Chapter 2
The front door opened and Gillian stepped inside the hallway with Cal pressed up close behind her. His arm was wrapped around her, low on her belly with his hand tightly gripping her hip. His face was pressed into the back of her neck near her shoulder.
She took the key out of the door and stopped a few steps inside the house. She squeezed his hand as he looked up from his position buried into the crook of her neck and pressed her further into the house before he stopped moving himself.
No music. The alarm didn't beep when they opened the door, which meant the alarm hadn't been set. Which meant that the only other resident of the house was home. This was expected. Although it was Friday night, Emily was sitting the SAT test the following day. She had planned an early night. But it wasn't even yet 10pm and she was, by nature like her father, a night owl. And given how nervous she was about the day ahead, there was no way she was already asleep. Emily wouldn't have expected them home this early. There should be music blasting.
Cal released his tight hold on Gillian, instead moving to a gentle grasp on each of her hips as they moved through the house together, into the kitchen (empty), passing the dining room along the way (also empty) and then the sitting room (the one without a TV, occupied).
There sat Emily Lightman, surrounded by books and handwritten notes.
"Ahem."
Emily jerked her head to the doorway of the room at the sound of her father's voice. She was caught. He didn't look angry or disappointed. He looked concerned and filled with compassion for her. Gillian's face, standing behind him, was a picture of sympathy and understanding. She squeezed Cals bicep and kissed him quickly on the shoulder and then moved off in the direction of the kitchen.
"I thought we agreed to a 7pm cut off for study tonight?"
"We did," she said, matter of fact and straightforward.
"But?" he asked moving into the room and clearing a space on the sofa beside her so that he could sit down.
"But…", she went on, "I'm not ready."
Cal put his arm around her shoulder and drew her in close to him as he settled them both against the back of the sofa.
"I thought the SATs were more like an aptitude test?"
"Yeah?"
"Well, it's not about how many facts you can store in your head then, is it?"
"No, but it is about practice, and the math…"
"Em. Love. You've done nothing but study for this since after Christmas. I've not seen a new bloke sniffing around here since Liam. You barely go out with your friends except for study sessions. Every time I look at you you've a book open. You're putting too much pressure on yourself, darling."
Emily drew her eyes away in something resembling shame. "I just want to get a good score. It'll help with college applications."
"You do volunteer work, you get excellent grades, you do athletics, you're on the debate team… I can't even keep track of all the things you do that'll get you into any college you want. You're brilliant, Em. Stop worrying about this one test. You've got the summer break coming up and then it's senior year. That's when it really counts, right?"
"It all counts, dad. And they don't just look at your senior record, they look at everything. I need to show that I've got what they're looking for. That I can focus, and I don't need second chances at this stuff."
"And you will. Come on! Let's settle in and watch a film, order in some food. I'm starving."
"I should really go to bed, besides you guys shouldn't even be home yet, what happened to date night?"
"Had to work," he said as he helped her pack away her books. "Come on Em. You need to take your mind off it all for a while. The test isn't until 11 tomorrow. You go to bed now and you'll be climbing the walls at 6 in the morning."
He rolled onto his side in the large bed. Then to his back again. He stared at the ceiling for a moment. Aggressively, he turned then to his other side. He stared at the back of Gillian's head for a moment. He let out a sigh and turned back onto his back and quickly onto that same side again so he could look at her. His hand crept out into the slight gap between them. He wanted to eliminate the gap and snuggle up behind her in the hope that it would settle him down and help him relax enough to sleep, but he didn't want to wake her. She looked so peaceful.
"What's wrong?"
Her voice was a sleepy yet patient whisper. He wasn't expecting her to be awake so at first he didn't know how to make his own voice work this late in the night. She rolled over to face him, drawing the duvet up under her chin and she fought to open her eyes with a squinted face.
"I thought you were asleep," he whispered back when she faced him.
"With you jumping around like that? Who could possibly sleep?"
He looked sheepish even though her voice held no reproach.
"Sorry."
"It's fine," she said. She was awake enough now to move herself towards him. Her arm, still under the covers, left its place pinning the duvet to her tightly and moved instead to grab onto the front of his t-shirt and pull herself as close as she could, tucking her head under his chin. "Why can't you sleep?"
He brought his arm around the small of her back and pulled her in while he snuggled his face down onto the top of her head. "I'm worried about that test tomorrow," he admitted.
She giggled into his neck and wrapped her arm around his shoulder, leaning her bodyweight over to force him onto his back, still holding onto her. She settled her weight into his side and cuddled into his warmth.
"Go to sleep, Cal."
After a few moments of feeling and hearing her serene breathing level out against him, he kissed the top of her head and allowed the natural rhythm of his breath to synchronise with hers, and he managed to close his eyes and fall into sleep.
