The Truth (Mommy's House 2)

Part Sixteen

"I'm coming in with you," Bella insisted from the backseat of my car.

I rubbed my hands over my face, while Liv sat in the passenger side, staring out the window at Cole's house.

"Bella, you can not come in with us. Can you please just tell me your address so I can drop you off after?" I asked, exhaling in frustration, while Bella shook her head and crossed her arms.

"After I go with you to tell them," she said, her eyes locked on me.

She wasn't going to change her mind and I knew it. She had already convinced us to bring her to his house with her, but she was not going to be able to go in.

"Liv, what should I do?" I mumbled. "She can't come in with us, we could get in trouble for this."

Liv looked over to me, the late afternoon sunlight casting a golden warmth over her face.

"Now you care about getting in trouble, after going to the house without asking anyone if it's allowed?" she asked. "We can't leave her in the car alone after everything that's happened."

I stared at his house in defeat. "We should've just told her no."

"I can hear you guys," Bella said from the backseat. "You don't have to treat me like a baby."

"Stay in the car, Bella," Liv said, clearly just trying to please me, as she turned to look back at her. "We won't be long, we just need to inform his parents of what we found out. Then we will drop you off to your dad, okay?"

Bella was quiet for a few seconds, before she sunk back into the seat. "Fine," Bella said while looking down at her lap, clearly irritated.

Liv and I got out of my car, locked it, and walked up the porch to the front door. I felt uneasy - my stomach was twisting as I dreaded telling his poor parents about what really happened to their son.

We knocked, and there was no response. I looked at Liv, before knocking again. We knocked a few more times, until Cole finally opened the door. His hair was messy on his head, his cheeks were flushed and his eyes were tired - it seemed like he had just woken up despite it being nearly four in the afternoon. He didn't have his crutches anymore, either.

His light eyes focused on us, worry striking them. "What is it now?" he asked, his voice raspy.

"Are- Are your parents home?" I asked him, and when he shook his head, I straightened my posture.

"They're out right now. Why?" His thick eyebrows were furrowed as he leaned against the doorway.

"This is just a concern for your parents, do you know when they will be home tomorrow?" I asked, and Cole took a deep breath.

"I don't know, my mom is usually always home and my dad works the whole day," he answered.

"All right, well, have a good night, Cole," I told him, before turning away. I knew it was wrong to not tell him, but he had way too much thrown at him already - I was worried the poor kid wouldn't be able to handle this much.

"No, what happened? Tell me," Cole insisted, his fingers locking around my arm and stopping me from leaving the porch. When I turned to Liv, she shook her head, unsure of what to do as well.

"Cole, I- I'm afraid that-" I started, but Liv cut me off.

"He deserves to know," Liv whispered to me, her eyes narrowing. She then turned to him and asked quietly, "may we come in, Cole?"

It was unprofessional and we knew it. He did have the right to know, though, and I preferred that he heard it from me rather than the news or another source.