Page 3 of Once Hidden
She knocked softly on April's door.“April?Can I come in?”
The only response was a muffled sound that could have been “whatever” or “go away”—Riley chose to interpret it as the former.She pushed the door open slowly to find April curled on her bed, arms wrapped around her cat Marbles, who purred contentedly despite the tension in his companion’s face.
“Hey,” Riley said softly, sitting on the edge of the bed.“Want to tell me what that was about?”
April turned her face further into Marbles' black and white fur.“It's nothing.”
“Doesn't look like anything.”Riley reached out to stroke her daughter's hair, the same way she had when April was small and woke screaming from nightmares.“Is there a boyfriend I should know about?”
“No,” April said, then amended, “I don't know.Maybe.Not anymore, probably.”
Riley waited, knowing that silence often yielded more information than questions.After a moment, April sat up, releasing Marbles, who stretched and repositioned himself at the foot of the bed with a disapproving flick of his tail.
“His name is Ethan,” April finally said.“He started coming into the Beanery lately.He'd sit by the window with his sketchbook for hours, just drawing.”
Riley kept her expression neutral, though her internal alarm bells had begun to chime softly.“How did you two start talking?”
“I asked him what he was drawing,” April said, a small smile forming despite her tears.“It turned out he was drawingme.Mom, he's really talented.”
“And this has been going on for how long?”
“About a week.”April reached for a tissue from her nightstand.“I know it's not long, but it felt...different.Like we'd known each other forever.”
Riley tried to balance parental concern with respect for her daughter's autonomy.April was eighteen—almost nineteen—and had shown remarkable resilience and maturity after everything she'd been through.Still, the protective instinct in Riley wanted to run a background check on this Ethan immediately.
“So, what happened?Why are you so upset?”
“He had to leave town suddenly.His grandmother in Philadelphia got sick, and she raised him.He told me he had to go take care of her, and he gave me his number.He said he'd text when he got there, but...”She shrugged helplessly.“It's been two days, and nothing.”
“And you think he's forgotten about you.”
“Or he was just being nice and never really cared in the first place.”April twisted the tissue.“It was stupid to think he was interested in me.”
“Hey,” Riley said firmly, “don't do that to yourself.From what you're saying, he seemed genuinely interested.And if his grandmother is sick, he might be dealing with a lot right now.”
“Maybe.”April didn't sound convinced.
“Have you tried texting him?”
April shook her head, looking slightly embarrassed.“I didn't want to seem desperate.”
Riley fought back a smile.“Sending one thoughtful text isn't desperate.You could just check in, ask how his grandmother is doing.Show that you care without putting any pressure on him.”
“You think so?”April asked, hope flickering across her face.
“I know so.”Riley squeezed her daughter's hand.“And if he doesn't respond, then that tells you something too.Better to know than to wonder.”
“I'll try that.”
A soft knock at the door interrupted them.Jilly stood in the doorway, her expression unusually contrite.
“Can I come in?”she asked.
Riley looked to April, who nodded.
“I'm sorry,” Jilly said immediately, stepping inside.“I didn't know it was supposed to be a secret.You never said not to tell Mom.”
April sighed.“It's okay.It's not like I swore you to secrecy or anything.I was going to tell Mom about him anyway.I'm sorry for overreacting.”
