52. Bitter Morning

|| Lilac's POV || But reality came crashing in when my phone buzzed loudly on the nightstand. I groaned, reaching for it, and saw Elara’s name flashing on the screen. My heart sank. I had completely forgotten to check in with my family last night. “Hey,” I said, my voice still thick with sleep as I answered the call. “Don’t ‘hey’ me,” Elara’s voice came through the phone, sharp and exasperated. “Where are you? Do you have any idea how many lies I’ve told your parents? And Ezra almost showed up at my doorstep!” I sat up abruptly, the sheets pooling around my waist. “What happened?” I asked, my voice tinged with guilt. “Your mom and Ezra thought you were out on a date, and when you didn’t come home, they started freaking out. I told them you crashed at my place last night,” Elara said, her tone a mix of frustration and relief. “Oh, shit,” I muttered, running a hand through my tangled hair. I could only imagine how worried my family must have been. “Yeah, ‘oh shit’ is right,” Elara shot b