It was a miracle that Noah made it home in one piece considering how dazed he was after leaving the hospital. If Kaleb hadn't ordered him to go home, he probably would have spent the entire night in that waiting room chair at a loss.

He managed to make it home and flopped onto his bed in his jeans. He was still staring at the ceiling when his parents woke up and he heard puttering around as his mom went down to make breakfast.

Somehow he forced himself to shower and change into a pair of sweatpants. Noah didn't want them to worry about him being out half the night.

"Morning Noah! Want some pancakes?" his mother asked cheerfully.

Eating something might be a good idea. "Sure, Mom."

After pouring the batter onto the griddle she eyed him critically. "You look awful. What happened?"

Hiding anything from the all-seeing Jennica Singleton had always been impossible. Noah buried his face in his hands and told her the truth. It wasn't like she didn't know about his hopeless unrequited love. There was nothing to be embarra.s.sed about.

"…I told Violet I loved her. All she did was stare at me before a nurse whisked her away in a wheelchair."

She raised an eyebrow. "A wheelchair?"

"Violet got hurt at her show last night and asked me to take her to the ER but that's not important," Noah said with an impatient wave of his hand. "I screwed up. I really screwed up. She likes that jerk Jeremy and now she's probably never going to speak to me again."

Jennica flipped the first pancake over and leaned leisurely against the counter. "I thought that was what you were going for since you were avoiding her and all."

Noah was about to ask her how she knew before realizing this was the longest it had ever been since Violet had been to their house. Of course she had noticed. Nothing got past her.

He had been avoiding her but that didn't mean he never wanted to speak to her again! He was only trying to give himself time to get over her so they could continue their friends.h.i.+p without things hurting so much.

Now he had probably ruined it forever. Things would be too awkward even if she did decide she was still willing to talk to him. The easiness that had always existed between them would be gone.

"I was avoiding her to try and get over her so we could still be friends," Noah mumbled. "You know she's the most important person to me. I could never give her up completely."

Trying to talk himself into going cold turkey hadn't worked. He had been planning to come back…eventually. When Jeremy Ward was out of the picture or he felt secure enough in his feelings to be around her without it hurting.

His mother sighed before smiling sympathetically at him.

"My sweet boy. I think we both know you're never getting over her. You've been in love with her since before you even knew that the word meant. Don't forget, you told me you were going to marry her about a million times when you were little."

Noah turned red. Did she have to bring that up now? It was never going to happen.

She had fallen for someone else who didn't like him. Jeremy had already done his best to tear them apart and he had played right into the man's hands. He was such an idiot.

"Why are you making me feel worse," he mumbled, resting his head on the counter.

"That's not what I'm trying to do. I'm trying to tell you to go for it. You know Violet better than anyone else; I'm pretty sure you know how to win her over," Jennica said as she placed the pancake in front of him on a plate.

Was his mother crazy? He wasn't about to go after someone who had a boyfriend!

"Are you encouraging me to be a homewrecker?" Noah asked incredulously.

"I'm encouraging you to be patient. They won't last."

The confidence in her voice surprised him until he remembered his mother knew Violet nearly as well as he did. She had been in and out of their house for his entire life after all. But he didn't want to get his hopes up about her a.s.sessment.

He had seen with his own eyes how much Violet seemed to like Jeremy. What he didn't understand was why. That guy was a total phony! She was normally a better judge of character that that.

"Are you really sure about that? I think she really likes him," Noah said glumly.

"She may like him but she loves you," his mother said cryptically. "Think about it. She's had boyfriends before but still referred to you as her favorite person while they were dating. If there's anybody in this world that girl cares about other than her family, it's you."

Noah frowned. She made Violet sound so heartless. She wasn't; she just had a hard time connecting with most people. That didn't mean she didn't care.

n.o.body else seemed to understand that. She cared deeply, if not widely. His best friend had always been misunderstood. She had always told him how grateful she was that he got her without her having to try.

Did he really have a chance? He should know better than anyone where he stood in Violet's life but her actions lately had shaken his confidence big time.

"Eat your pancake, sweetie. Food makes everything better," Jennica said with a wink. "You'll figure things out better on a full stomach."

Noah stood and walked over to hug his mom from behind. "Thanks, Mom."

"Anytime. My pep talks and culinary expertise come free of charge."

He felt a tiny bit better already. But after finis.h.i.+ng his food he should really try and get some sleep. There was no way he would be able to come up with a plan to woo Violet properly after being awake for more than twenty-four hours straight.

"…can I have two more pancakes?" Noah asked sheepishly.

His mother laughed and tapped his arm with the spatula she had been using to flip the pancakes. "That's my boy. Sure thing."

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