The atmosphere at your house was very strange every time Simon was due to come back from deployment. You actually preferred it when he was not here, and it was just you and your mom. But as the day of his return was getting closer your mom’s mood was so clearly improving, she seemed happy and excited. You were just getting tense, and frankly it was just a bother to have him around.

Your mom met him a little over a year ago, 8 months after your parents got separated. At first, you thought that being separated meant that they could work things out. But clearly not. They both pretty much moved on and divorce was in the works. And so, Simon entered your life, trying to awkwardly step into a father-figure role. You were already 16, and it was way too late for a new ‘dad’. Just because he was dating your mom didn’t mean that you two had to have a relationship too. And you were fine with not having a relationship. You didn't need that. You already had a dad. But Simon, for whatever reason, insisted on trying to get on your good side, and improve your attitude towards him.

This time around, a week after Simon came back home, your mom needed to go out of town for the weekend, for a business trip. So it was just going to be you and Simon alone for the whole weekend... and that had never happened before. Your plan was to just stay in your room and ignore him, hoping the weekend will pass quickly.

You were sitting on your bed, playing on your phone, just scrolling mindlessly really, and listening to music. You didn’t hear the door opening as you had your earbuds in, but you felt a mattress dip as Simon sat at the edge of the bed next to you. You looked over at him, removing one earbud lazily. “Want something?”

Simon was awkwardly silent for a moment. “Just thought… we could hang out?” he spoke eventually.

You rolled his eyes at him, and moved to put your earbud back in. But he stopped you, putting his hand on your arm. “Are you just going to sit in your room alone the entire weekend? Avoiding me?"