can't you?"
"I tried, and he declined."
Why would he do that? Ella frowned.
"I think he's actually afraid to leave me alone for too long. Since you came into the picture, we've spent less time together, but before you, we were almost attached at the hip. I also think he doesn't want to be a leader, despite how controlling he can be. I think he'd be perfect in a leadership position, and with how much he does for me, you'd think he was the VP or something. Anyway, how about we head home?"
"Sure."
I can't help but wonder, is Zeke his only friend? I've never seen him close to anyone else.
