When Tomorrow Never Comes (8 page)

Once it’s on, he motions for me to turn around before he ties my hair back with a ribbon of some sort.

Turning back around I watch him as he slips on his own helmet before moving over to his bike while Ben hops onto his with his backpack snuggly on his back.

“Come on, you’ll be fine. Jayce won’t hurt you.” Ben coaxes.

Getting onto his bike Jayce holds his hand out to me.

With a deep breath I move forward before slipping onto the bike behind him.

Grabbing my hands he wraps them around his waist. “Whatever you do, hold on tightly, okay.”

“Okay.” I yell back to him as I tighten my grip.

His chest shakes and rumbles as he chuckles and begins to back the bike out of the garage along with Ben.

Once we’re down to the road he turns his key and the engine beneath us roars to life.

A moment later we take off down the road.

As we ride past Liam’s house I look over to see him walking to his car with Amy by his side.

He stops in surprise as we ride past.

Somewhere inside of me I felt a sharp stab.

If he had truly wanted to be with me he would have already gotten rid of Amy as his girlfriend.

He was obviously not ready to move on, and I wasn’t about to give him a chance.

Maybe somewhere in the future I would, but first I was going to see where this would go with Jayce.

Jayce revs the engine suddenly and I squeal excitedly as we pick up speed.

This was definitely going to be a good day.

Dear Diary,

Could this really be happening? Could I be moving on? Am I doing the right thing? I still miss you....and I still love you…

After a full week of Jayce and Ben taking me to school we had grown into a routine. I would always show up ready just as they would back their bikes out to the road.

And as always we would ride past Liam’s house as he was getting into his car with Amy.

He hadn’t had a chance to bother me at school.

Jayce had made sure of that.

He and Ben watched over me in every one of my classes.

I was grateful for them since they were making this whole moving on thing a lot easier especially considering I didn’t have to deal with Liam.

Today though everything was about to change.

It was the day of our interview.

Eric and Matt were a bundle of nerves as they ran around the kitchen in their matching suits.

“Are we forgetting anything?” Matt asks as he paces the floor.

“I don’t think so, Matt.” Eric replies as he steps into Matt’s path.

Placing his hands on either side of his face he gazes into his eyes. “Everything will work out, you need to calm down and believe that.”

Matt nods his head.

“Everything will be fine, Dad.” I chime in as I chew on a piece of bacon.

Strangely I was the only one who was calm today.

Matt glances over to me before nodding his head.

Eric steps back and then sighs as he glances down to his watch. “It’s time to leave.”

Getting up from my seat I smooth out my dress and then make sure my hair was still tied back properly.

After a quick check of both Matt and Eric I give them the thumbs up before following them out of the house and into the truck.

I sit in the middle and grab onto Matt’s hand as he sits next to me in the passenger’s seat while Eric hops into the driver’s seat.

“Everything will be fine, Dad.” I reassure once more while Eric backs out of the driveway before heading off down the road.

We reach the main building and park in the parking lot.

I was quickly becoming nervous now that we had actually arrived.

Inside of this building we were going to change my life once and for all. It was a scary moment. And honestly I was afraid that instead of remaining with Matt and Eric that they would take me away from them.

If that happened I would be devastated.

Everything good that had been happening to me in the past few weeks would be lost.

Grabbing my hand Eric grins at me. “Everything will be fine, just be honest.”

I nod and let his hand free along with Matt’s.

We all slip out of the truck and I immediately grab onto Matt’s hand again for support as we begin walking towards the building.

By the time we reach the doors my heart is racing in my chest as if I had just run a hundred laps.

Inside the door I freeze.

Matt glances back at me with a raised brow as I shake my head and begin trying to back away from them.

“Matt, go greet them. I’ll take care of her.” Eric orders gently before taking my face into his hands as he gazes deep into my eyes.

“What’s wrong, Princess?” He questions softly.

“I’m scared.” I whisper.

“I know you are but you can’t allow it to control you.” Eric replies gently.

“I can’t help it. I don’t want to lose you and Matt.” I choke out as tears rapidly fill my eyes. “I don’t want to be torn away from you, papa bear.”

He nods. “I know you don’t and you’re not going to lose us, okay.”

I nod my head and he wipes my tears away with his thumbs. “Close your eyes and breathe in deep before letting it out slowly.” He then commands gently.

Shutting my eyes I do as he told me a few times before my heart begins to slow and regain control.

“That’s my girl.” Eric sighs as he feels me relax beneath his hands.

Opening my eyes they suddenly go wide seeing a small crowd standing just behind him with Matt smiling at us proudly.

“They’re right behind me aren’t they?” Eric questions with humor.

I nod and laugh out. “Yes, they are.”

Grinning down at me for one more moment Eric wipes my tears away before taking my hand in his while turning to face the people with Matt.

“I’m so sorry that we’re running a little late. Evette was nervous…” Eric tries to apologize and explain our situation but one of the men stops him.

“We are well aware of what happened, Eric.” The man states simply.

“Shall we start our interviews?” Another man questions as he steps forward.

Eric glances down at me for a moment before nodding. “I think we’re ready.”

“Good, now if you two would just follow me and Evette you can go with Ms. Lawrence.” The man that had stepped forward motions to us.

I nod and release my grip on Eric’s hand before moving off in the opposite direction with Ms. Lawrence.

Glancing back I silently wish that I could have stayed with Eric and Matt.

Sighing softly I turn forward as Mrs. Lawrence leads me into a room before motioning for me to sit down in a seat across from a desk.

I sit down and she moves around to the other side of the desk before sitting down in her own seat.

Placing her elbows on the desk she studies me silently for a moment before breaking out into a bright smile. “That was really something out there that he did for you.”

I nod in agreement. “He’s really good at getting me to calm down when I panic.”

She nods. “That’s a good thing.”

Clapping her hands together she then opens a file folder and scans through some pages before looking back up at me. “Are you still having problems with your sleep?”

I shake my head as a grin spreads across my lips. “No, I haven’t had a nightmare in over a week. Eric has helped me with those as well. We figured out what triggered them and stopped it.”

“Good, that’s very good.” She replies as she turns her attention back to her folder. “What was it that triggered these nightmares you were having?”

That was still a difficult question to answer.

“I walked in on my boyfriend after he had committed suicide.” I whisper as I bow my head and begin fiddling with my hands absently.

“What did he do exactly?” She then asks.

I look up at her wondering if she was for real, did she really want me to answer that question.

She raises her brow when I remain silent.

She really did want me to answer her.

“He hung himself.” I blurt, feeling suddenly uncomfortable with this woman in front of me.

She nods and then takes a pen to write something on the papers inside the folder.

Placing her attention on me again she asks another hard question. “Your past foster mother, Sally, brought up some information to us that we just want to clarify.”

I nod and she continues. “Did you have sexual relations with this boy?”

I nod my head again. “Yes, Sally was very lenient with her rules.”

She nods and then writes something again.

It was killing me to know what she was writing down.

“Have you been sexually active since you’ve been in Matt and Eric’s care?” She then questions.

“I have not. They are much stricter with their rules and I’m in no condition to be in any kind of relationship right now.” I answer honestly.

Smiling, she nods and then writes something down on her piece of paper.

“Have you been with the boys across the road from you?” She then inquires, surprising me.

I had no idea where she was getting her information from but she was digging into my life pretty deeply.

“We are all friends. We ride together to school.” I reply.

Again, everything was the truth. I wasn’t going to lie at all, I was too afraid of what would happen if I did.

She nods and once again writes something down.

“What do you think of the relationship between Matt and Eric, does it bother you that they are gay? Have they been inappropriate around you in any way?” She fires off her next questions.

“I think they have a relationship that most people only dream of. They are truly in love.” I answer her first question before continuing on. “They have never once acted inappropriately around me. The most I have seen them do is kiss and hold hands.”

She nods and then moves to write something more.

“What are you writing down?” I question abruptly, my curiosity getting the better of me.

“I’m just writing down your answers. We will go over these with Matt and Eric later on before the judge makes the final decision.” She answers me.

I nod and then sigh softly. “I’m sorry for being so nosey.”

She grins and shakes her head. “It’s perfectly alright.”

“Moving on, where do you see yourself in five years?” She then asks.

I shrug. “Honestly I haven’t allowed myself to think of where I’ll be in five years let alone a day from now. Ever since I lost my boyfriend, Cole, I have looked at life differently. I live in the moment, the here and now. He taught me that you never know the day when tomorrow won’t come.”

“That’s an interesting way to put that, but you must have at least thought about college, a family, something along those lines.” She pushes.

“I see myself with a family.” I reply. “I see myself being a part of a family with Eric and Matt. I see myself going to college but I’m not sure which and I see myself falling in love with someone equally as amazing as Eric and Matt combined. I see a lot of things for myself but I still only want to take it day by day.”

She nods again, accepting my answer.

“Okay, if given a choice would you want to remain with Eric and Matt or would you like to return to the Moores family?” She then asks, completely shocking me.

“I wouldn’t hesitate to pick Eric and Matt. The Moores gave up on me when I needed them the most. I know they thought that they were doing what was best for me but it wasn’t.” I answer truthfully.

“Good, now one more question and we can head down to the main conference room with the others.” She states after a moment of writing on her paper.

I nod and she sighs. “What do you think would happen if we sent you out on your own?”

“I would fall apart. I need help. I’m nowhere ready to live on my own, Ma’am.” I answer simply.

I wasn’t afraid to tell her that I would be helpless. There was no way I would be able to survive on my own without some sort of support.

She nods and writes on her paper before closing the folder and then standing up to her feet.

Standing up with her she heads towards the door before waving me to follow her down the long hallways.

We come to a stop at a dark wooden door.

She knocks on it first before opening it up.

Inside were rows of seats filled with a few of the foster families I had been with, and Cole’s family, along with Jayce, Ben and their parents.

My nerves once again get the best of me and I freeze in place at the door.

“Ms. Evette Smith, will you please come forward with Ms. Lawrence?” A man at the front behind a desk pushes.

I nod my head and force one foot in front of the other.

Somehow I manage to make it to the front of the room where I sit down next to Ms. Lawrence.

We were across from Matt and Eric.

“Ms. Lawrence, the papers?” The man grunts out.

She quickly stands and hands him the folder that she had used with me.

The man flips though it and then pulls out the page that she had written on.

He reads through it slowly.

It was honestly too slow for my taste. I was ready for this to all be over so I could go back home with Matt and Eric.