As Theo laid in his bed, he tried to understand what Brett meant by his statement. 'If only that were true' Theo's brother mumbled, after Theo assuring him it was just a dream. In this moment Theo thought that maybe Mr. Talbot was capable of more than Theo had even considered. The question kept him up almost all night, not only because he was worried for Brett, but because Liam had a similar type of dreams. Could Mr. Dunbar be capable of the same evil that Theo theorized Mr. Talbot was capable of?
Eventually Theo managed to drift off in to a restless sleep, before being awoken by his alarm clock. Once again, Theo had to wake up earlier than the rest of the Talbot's because he had to bus to Liam's for a ride to school. He quickly got ready and rushed down stairs to grabs something small from the kitchen, and he was surprised to see that he actually was not the only one up. He could hear Mrs. Talbot's voice and she sounded mad, so Theo waited outside the kitchen, out of sight.
"What the hell is wrong with you, girl?" Mrs. Talbot asked, her tone still icy but somehow also fiercely angry at the same time.
"I-i'm sorry ma'am," he heard Erica plead, a sense of fear and desperation filled her voice. "I really did not realize we were out, with everything so hectic around here I didn't notice. I will go get some today, I promise."
"We should have left you out on the street where we found you," Mrs. Talbot snapped back before Theo heard the sound of glass breaking, followed by footsteps leaving the kitchen.
Theo gave it a few moments, to make sure the coast was clear, and he stepped into the kitchen where he saw Erica on her hands and knees cleaning up shards of glass from a broken mug. He knelt down to help her, "Erica what happened?"
"When I did the weekly grocery shopping I forgot to pick up the proper drinks for Mrs. Talbot, she likes to start her day with some mixed in with her coffee," Erica replied, not looking up, and Theo could tell that she had been crying and was trying to hide it. Erica was always a strong willed person, who no one messed with. It was weird to see her so defeated like this.
"Drink?" Theo asked curiously, "As in alcohol? This early in the morning?" Erica just didn't answer, so Theo took that as a yes to the alcohol question. He sighed and looked up at her, "That part about being picked up from the street, what was that about?" Theo knew that Erica's parents had been well off, and he was under the impression they still were. None of this made sense to him.
She sighed and slammed the basket she was sweeping the glass into and looked up at Theo, "Is there anything I can get you sir? I know you need to be going soon to catch the bus." Then she stood up and emptied the basket of glass into the trash can.
Theo took the hint and left Erica alone, but he had not dropped the issue. If she would not answer his question then there was one person who might know about what happened to her, Cora. However, he also knew that he and Liam still had their issues to worry about so asking Cora about Erica would need to wait for now. Theo jogged up to Liam's house and he saw Liam already waiting in his car. "You're late," Liam told Theo with an annoyed tone in his voice.
"Sorry, I got a late start and had to catch a later bus," Theo replied, quickly getting into the car before Liam wasted no time in starting the car and making his way to school. Liam was silent on the way to school which made Theo feel even worse for being late to his house this morning. "Listen, Liam, I really am sorry about leaving you waiting. There was this situation with Erica, and I got distracted, and I know I should have texted you but I did not think I would be this late."
Liam sighed, his eyes still almost creepily focused on the road, "It's fine, it really is," he said, but his tone did not reassure Theo. Perhaps Liam wasn't mad about Theo being late, but there was definitely something. "Truthfully, I am just in a bad mood this morning," Liam finally explained, "Last night my mom told me that my dad was coming back in the next few days, and he plans to stay a while."
Theo nodded in silence, he had no idea what to say to that. He barely knew anything about Liam's father other than small tidbits of negative information Liam had shared. But every teenager talks bad about their father, right? This seemed different though. Liam had put a wall up this morning, and Theo knew what that meant. That meant Liam was scared or nervous, or some combination of both. "Liam-"
"Don't have to say anything," he interrupted, and Theo was kind of glad, as he had no idea what he was about to say. "I just wanted you to know that we have to be a lot more careful at the house now, or anywhere in general, and I will likely be acting different." Liam's eyes were still glued to the road as his arms stiffly gripped the steering wheel. It was clear that he did not want his father back at all. They sat through the rest of the ride in silence.
That day at lunch, Theo sat down at his usual table, but today he was not alone. Across from him sat Lydia and Cora, both seemed a little quiet, which implied they were hiding something, but Theo did not ask. Today was already strange enough and he just wanted to get through it. He already had so much on his mind with Hayden, the talbots, and now Liam's dad. Not to mention he was still employed and he still had school and the swim team. Their quiet lunch was interrupted when a familiar voice said, "Hey Theo!"
Theo turned to see Jordan, his basically brother, standing behind him. "Jordan, what are you doing here?"
"You know, the army goes around to high schools to talk to potential recruits so I volunteered to come today know I would get to harass you at lunch," Jordan laughed and Theo could not help but laugh a little bit too. "I can't stay long, I just wanted to say hi," he looked up and saw Cora before smiling again, "And hello to you as well Cora.
Jordan made his way back to the table he was working at and began to talking to some of Theo's classmates about joining the army. Theo turned back to his friends and Lydia asked, "Ok, who the hell was that?"
"Thats Jordan, he was kind of like an adopted brother to me, my mom took him in because his home life was not the best," Theo replied, keeping it vague, as it was Jordan's business about what exactly happened.
"He's kinda cute right?" Cora laughed as she turned to Lydia, "When Derek was still in high school, they were both best friends, and I always though he was so cute, and he is really nice. He seems perfect for you Lydia, he is only a few years older than us, and I am tired of seeing you alone."
"He is cute, I will admit," Lydia replied, eyeing Jordan from a distance for a few moments before shaking her head, "Listen, the last boy I liked ran off with a Hale, and I do not what that happening again. You are clearly in to him, so you can have him."
"Oh Lydia, I do no-" Cora began but they both froze when they saw something behind Theo. It was like they had seen a ghost, so Theo was about to turn around but Cora stopped him, leaning in she whispered, "Do not turn around."
"Something is about to happen and you have to say yes," Lydia whispered quickly before both girls leaned back as if nothing had ever happened.
Before Theo could even think to respond, he felt a tap on the shoulder. He turned around to se Hayden standing in front of him, and he had no idea what to say. Luckily, she spoke first, "Hey Theo, can we talk in private?"
The two of them found an empty classroom so they could talk alone. Theo hadn't the faintest idea on what might be going on here. However, he had his guard up. His last private talk with Hayden was filled with her threatening him and his mother. When she closed the door, he crossed his arms and looked at her, not bothering for pleasantries or introductions. She did not deserve them, not after last time. She looked down, and Theo could instantly tell something was different with her. "I know you do not want to talk to me," she said simply.
"Understatement of the century," Theo replied, but he held back all he wanted to say. Something was clearly wrong, and she did not want to be here almost as much as him it seemed. "What do you want?"
"I'm," she paused and took a deep breathe, "I am sorry. I dragged you in to my mess and that wasn't fair of me. Liam clearly thinks highly of you, and well, not so much of me anymore, but I know I deserve that."
To say Theo was shocked, now that would be the understatement of the century. He was completely blindsided by this, and he had no idea what to say to her. This was beginning to be a weird day all the way around. "Hayden-"
"Please, just let me finish," she pleaded and Theo gave her a nod, allowing her to continue. "I know you don't want excuses so I won't bother explaining to you, but I want you to know I am done now. I thought I was fighting fire with fire, but someone had me look around and I hadn't noticed I burned my whole world down, and yours and Liam's too. This baby is Nolan's and I am ready to accept that now. I am meeting with Liam later today to tell him." Surprisingly, she had not cried at all during their meeting but the tears began now, "Take care of him ok? I put him through hell, but I do care about him, I always did."
Theo nodded, still speechless, but that last part, he knew exactly what to say to that. "I will."
She wiped away some of her tears and nodded, "Thank you, I have to go," and just like that, she was gone, running down the hallway to the bathroom, likely to dry her tears. Theo texted Lydia and Cora telling that they should go comfort Hayden. Meanwhile, Theo's head was spinning. He did not know what to think. Was it really over? Was Hayden done screwing with all of their lives? But there was one question that burned Theo's mind. What did this mean for him and Liam?
That afternoon Theo went to swim practice and he actually had a nice time. He never had that many friends at school but thanks to Liam and Lydia too, Theo was on the swim team and had actual friends other than just Corey. Jackson was a little rough around the edges, but Theo enjoyed bantering with him. Ethan was a genuinely fun person and always made Theo laugh. Allison was such a sweet yet strong person, and Theo felt like they actually had some similarities, although they were very different. Malia was crazy competitive and not very trusting, but Theo felt like he was making progress in a friendship. Then there was Lydia, perhaps now, strangely enough, one of Theo's best friends, not counting Corey or Liam. Maybe joining the swim team was not so bad after all.
After practice Theo went to the parking lot to wait near Liam's car. Lacrosse practice usually went a little longer than swim practice and of course Theo knew that Hayden was going to talk to Liam. He was curious on how Liam would react knowing it was all over. Theo knew, in a weird way, Liam also cared for Hayden. Their relationship was a roller coaster, but they were on it together. Now they'd go their semi-separate ways, and he had no idea how that would make Liam feel. Theo was broken from his thinking when a familiar voice behind him say, "Hey."
He turned and it was Liam, but before Theo could speak, Liam leaned in and kissed him softly. Theo was shocked at first but kissed back, wrapping his arms around Liam to pull hims closer. "I am assuming Hayden spoke with you?" Theo chuckled a bit after the kiss.
Liam nodded with a grin and then unlocked his car, "Yes she did, and I had to celebrate. We still need to be careful, but I figured we earned that."
Getting in the car Theo raised his eyebrow, "Why do we need to be careful? With Hayden no longer bugging us, we can... be together. Right?"
"Yes and no," Liam's smile faded a bit as he began to drive. It was clear the celebration was over, "My dad is back, and he would not like us together. You're the pool boy, you're also Mr. Talbot's bastard, and..." he trailed off and sighed, clearly not wanting to say the last thing on his mind.
"He doesn't know you like boys?" Theo finished Liam's sentence in more of a question. They had never talked about sexuality before. Theo was openly bisexual and no one had really had a problem with it, no one of any importance that is. However, Liam never addressed his own sexuality, which Theo accepted. Everyone is on their own journey, besides, labels did not matter. All Theo knew, and needed to know, was that Liam liked boys, or at least one boy. However, it has been heavily implied, though never explicitly stated, that Liam's father would not like that.
Without saying anything, Liam just nodded. "And word travels fast, especially in this community. We can't be overly affectionate, not at school, only around people we trust. Lydia, Cora, Corey, Mason, and the others. Its not forever, I promise. I know this isn't what we wanted."
"I want you Liam," Theo replied, taking Liam's freehand that was not on the steering wheel. "I would love to be able to be public with our relationship, but I understand that you need some time. We have places and people to go if we are in a particularly cuddly mood," Theo teased a bit, trying to lighten the mood, "You could finally come to my place, if you wanted."
Liam laughed a bit as they pulled in to his driveway, in the next few days, whenever his dad came home, everything would change, but there was hope. They did not have to deal with Hayden anymore. "I would love too, and I would love to meet your mom outside of work, and your brother too," Liam replied, having met Theo's mom since she now works for Mrs. Dunbar, but their interactions had always been short and formal. "Now, not to become the rich boss, but you should get to work, I need to go tell my mom about Hayden, but at least now I can watch you working without feeling like a cheater."
Theo laughed and nodded, he knew that this was big news, and Liam and his mother needed their space to talk about this, and talk about Liam's father too. "Yeah, and now I can stop feeling like the other woman. Maybe I'll put on a show for you," He teased and winked before leaning in to kiss Liam softly, and getting out of the car to get to work. He and Liam still had obstacles, but they got through one, and Theo believed they could get through them all.
