Honest Mistake

Chapter 2

"You know what all this feels like? Fate."

- The Best of Me, coming to theaters October 17

Chapter 2

“WHAT are you doing?” An annoying booming voice made Emma jump from her seat.

She whirled around and gasped. Seeing the person standing behind her, she threw her head back and groaned at the ceiling, “Damn it, Richard.”

“Emma!” Rich grinned, entering her living room with his shoes on as if he owns the place. No manners whatsoever. “I’ve missed seeing your bodacious self.”

“Drake isn’t here.” Emma scoffed back, rolling her eyes and returning back to the computer.

“Shit.” Rich muttered, stopping abruptly and groaning. “Thought your husband would be here and –“

“Uncle Richie!” Stacey came out of nowhere, barreling towards Rich and wrapping her arms around him.

“Ew, what?” Rich playfully winced, as he lifted his arms up and stare down at the teenager hugging him. “Uncle? Since damn when? I’m not your fu –“

“Are you serious right now?!” Emma angrily snapped at him, “Cursing in front of my daughter who –“

“Mom, I curse all the time.” Stacey tried to reassure her mother. “It’s fine.”

Emma stared at her daughter, her cheeks puffing in a mixture of astonishment and anger as her gaze jumped from Richard to Stacey, then back to Richard and then to Drake – who happened to walk in just now.

Awkward.

“Hey Uncle Rich!” Aidan brightly called out, entering from the doorway next to Drake.

“Just ‘Rich’ would suffice.” Richard scowled, as he watches Aidan throw his backpack down the table. “I’m not even related to you guys, what the hell?”

“What are you doing here?” Drake asked him, walking towards Emma and placing a kiss on her forehead to ease the stressed wrinkles away.

“I thought you invited him over.” Emma muttered, throwing Rich an annoyed look as he made those obnoxious kissing noises while Aidan winced.

“No one invited me.” Rich scoffed, placing a hand over his chest and sighing exaggeratingly, “You both never invite me over anymore, and it kind of hurts my feelings.”

“You have feelings, dad?” Bryan asked, as he enters from the doorway and dragging his school bag.

“There you are!” Aidan jumped up from his kitchen seat. He grabbed his backpack and rushed towards his friend’s side.

“Don’t give me that attitude, son.” Rich frowned, as Bryan made a face back while he was being dragged away by Aidan.

“C’mon, Uncle Rich!” Stacey piped up as she gathered textbooks and school bag, “I can’t afford being late for class anymore!”

“Wait, what?” Emma asked, looking back and forth between her teenagers and Richard. “What do you mean ‘anymore’? Since when were you ever late to class?”

When none of them answered, Emma turned her gaze to Rich and gave him a hard glare. “Rich. Did you take my kids –“

“Oh my!” Rich interrupted rather dramatically as he looked at his imaginary watch on his wrist. “Emma, stop blabbering over there, we’re almost late!”

He clapped his hands and threw on a cockney British accent, “Carry on, children! Wouldn’t want you both getting any late slips, right?”

“Richard,” Emma continued to reprimand him, “I swear, if you’ve been dropping my kids to school late this whole time, what have you –“