A thick, unsettling kind of silence hangs in the air that no one dares to break. I stare at my father and suddenly think, he doesn't even deserve the title of "father". From now on, he's Richard, and I never wanted to see him again. And then I thought, this is all Luke's fault.

I suddenly remember the conversation between Luke and I weeks ago, when he told me that he was racing to save up the money to go visit Richard. But now, seeing him standing in my living room, I felt a stab of betrayal shoot through me.

My fiery gaze shifts from Richard to Luke, who was sitting on the couch watching the whole spectacle, and feel hurt that my brother brought him here. "Luke," I try to say evenly, but it hardly works. "Can I speak to you? In private?"

Without waiting for his answer, I turn around and start to make my way toward the kitchen. However, before I can even take two full steps, I lift my gaze and I'm pinned by the serious expression that casted over Nathan's face. At his obvious concern, I attempt to muster a smile, but my lips barely turn up.

Nathan's warm hand finds mine and it feels like an anchor holding me down to sanity. Gently, he pulls me into the foyer by the front door, away from the scrutinizing gazes of my family members. I heard Luke shift out of his seat and mumble something to my mother and Richard, but my attention was on the worry pooling in Nate's blue eyes.

"Lauren," His voice is soft, gentle, almost cautious. "Are you okay?"

I nod despite the clear irritation that lit up in my eyes. I'm almost positive that he could read me like an open book. "I'm fine," I mumble lamely. "You can go."

Nate's brow pulls together slightly and he murmurs, "Are you sure?"

When I hear Luke's approaching footsteps, I nod quickly. "I'm sure," I manage a weak smile at him and a hurried, "Thank you. I'll call you later, okay?"

Very slowly, he nods while his gaze roams over my face, as if he were trying to catch me out. I can see it in his eyes, the way he doesn't want to leave, but he also doesn't want to put up a fight. I give him one last fleeting attempt at a smile before pushing past him and walking into the kitchen.

Luke follows me into the kitchen before he leans against the counter with a stoic expression on his face. My face twisted into a scowl the second he walked in, and his expression gave a little when he flinched at my demeanor. If looks could kill, then my glare would send him six feet under.

"You told me that you were flying out to see him," I hiss. "That I wouldn't have to see him."

"I never said you wouldn't see him," Luke defends strongly, just as stubborn as I am. "And I decided to fly him out to us instead. I thought it'd be good for you two to talk."

I laugh humorlessly. "You thought it'd be good for me? Yeah right. You brought him here so we could all make up and be some big happy family again, but I don't want that."

"Why not?" Luke presses, his voice thick with annoyance and determination.

"Because he left!" I shout because suddenly I'm no longer able to control myself. I take a deep breath. "He left us," I continue in a quieter voice. "Without a second thought. He was done with me, with you, and with mom, so he packed his things and left without saying goodbye. You can't forgive someone who leaves like that."

"You can if they come back," Luke points out stubbornly.

I shake my head. "He didn't come back, you brought him back. All those years he was gone he never once tried to contact us. Don't you get it? He didn't give a shit about us when he left."

"But he does now," He argues. I could hear the agitation in his voice, but more importantly, I could hear his insistent hope.

I let out a deep breath, overwhelmed with an abundance of anger and sadness and too many other emotions to name. I look at Luke, my gaze boring into his seriously, my expression going emotionless.

"You should've never brought him back here," The edge to my words made me think that there was no way that I could've said them at all.

Blinded by my emotions and my rapidly growing exhaustion, I turn around and make a beeline out of the kitchen and out the front door. As I open the door, I spare a glance at the living room, and I'm not surprised to see Richard and my mother staring at me with their jaws dropped. Clearly, they heard our argument.

I tear my gaze off of the man I once called my father and storm out of the house. Heat crept up my body until I felt like I was on fire and, even though I was breathing fresh air, I struggled to breathe evenly at all. My mind was racing a million miles a minute to match the emotions that were quickly changing.

I started with shock and wondered why the hell he would ever come back here. Slowly but surely, my shock just morphed into a bigger puddle of anger as I thought about being blindsided by the man who I haven't seen in years. As time passes and my anger fades, I just get more confused. Why would he come here? Why is he trying to make amends now? How long has Luke been talking to him? What does my mom think? What did she say to him?

An endless stream of unanswered questions keep floating through my head, taunting me as I walk down the pathway of my house. By the time I reach the sidewalk, I am fully immersed in my mind, only capable of thinking about Richard. I'm so in my own head that I don't even notice Nathan sitting in his car, and continue walking past him, lost in my thoughts.

Did he leave because he was done with everything, or because he was done with me? Did he leave because of me? If I let him back in, wouldn't he just leave again?

"Collins!" Nate's voice calls, but it sounds faint. "Lauren, where are you going?"

I stop walking, somewhat because I heard my name being called, but mostly because the thoughts in my mind were becoming more and more toxic. I shut my eyes and take a deep breath to calm myself down before opening my eyes again and turning towards the car.

Nathan's drivers door was open and he was standing by it, staring at me like I was a helpless little kid. I try to smile, but my lips don't even make nearly as big of an effort as I was, and I end up just looking pained.

"Sorry," I say, my voice coming out smaller than I meant it to. "What are you doing here?"

He gives me a small smile. "I figured the chances of you leaving were a lot higher than you staying," At this, I laugh a little, because I realize he knows me better than I know myself. "What do you say we go to Rosie's?"

The smile I give him, although extremely exhausted, is the most genuine thing that I could muster. Amidst all of the absolute craziness, I felt my heart warm as I thought about having Nathan by my side to help. I nod weakly and he nods to the passengers door to silently tell me to get in.

I feel his gaze on me the whole time as I climb into his car and shut the door behind me. When Nate doesn't start driving at all, I eventually glance over at him, reluctant to see pity in his eyes. But when I looked over at him, I didn't see pity or overbearing concern. I saw some softness in his features, but mostly simple understanding.

We just stare at each other for a long moment, neither of us saying a word, but understanding each other without them. I felt a little weight lift off my shoulders when I once again realized that Nathan was here for me.

He cared about me, and it was the best feeling anyone could ask for.

"Okay," Nathan finally breaks the silence, giving me a small nod. "Let's go."

He turns to the windshield and begins driving to Rosie's. I was beyond grateful that he wasn't bombarding me with questions, considering I was, in no way shape or form, prepared for a lengthy conversation about my feelings. So much has happened in the past four days that I felt like I was on a perpetual roller coaster of emotion, bouncing from incredibly good to devastatingly bad.

Nathan seemed to understand and respect my distaste for discussing matters at the time being, so he turned on the radio and didn't try to pry into my mind. I listened to the song intently, singing along in my head to keep myself distracted. There's plenty of room at the hotel California, such a lovely place...

My mind wandered painfully quickly to what Richard was doing. Had he looked through the pictures sitting on the mantle yet, and see all the times he'd missed? Had he asked my mom about me and Luke's middle school graduation? Or how we're doing in school? Did he ask about my artwork, or Luke's games?

And that's how the entire ride to Rosie's went. Despite the pathetically strong attempts to get myself thinking about anything other than Richard, I kept getting sucked back into my own mind. Eventually we reached the restaurant and Nathan saved me from myself by distracting me with small talk as we walked inside.

"Esther should be here today," Nathan says somewhat casually.

"I hope so," I say honestly, because there's something about her warm nature that naturally calms me down.

And sure enough, when we walked in, I saw Esther smiling at a few customers as she poured their coffee. We were seated in a booth near some windows, in an area where not many people were sitting. It only took a few minutes before Esther came over with her motherly smile to greet us.

"Hello you two," She grins widely. "It's nice to see you again, Lauren."

I smile back at her. "It's nice to see you, too."

"You'll be happy to know that you'll be seeing more of Lauren," Nate tells Esther pointedly, reminding me of the last time I was here.

Esther had been insinuating that Nathan liked me, and I had told her we were just friends. The memory and Nathan's comment both made me laugh a little, and that made Nate grin as widely as Esther was right now.

"So you finally grew some smarts and made this lovely young woman your girlfriend," Esther confirms happily.

Nathan smirks at me. "She actually confessed her undying love for me first, and I decided it wouldn't hurt to have some girl to hang out with, so I said I'd date her."

I rolled my eyes and mocked, "Nate, honey, you don't have to lie. You can tell Esther you were so emotional when you told me you liked me that you were tearing up a little bit."

Nathan's smirk dropped immediately and he glanced at Esther, who picked up his smirk.

"That didn't happen," Nate assures her.

Esther looks at me, making a smirk of my own grow. "I'm sure it did, Lauren. He's always been an emotional kid. He cried every time he wet himself, which was a lot, and he-"

"Okay, conversation over," Nathan interrupts quickly as he shoots Esther a look. "Can we order now?"

Esther and I begin laughing, and then she takes our orders- we both want the usual- and it isn't until she walks away that I realize how grateful I was for the distraction. However, the second she walked away and my smile faded, I also realize that a distraction wasn't meant to last forever.

"So, do you want to talk about what happened?" Nathan inquires evenly, but I know it's hardly a question.

I had to talk about it.

But still, I sigh, "Not really."

Nate gives me a look that says I was about to be lectured into it, and then began his spiel. "I know you're upset, but nothing will get worked out unless you talk about it. You can't avoid your problems."

You're one to talk. I bit my tongue from making the petty remark because, well, we were just differently people. We handled our problems differently. And even though one may be the more healthy way of dealing with issues than the other, I still recognized that talking about it was the best option for me.

I knew he was right, so I just let out another breath and looked down at my hands, which were sitting in my lap. "I don't want to forgive him. I wasted so many tears on him, had so many sleepless nights, but that wasn't even the worst of it. The worst part is he made me hope that he would come back. Everyday I woke up and wished for my dad to come back home and say he really just went on a business trip, or that he had to go visit grandma. But he never did." I stop for a second when I feel my eyes well up with tears, and glanced up to meet Nathan's gaze. "He missed so much in my childhood because he never came back. He wasn't there when I needed him growing up. I can't forgive him."

Nathan was frowning as he silently watched me while I explained myself. I willed the tears in my eyes to go away, tried to make them not fall, but it was no use. I looked down and felt a tear roll down my cheek despite my internal battle with myself.

As the tear slid down my cheek, Nate leaned across the table and brushed his thumb against the skin of my cheek, wiping the rogue tear. I looked back up and met his caring blue gaze, and once again I saw a pool of understanding.

"Your dad shouldn't have left," Nathan tells me sternly, his gaze locked on mine. "You're right, he doesn't deserve to be forgiven for that."

My eyes search his and I can tell he isn't finished. "Why do I sense there's a 'but'?"

His features soften a little and he drops his hand from my cheek, but stays leaning toward me. "But I know what it's like to have your parents miss out on your life, and it sucks. You don't deserve that." His voice is hard and somber as he continues, "If I could choose to have my dad back in my life again, I would do it in a heartbeat. Your dad shouldn't have left like he did, but the fact that he came back should mean something. I know he missed some important moments in your life, but he's going to miss even more if you don't give him another chance."

Nathan's words resonate with me almost immediately and a selfish feeling spreads through my body. I was complaining about my father coming back into my life when he would never see either of his parents ever again.

As I realize it, I say somberly, "You're right, Nathan. I'm sorry for complaining so much."

He shakes his head and a tiny smile graces his lips. "Don't apologize. I don't want to guilt you into feeling a certain way. I just want to offer perspective from someone who knows what it's like to have your dad gone too... I just want you to be happy."

I stare at him for a moment, our gazes boring into each other, and I felt like nothing else needed to be said. He understood that I now understand what I needed to do.

"Why are you smiling?" I ask after a minute, and his smile grows a little bigger.

"You're just impressive," Nathan grins, showing off his teeth, and leans back in his chair. "You're a strong girl, Lauren Collins."

If he believed that, maybe I could, too.

. . .

Unfortunately, I couldn't hide at Rosie's forever. Nathan convinced me of that much after I insisted we get a third cup of coffee after our meal, and I finally agreed to go back home. I was nervous to actually talk to my father, especially after our less than pleasant interaction earlier, but I knew it was for the better.

When Nathan pulled in front of my house, this time I knew what I was getting into when I opened the front door. I let out a deep breath before opening the passenger side door, but Nathan reached out and grabbed my wrist before I could get out of the car. I glance back at him and see him smile encouragingly.

"Good luck," He says genuinely, making me smile despite my nerves.

I lean forward and press my lips against his suddenly, and then pull away to say softly, "Thank you for everything. I'll see you tomorrow?"

Nate smirks and captures my lips in his for another long kiss. "Definitely."

With confidence, I walk up to my front door and open it without hesitation, prepared to speak to my father. I walk into the living room but nobody is there, so I check the kitchen, but that's empty too.

My confidence falters when I realize he isn't even here anymore, but as I walk up to my room in defeat, I hear movement from my moms office. I shuffle over to her office door and peak my head inside to see her hunched over her desk in a writing frenzy.

"Mom, can I talk to you?" I ask the second I see her, feeling an overwhelming urge to confide in her.

Her head shoots up and she looks at me through her glasses, perched on the bridge of her nose, as her fingers stop typing. Upon hearing this, she nods, and shuts her laptop without a second thought.

I walk over to her desk and sit in a chair on the other side, so we're facing each other. Mom takes her glasses off slowly and places them on top of the laptop, her curious eyes never leaving mine.

"Honey, I wanted to say that I'm sorry for springing that on you," Mom apologizes immediately.

I smile at her. "Mom, I'm not mad at you."

Her eyebrows shoot up and she leans forward as if telling me a secret. "Really? You aren't? But you screamed and then left without telling me where you were going."

My smile turns sheepish when she says this and I admit, "I was mad at first, but Nathan convinced me to give dad another chance. Well, to at least attempt to be civil."

"How did he do that in two hours?" She asks incredulously.

I realize that she doesn't know the story of Nathan's parents, and I hesitate for a second before telling her. I don't want to tell her anything Nathan doesn't want her to know, considering he told me in confidence, but I decide that he would trust my mother with the information.

"Nathan lost his parents when he was younger," I finally divulge. "He made me realize that I have another opportunity to know my father."

My mother processes this before nodding slowly and then a smile graces her lips. It was the same kind of proud smile that Nate wore when I told him that I would give my father another chance. "That's very mature of you, Lauren."

I smile too. "I'm trying." And then I ask, "Where is he?"

"He went to take Luke to dinner," My mom told me. "You should talk to him tomorrow. I can tell you what hotel he's staying in; you can drop by."

I nod, and then a thought occurs to me: what did she think of all of this? I glance at my mother and blurt, "Are you mad at him?"

She looks back at me calmly and, right on cue, shakes her head. "Fear makes people do stupid things."

This is all she says, and it's all she has to say. I stare at her for a long moment before I nod, because I understand where she stands. I stand up from my seat feeling better than I had before I came in her office and head toward the door. Before I can step outside, my mom calls my name, and my attention is brought back to her.

"Lauren," My mom smirks at me. "Did Nathan's opinion matter a little extra because you two are together now?"

I can't help but laugh when she suggests this, and I too smirk a little. "Yes, mom. It did."

She grins widely at me and cheers, "Yes! I knew it! I won the bet!"

I roll my eyes as I walk out of her office, but there's no denying the huge grin on my face as I do so. No matter how crazy she was, my mom sure did know how to make me feel better.