Suri’s Sure Thing – Chapter 4

I pace up and down the back deck before I show my face inside again.

Erik and Leo are sitting in the family room, sipping drinks and chatting. Leo leaps to his feet when he sees me and crosses the room in great, long strides. I reflexively retreat. I forgot he used to do that. When we were dating, I found it charming that he would always come to me in a rush. Now, the habit is disconcerting, especially when we haven’t seen each other in years.

“Suri, Erik and I were talking about heading out to the casino for the night. Play some craps and roulette? Have some drinks? Come on. It’ll be nice to spend time together again, especially before we go to the ball. We can catch up on everything that’s happened in the last two years.”

I look past him to Erik. But Erik’s face is unreadable, and his mood is withdrawn. “You’re going to the ball?” he asks.

“I —” I stop because Dad is right behind me. No, I don’t want to go to the ball.

“She’s going with me.” Leo’s hand coasts down my arm, and he grasps my fingers. “I’m sure we’ll have a great time.”

“I don’t know about that.” I back up from him.

Dad clears his throat. “I’ve already spoken with Tilli. It’s a done deal.”

I swallow and wonder what to do. I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place here. If I don’t go, I’ll incur Dad’s wrath and then be kicked out of my home. If I go, I’ll have to endure a night with Leo, who I haven’t seen in years. I suppose it couldn’t be that bad, right? We had a good relationship together… Kind of.

But it’s Erik’s face that keeps me from committing. He looks stricken, pale, like he’s seen a ghost.

I can’t make this decision right now.

I pull up a fake smile and avoid talk of the ball. “Why don’t you two head to the casino together? I’m beat. I just worked three twelve-hour shifts in zero-g. We can talk again tomorrow when I’ve had some rest.”

Finn whines at my feet. “Yes, rest rest, Suri. We should talk.”

“Are you sure?” Leo lowers his voice. “You used to love going to the casino.” At least he still has some tact. My father hates the casinos and anything to do with them. If he ever finds out his daughters gamble there, it will be the end of our relationship.

“I’m sure. You guys go and have a good night.”

Leo nods and passes me to speak with Dad for a moment.

Erik stands and sets his glass on the coffee table. When he straightens, our eyes meet, and his stare reaches right through me.

“You’ve never contacted him? Never called?” he asks.

I shake my head and hold back tears.

He inhales sharply. “I’ll find out what’s going on.”

He strides past me. I stretch out my fingers, hoping to make contact with him, but he doesn’t notice. I pull my hand away before anyone can see me.

Too late. Tilli is right behind me.

“If you had asked me this morning what would happen today, never in my wildest dreams would I expect this.” She sighs. “I borrowed the perfect dress for the ball, and I even asked Goku to go.”

I blink a few times, trying to rewind and replay dinner in my head. Leo is here. He was sitting right across from me. Two years ago, I would have given anything for this to happen. Two years ago was when I started making poor decisions, and now I’m still living at home as a twenty-seven-year-old. Was it Leo breaking up with me that brought me here?

“Hey?” Tilli snaps her fingers in front of my face. “Let’s go to your room.”

“Right. Come on, Finn.”

He jumps to his feet and follows us down the long hall away from the family living area. There are four bedrooms in this wing, and Tilli and I used to share a room until both Myra and Ean moved out. We’ve remained close in more ways than one. But owing money to someone will do that.

I enter my bedroom in a zombie state. A few hours ago, everything made sense. I was working my job, floating in zero gravity, and thinking about my week of work ahead. Now, everything is turned around and wrong.

“You’re not happy Leo is here.”

“What?” I ask Tilli, but she shrugs and points to Finn. “What’s that, buddy?” I ask him.

He sits at the foot of the bed and looks at me, so I join him there.

“You’re not happy Leo is here,” he repeats. “I can see it. Feel it.”

Tilli worries her hands together and sits next to us.

“I don’t know whether to be happy or sad. Right now, I’m just” — I shrug — “confused. It was the last thing I needed.”

Tilli nods. “Finn can tell you’re not happy, right?”

I look down at my hands and try to put this night into some kind of grand plan. Wasn’t I telling Yarra I needed a ‘sure thing,’ someone I could count on who wasn’t in my father’s back pocket?

This is the exact opposite.

“No. Of course, I’m not happy. This is the last thing I need right now.”

I stand up and rub my face with both hands. Someone put my bag next to my bed for me, so I unzip it and pull out my toiletries and dirty clothes.

“You don’t need this stress, Suri,” Finn says, placing his front feet on the bed. “You need easy times.”

“I do. I need easy times, Finn. Not this nonsense. Not being threatened with the street and kicked from my home.”

“What?” Tilli gasps, and Finn jumps to his feet.

“No!” His shout sounds like a high-pitched bark to everyone else but me. I shush him. “No,” he says, his voice low. “No one will kick you out.” He jumps to his feet. “I will go listen, go find things out.”

He runs for the door.

“Wait, Finn. You don’t have to do that!” His furry butt disappears into the hall. “Come back! I thought we’d snuggle on the bed tonight!”

I let all my air out in a harrumph.

“What’s going on, Suri? There’s no way our parents will kick you out.”

I sigh as I sink to the bed. “They should. It would be a good punishment for all the bad decisions I’ve made the last few years. I’m twenty-seven. It’s stupid for me to be living at home.”

Tilli snaps back like I’ve slapped her. “Helping me was a bad decision?”

I close my eyes and immediately hate myself. “Of course not. I will always help you out. We’re family.” I tense my muscles like I’m waiting for someone to kick me in the gut. “But I wiped out my savings paying off your debt. It was a sacrifice I carried out for the greater good, and I’m glad I did it, but that doesn’t make everything else any easier. Leo and I had just broken up. It was a stressful time, and draining my savings made it worse. I’m now finally on my feet again, and this happens?”

I sweep my hand out. Tilli frowns and sits next to me.

“We’ll figure this out.”

“How?” My eyes fill with tears, but I wipe them away when Finn returns to the room. My little spy has returned. “Hey,” I say, reaching out my hand to rest my fingers on his head. “What did you find out?”

He leans his head into my knee, and my fingers seek out the spot behind his ears he loves. “Good news. Good news. Your father just wants you to give this a try, so you may be able to get away with less than the ball.”

I turn to Tilli. “Finn seems to think Dad would settle and stop meddling if I gave this a try.”

She nods. “Like go on a date and see if you two click?”

“Yeah.”

“But you already know, don’t you?” Tilli asks.

I shrug. “The feelings are still there, you know? But I’m not sure if they’re strong enough or worth it to try again.” I tip my face up and look at the ceiling. “Why did I even come home? I could have stayed in space and worked.”

Tilli squeezes my forearm. “You needed the break, whether or not you wanted it. You all are working too much at the I.A., and with all the animosity surrounding the mission, it’s safer for you to be here, anyway.”

Right. The people protesting at the shuttle landing site looked pretty pissed. Sentiment has grown contentious in the last couple of months. I sigh again. But that all doesn’t really affect me. I’m just a quality engineer.

“I don’t feel very safe after being ambushed by Dad.”

“Well,” Tilli says, standing up, “you’ll have to show him you can’t be pushed around.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Finn says, jumping up on the bed. “You make the rules, Suri. Now, snuggle, snuggle time.”

How can anyone resist that?