Symphony Of Sympathy

Waking up next to Conner, in nothing but our skin, I cringed. It had been done. We had sex. And all I did was compare him to Oli.Conner lost.

When I found my cell phone tangled in the sheets, I saw about 20 missed calls from my mum, and at least 50 text messages from her- 'Where the hell are you?'

Ever since she lost Sierra, she became overprotective. If I wasn’t not in by two, there would be hell to pay. I didn’t want to know how mad she'd be considering it was 8 o'clock and I missed my curfew by 6 hours.

When I called my mother, I was answered by a very loud "Where the fuck are you?"

"Hi to you too, mum," I groaned. "I'm at Conner's. Can you come pick me up?"

Her voice softened. "You chose Conner? I'm so proud of you dear! Actually, wait- I'm still mad. Where's your car?"

"Tom has it," I explained, remembering last night how he had driven me here, how he told me Conner deserved better....

"Oliver's brother? Oh god, tell me you aren't sleeping with him too!" She shrieked, hurting my eardrum.

"Ew, mum. I'm not a whore!" I snapped at her. Yes, you are. Sierra's voice startled me, but I ignored her. "Please, just come pick me up."

"I guess I have to. Besides, you have guests waiting here for you," she sighed.

"Mum, I told you to stop letting the guys in when I'm not around," I whined. She approved too much of my friends. I was still attempting to figure out why. Tattoos, piercings, a hardcore band.... Just what every mother wants their daughter to hang out with.

"It isn't them. I've learned not to let them in after my last trip to the grocery store disappeared." I went to ask who was there, but she continued speaking before I could. "I'll be there in a few. Oh, and you are so grounded for blowing off curfew."

You deserve to be grounded for so much more than that.

I sighed, closing my phone. "Mornin', love," Conner smiled up at me from his pillow. I pecked his lips lightly. "Y'know, we should get a flat together. Then yeh don't have curfew to worry about, and we can be together."

I laughed. "I would love that, Conner. But I doubt my mum will let me," I sighed. I was eighteen; she had no right to control me. "I have to go, babe. She's picking me up, and apparently I have guests." I kissed his lips again, before pulling on my shirt and jacket.

"Bye," he whispered as I stepped out his bedroom.

Mum was already waiting when I got outside. She looked tired and stressed. "Hi," I mumbled weakly, not wanting to be yelled at.

She grumbled a small hello. "You are so lucky I love you."

The car ride was full of awkward silence. From the glancing I was getting, I could tell my mom was trying not to kill me.She didn’t want to lose another daughter.

When we pulled into our driveway, an unfamiliar car greeted us. Before I could even ask, my mother had said, "Rental," before exiting the car.

"Rented by...?" I asked. I hated not knowing things. Curiosity always got the best of me. My mum shrugged, like she didn’t want to tell me, unlocking our front door. There were two small duffle bags next to the door, neither of which I recognized.

"Mum, who is here?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

"Hey, baby girl," a deep voice said quietly from behind me. My heart jumped as I spun around, my father standing in front of me.

"Daddy!" I screamed, running over to engulf him in a hug. My parents divorced nine years ago, and I hadn’t seen him since Sierra's funeral, three years ago. We'd spoke over the phone, but it was three years since we'd seen each other. A petite brunette stood awkwardly behind him. I assumed she had to be Janelle, my dad's new girlfriend.

When I released my father, I stepped over to her. "You must be Janelle," I smiled warmly. As a little girl, I'd always wondered why Mum and Dad split- they were perfect together, or at least in my eyes. But over the years, I had seen that they weren't perfect for each other. At all. They loved each other, but not in a relationship way. So I was accepting with my Dad's girlfriends. My Mum, however, never started dating again.

"It's so great to meet you," she grinned, shaking my hand. "Your father has told me so much about you, Shiloh."

"So, what are you two doing here? Oh god, Mum, you didn’t call them out because of last night, did you?"

She sighed. "No, of course I didn’t. We've been planning this for a while. I told your father you have been having a rough time, and he was thrilled to visit you."

"It's just not the same, not seeing you every holiday and all, Shi. I miss having you around," my dad smiled sheepishly.

"We were thinking," my mum began, releasing a sigh. "I think you should go live with your father for awhile. You could find a good school... Things could calm down for you a little bit."

I blinked a few times. "Could I... get my own apartment?"

My dad seemed surprised by my question. "You don’t want to live with me, your own father?" He faked hurt.

"I mean, I would love to. But it's just, me and Conner were saying we should get a flat together, and like... I want out of this town, badly," I shrugged awkwardly.

My mum raised an eyebrow, surprised. "I, uh... I mean, I guess, if Conner is willing..."

Aw, now how will you cheat on poor Conner? You don’t have your own house to hide away in.

Shut up, shut up, shut up!

"Janelle and I live in this cute little town in New York. It's about an hour away from the city... I'm sure we can find you a place nearby."

I nodded. I needed this. We needed this. Away from Oliver, I might just have a chance of falling in love with Conner.

Baby girl, you will never love Conner.You are already in love with someone else.

But I wouldn’t believe it. Conner and I would be together forever.

And Oli would mean nothing.Except he already meant everything.