Chapter 32- Taunting Epiphanies

[] A M E L I A []

"Amelia..." Leo spoke into the silence.

I jerked my head over to him and rose my brows to let him know I was listening. His eyes were momentarily off the road, and landed on me instead.

"Stop bouncing your knee up and down."

My eyes widened and I turned to my knees, surprised to see that they were indeed bouncing. I gave him a sheepish smile and stopped. He turned back to the road, amusement evident in his eyes. However, a moment later, it began again.

"Hey, if it makes you that nervous, we can head back," Leo suddenly said, his eyes narrowing slightly in worry.

I turned to him with wide eyes.

"What? No! It's okay, I'm just... just a little nervous. But in a good way," I replied honestly.

Leo nodded, the crease in his forehead smoothening out at my words.

We had been on the road for nearly half an hour now, and the last little bit had been fairly quiet. We were both lost in our own thoughts, making it hard to keep up a conversation.

Andre's words were playing in my mind repeatedly, and kept I wondering if I should ask Leo about it or not. But before I could make up my mind, Leo spoke again, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"That picture I got mad at you for," he started off.

I frowned, wondering what he was talking about. It clicked after a few moments, that he was talking about the frame I found on his floor the day I went to go ask for help in English. I turned to him, curious about it now.

"The girl in the photo, it was my sister. It was taken back when I was 10 and she was 8. Back before things took a turn for the worst," he explained.

He let out a short breath and stole a glance at me. I nodded to let him know I was still listening and he continued.

"I didn't want you to see her, to ask questions. Even something as simple as who she was to me, was a terrifying subject for me. I was so terrified of questions Moonie, because I didn't know if I would be able to give you answers or not. I'm sorry about that day, I really am."

I bit my lip, thinking of what to say to him in that moment. There was so much I wanted to ask him at that point, but I didn't know where to start. More than that, I wasn't sure if he wanted to answer my questions or not.

"But that was then Moonie. Now I know that I can answer any question of yours. Because I trust you," he simply said, turning to me.

His eyes held my gaze and I stared back at him, all my doubts from earlier seemingly vanished from my train of thought.

"You were forgiven a long time ago Leo."

I smiled at him and after returning the gesture, he turned back around to face the road.

After a little while, we ended up crossing a small town. We stopped there for breakfast and then were back on the road. It was already 10 in the morning, and because the roads were all icy, Leo was driving a lot slower than usual. Hence, the two hour drive was taking us nearly three hours to complete. We still had half the way to go, and as we were leaving the town, I suddenly thought of a burning question.

I bit my lip, contemplating whether or not I should speak my thoughts aloud. Thinking that this was a good time, I turned to Leo with a determined look.

"Leo," I called out.

He let out a small 'hmm' in response, letting me know he was listening.

"Did you...did you tell your family about me?" I asked hesitantly.

Leo furrowed his brows and turned to me confused.

"What do you mean?" he replied, his attention back on the icy road.

"I mean, how did I even get invited to your house? And more importantly... do they know about... my past?" I asked curiously.

Leo sighed.

"They found out about you when Andre and Jamal came over to my house that one weekend. I tried to get them to keep you low-profile because I know my sister and mom would go crazy if they found out we had a female in the group. But Jamal couldn't keep his big mouth shut. He only mentioned that we made a new friend here and my sister couldn't help but get curious. Then I guess she told my mom," he said.

I nodded, letting his words sink in.

"And no. I didn't tell them about your past. It isn't my story to tell," he said, locking eyes with me for a moment. "After finding out about you, they think that you've sort of impacted me since you came, so they just wanted to meet you," he finished off, stopping at a red light.

He turned to face me then, his eyes holding the same intensity I had gotten used to over the past few months.

"Why would they think that?" I asked confused.

At this, Leo gave me a slow lopsided grin. My heart nearly burst into flames at the sight of him. Since his heater wasn't working properly, his car had gotten a little cold, making his cheeks and nose turn a slight pinkish shade. His hair was swept back lazily, and the morning sun was casting a bright glow on his face.

I blinked a few times and before I knew it, he had turned his attention back to the road, only muttering, "You tell me, Moonie. You tell me."

* * *

After another hour of driving, we finally ended up in front of a large beige house. The house was bigger than most middle class houses, and was just close enough to be labelled a mansion. There was intricate cuts and arches everywhere, and it took me a whole five minutes of staring at the place, just to figure out where it started and ended. The entire neighbourhood was well-kept, and I could tell that in the summer, the place would be filled with bright green lawns and luscious trees. Leo's house was surrounding by a wall of mini snow-covered cypress trees, making it more private. We even passed a gate between the row of trees to get to his driveway, where two cars were already parked.

After a few moments, I turned to Leo and rose a brow at him.

"Would you look at that? I didn't know I was friends with a rich boy," I said, chuckling as I did so.

Leo rolled his eyes at me, a small smile playing on his lips.

"Yes, yes. You're practically my princess," he said sarcastically, getting out of the car.

My hand froze on my seatbelt as I stared after the space he left in surprise. Before I could think too much of it, I quickly snapped out of my thoughts and finished tugging my seatbelt off. I followed after him to get to the trunk, and after much persuasion on my part, he finally let me carry my own bag.

We walked side by side to the entrance of his house, and for some reason, a certain nervousness settled within me.

'What if they weren't what I was expecting? What if they don't like me? But more importantly, what if they thought I wasn't good enough to be around Leo anymore?'

All thoughts seemed to vanish into thin air as I felt a soft touch on my cold hand. I looked down in surprise, only to see that Leo had tapped my knuckles. I looked up to him in surprise, and he smiled down at me.

"Don't worry Moonie. You get to be free from cafeteria food for a weekend. Just enjoy that," he said.

And of course, he once again succeeded in making me feel better. I let out a small chuckle and shook my head at him. We continued walking up to the entrance, and finally made it. On the way up to the door, I noticed a stone ramp as well that led to the door. I turned to Leo with a questioning gaze and he let out a small breath.

"It was used for when my sister needed a wheelchair."

I nodded understandingly and took my spot beside him, right in front of the large wooden door.

Finally, Leo knocked on the door.

I held my breath as I waited for the door to open.

At first, I expected some sort of butler dressed in black and white to come open the door, saying, "Bonjour, Mademoiselle," then ending with a bow.

However, it took me by surprise when a tall and slender lady came to the door. She was dressed in comfortable looking clothes, all the while making it look as if she was ready for a photoshoot. Her hair was curled to perfection, and a wide smile adorned her lips.

When she saw us, her eyes lit up even further and she immediately went over to give Leo a hug.

I took a step back back and watched the scene before me, as Leo slowly smiled and wrapped his arms around the woman as well. Seeing him, a small smile graced my own lips. They hugged for a good minute or two, and then Leo finally spoke.

"Alright mama, I'm getting squeezed to death."

The woman, who I recognized as being Mrs. Kennedy, huffed and pulled away from Leo. She held him at arms length and looked up to see his face.

"Very funny, Leo," she said, her voice angelic.

The woman finally pulled away from Leo and took a step away from him. At last, her gaze landed on me.

I sucked in a breath and waited for her reaction.

Her eyes trailed up and down my body, her smile not leaving her lips. At last, her gaze landed on my face. I caught her eye and gave her a timid smile.

"Hi Mrs. Kennedy," I said, rubbing my arm nervously, my jacket rustling annoyingly as I did so.

In return, her smile widened and she held out a hand for me.

"That's Laura to you dear."

* * *

We ended up just in time for lunch. Leo and I had only shredded our winter gear and barely hung it in the jacket closet, when Laura ushered us to the dining room and sat us in seats. I didn't even have time to react before she brought out piles and piles of food and set it on the table. My eyes widened when I saw the feast she laid out before us, and I turned to Leo with a worried look. He only smirked at me and began digging in.

Mr. Kennedy had joined us about quarter way through the lunch. I felt bad about not waiting for him, until Laura complained about this being his regular time for joining them at the table. I had turned to Leo, asking about his sister, and he told me that she had a piano lesson at the time.

During lunch, Mr. Kennedy kept cracking classic dad jokes, keeping all of us entertained. Laura had only laughed fondly at them, while Leo cracked a few grins here and there. Afterwards, Laura and Mr. Kennedy, or James as he liked me to call him, turned to me with questioning gazes. They asked me about my degree and such, keeping the conversation as light as possible. I answered their questions easily, wondering why I was so scared to meet them beforehand.

After lunch, I helped Laura take the dishes to the kitchen, and Leo and James stayed behind to talk about Leo's life. I followed Laura and placed the plates I had been holding into the sink. When I turned around, I saw Laura smiling at me and I returned the gesture. Just as I was about to speak, Leo stepped into the kitchen, breaking us from our stare. He took long strides towards me, his hand reaching out in front of him. My eyes widened in surprise as he leaned forward and grabbed my wrist in his.

"Let's go Moonie. Lars is almost done with her lesson."

And with that, he was dragging me away from his mother, who looked like she was going to start squealing at the sight of us.

I trailed after Leo, almost falling onto his back as I tried to catch up to him.

"Leo!" I called out, trying to tug my wrist out of his grasp.

He finally spun around, causing me to bump into his chest. I let out a 'oomph' sound and rubbed my sore nose with my free hand. Then I turned to Leo with a small glare. He grinned boyishly at me in response.

"What are you doing Leo?" I mumbled, my nose still throbbing from the contact.

"Don't you want to meet my sister?" he asked, his voice sounding a little disappointed.

My eyes widened and I shook my head at him.

"No, that's not it," I said.

His brows furrowed in confusion.

"Then what is it Moonie?" he asked, his voice sounding even more worried than before.

Ever so slowly, I looked down and pointed at his hand that still enveloped my wrist. He followed my gaze, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"We can't meet her like this."

At this, Leo only smirked and leaned closer to me. I shrunk back from his gaze, the intensity in them too much for me to handle.

"Why not, Moonie?" he whispered, his breath fanning my face.

I was only able to stare at him, my mouth parted.

"I... just-uhm..." I mumbled.

Before I could make a bigger fool out of myself, Leo let go of my hand in one quick motion. Before I knew it, he was standing upright again, almost a foot away from me. I straightened myself up and cleared my throat, awkwardly looking at the floor. After a few moments of silence, I spoke.

"Lead the way," I said, gesturing for him to go ahead.

He lazily brushed past me, the smirk not leaving his lips. I took a deep breath and followed behind him.

After many confusing twists and turns, we ended up in front of a a large wooden door. It was too big and secluded to be a bedroom, but it wasn't like I had been in any room in this house yet. I couldn't hear anything on the other side, so I was confused as to what this room was.

Then it clicked that Leo was taking me to see his sister who just had a piano lesson, so maybe this was her piano room.

And no matter how ridiculous that sounded, this house was indeed spacious enough to have one.

Leo knocked on the door once, but before he could continue, his phone suddenly rang. He fished it out of his pocket and frowned seeing the name flashing on the screen. I turned to him worriedly, and he looked up to me just then.

"Hey Moonie, I have to get this, but you go on okay? Lars already knows we're coming so just head inside."

Before I could say anything, Leo was walking away, the phone glued to his ear. My hand stayed hanging in the air after him, and I slowly brought it back down to my side. Hesitantly, I looked over to the tall daunting door.

I could have waited for Leo, but thinking that it was better to just meet her already, I decided to knock on the door once again.

This time, I heard a muffled, "Come in," so I hesitantly opened the door and peered in. At first, I couldn't see anyone in the room. I took slow hesitant steps until I was fully in the room, my nervousness now drowned out by adoration.

The room was absolutely gorgeous. The floor was covered in light brown wooden flooring, and in the far corner of the room, stood a grand white piano. I slowly walked toward it, now a little freaked out wondering who had allowed me in earlier.

"Hello?" I spoke aloud.

Suddenly, a head popped up from behind the piano. I took a step back, a small gasp leaving my lips at the surprise.

Behind the piano, I caught someone's eyes. They were wide just like my own, and before I knew it, the girl on the other side stood up and came around the piano. She took slow strides towards me, a sweet smile playing at her lips. However, her eyes were clouded with confusion.

"Hi," she said, sounding a little confused.

"Uh, hi back," I dumbly responded.

Realizing that I should probably do something, I reached forward and held a hand out for her to shake.

"I'm Amelia, Leo's friend," I introduced.

Her eyes then widened, a look of recognition crossing her features. She took another step forward and enveloped my hand in her own.

It was in that moment that something felt familiar. I couldn't place my finger on it, until she said the next few words.

"Hi Amelia, I'm Clara. Leo's sister."

My eyes widened in surprise, her words sounding awfully familiar.

"Have we met before?" I asked curiously.

Clara tilted her head at my words, thinking my words through.

"You do look kind of familiar... maybe we met in a mall or somewhere you worked?" she said lightly.

I shook my head.

"Sadly, I've never needed a job so that's out of question," I said with a light laugh.

It was in that moment when I let a bit of my past shine through, that Clara's eyes widened. She gasped hearing my laugh, and I couldn't help but shut my mouth instantly.

I always knew I had a unique laugh. Something I wasn't sure if I should be embarassed or proud of. But as Clara seemed to recognize it, for once, I felt cautious of my laugh.

'Did she know me? Did she know who I was?'

My heart beat quickened. My palms were quaking.

'Did she know my past?'

Worry swarmed my thoughts. I waited for her to speak. For her to say something. To tell me to leave because she knew my brother was a killer. Or to tell me to never see Leo again.

My heart broke at the last thought.

Could I do that?

Could I walk away from Leo if Clara told me to?

Before my thoughts consumed me even more, Clara opened her mouth and spoke.

"Wait a second- I've seen you before. But not somewhere as simple as a workplace or a grocery store," Clara stated, her eyes narrowing into slits.

'Here it comes.'

"Did you... did you live in Calgary before?" she asked suspiciously.

My breathing laboured, sweat beads formed on my forehead.

Unable to do anything else, I nodded and all of a sudden, her eyes widened in surprise. She gave me a once over, and ever so slowly, she brought a shaky hand to her mouth, pressing her palm against it in surprise.

I closed my eyes in defeat and embarassment.

'This is it.'

"I can't believe it," I heard her gasp.

'I couldn't either.'

I couldn't feel my heart beat anymore.

'Please let this be over. Don't make me leave Leo,' I chanted in my head.

All of a sudden, I felt a weight on my shoulders. Surprised, I opened my eyes only to be met with Clara's glowing face. She was beaming at me, her eyes watery and her hands on my shoulders giddily. My eyes widened in confusion at her reaction.

"Wha-"

Before I could speak, Clara did.

"Amelia, it's me. Clara. We've met before Amelia! Four years ago, we met on a bus Amelia. It was a bus. Do you remember me?"

And it was then I realized that this was the same Clara I had met on the bus nearly five years ago now. Back when she was in a wheelchair.

Back on the day that I last lived a normal life.

I met Clara four years ago, on the day that Levi killed Brittany.