"I heard that she's really sick."
"Yeah. She spent most of this week in bed. We weren't sure she'd be able to make it today." Adam said as he glanced over at his parents.
Aurora was also looking at him. When their eyes met, she smiled and winked at him. Adam waved back in response.
Adam and Samantha continued talking, delving into her concern about her parents' plan to move her to a new school. Samantha confided that she didn't want to move to a school for the elite and that Aurora had spoken to her mother on her behalf.
The gesture seemed to have left her infatuated with Aurora. Despite Adam trying to steer the conversation to some other topic, Samantha always brought up his mother, raising more questions than he liked.
"What about school? Does she show up for athletics day? What do you guys do for fun on the weekends?"
A hand gently cupped the back of Adam's head, fingers snaking through his hair as another held his cheek. The hands pulled him into a warm embrace and a kiss to his head.
"Hi guys."
Hi, Mrs. Jordahl."
"Hey mom."
Adam hugged Aurora and turned his face up to hers. "How are you feeling?"
"You worry too much, like your father. I'm fine. Just checking on you."
"Hi Aurora," Samantha said with a smile so wide, it threatened to poke her eyes out.
"Hi Sammy."
Aurora let go of Adam and opened her arms to Samantha, who happily jumped into them. Samantha was ecstatic in Aurora's presence; she talked non-stop about everything, refusing to let go of Aurora. Adam's mother didn't seem bothered but embraced the girl, listening intently to her.
An uncomfortable feeling tugged at Adam's stomach as he watched the two. His shirt was also feeling extra itchy and hot.
"Are you going to stay longer this time?" Samantha asked worriedly.
Adam grabbed his mother's gown.
"I'm afraid not," she started, brushing back untidy strands of his hair. "Adam and I are going back in two weeks."
Seeing the girl's dejection, Aurora hugged her tighter.
"It's okay. We'll have more opportunities to see each other during that time."
Samantha nodded sadly.
"Right now, I need to borrow Adam for a little while, okay?"
"Yeah..."
Adam and his mother made their way across the room to his father. Logan was standing with a group of couples. Adam now saw that the adults grouped themselves the same as the children, and Logan was at the bottom of this group.
"Your father was invited to speak with these gentlemen, so we need to introduce ourselves."
The air around the group felt heavy when Adam and his mother first arrived. The moment Aurora stepped in beside Logan, the air lightened. One by one, Logan introduced the couples to his family.
"Thank you for inviting our humble family to your gathering." Aurora said pleasantly.
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