Tell It To The Moon (BWWM) [ON HOLD]

Chapter Two

These experiences met nothing to her. They were set to be destroyed after all. Everyone from this journal was meant to be discarded and never found out about, but I found it all. It only made me want to know more although I've told myself to forget about it multiple times today. Of course, it was only Frankie's words that even got me to this point.

"I think this is huge, Yvette. You have proof of who you belong to right in your backpack and now you even know more about your father than you did before. You know his name. You know he served in the military. You know he was... one heck of a dude."

How much did any of that really mean? I still don't know where my mother or father even is. This journal doesn't tell me if they're even thinking about me. My mother wrote that Philip isn't the type of person to think about anyone but himself. Well, I'm apart of him? Does that give me an exception?

"It means nothing. There's nothing I can do with this journal. My grandma might flip knowing that I have it, let alone read it to all of my friends." He released our hands so he can drape his arm across my shoulders and pull me into his chest. Something about walking and talking about this wasn't a good mix. My knees went weak often when I talked about emotional things. "She used to get so red in her brown face. Changing colors and telling me how I could be so ungrateful to ask these questions knowing my life is better off without a father."

"You deserve to see that for yourself."

Once we got in front of my grandma's house. A million thoughts flooded my mind about how this day isn't over yet. In the middle of Frankie kissing me goodbye, I pulled away. "Stay here. I'll be right back."

The first thing that was on my mind was proof. I rushed through the house to get to my room and back to the box of junk hidden under my bed. It was perfect timing to make the biggest mess possible. I looked through every piece of paper and examined the outside of every candle just in case. Still nothing. She kept nothing that would have any worth to me.

"All I need is proof!" I sighed in defeat seconds before coming to my senses. "Yvette, you idiot! How else would someone prove who their parents are!" I quickly jumped up from my spot in the middle of the carpet and rushed to the hallway closet. My grandma kept everything in here from taxes to bill receipts. And of course, "my birth certificate!"

"Oh! Yes!" My head darted to Frankie who stood in the middle of my living room as if he was actually allowed in this house. "I'm sorry. The car was gone and I knew I had just enough time to get some cool air. It was really hot out there."

I nodded quickly to get over this conversation. "We have to go to the county office. If either of my parents have a death certificate then the least I can do is visit their graves."

I tried to pull Frankie out of the house but he planted his feet into the carpet. "What makes you think they're dead?"

"It's called crossing shit off my list. Now let's go!" All it took was one last tug to get him out the door.

"My god!" He gasped while looking around the room. "All these people lost someone just today?" I rolled my eyes as we moved up one space in line. "I think that we need to have this discussion just in case they do find his certificate. I want you to know that you can be as dramatic as you want to. Cry. Scream. Stab a man."

"Frankie..."

He wrapped his arms around my chest from the back as I clenched my birth papers in my hand. He knew this would calm me down and it did. "I'm only trying to lighten the mood. Although you don't know the man all too well, he's still apart of you just as much as you are him. There will be a sting in that heart of yours."

"Next!" A woman hollered from behind a glass window.

I almost broke Frankie's arms off trying to claim my spot before someone told me I took too long. "Hello, I'm here to search up a death record. For two people actually."

"Names. Relations. And the date of birth of both persons."

"The first is Elowen Walson. I'm her daughter and she was born on the fourteenth of June in 1953."

"Do you have a birth certificate?" I quickly slid her the paper as she typed a few numbers in the large computer monitor. For a second I thought it would clonk out since it was so outdated. "No one by that name is in the records. Good news. Your mother isn't dead."

Frankie gripped my shoulders as we both smiled in excitement. "Okay, the next is Philip Hill. I'm also his daughter and he was born..." I opened the journal to the page I had saved using a paper clip. "January third in 1951."

The woman's eyes widened the moment she pulled up something on the screen. "This man has a record on him, but doesn't have a death certificate which is quite shocking."

"I... I need to find this parent. I've been told numerous times that's he's a terrible person but... I want to know for myself."

The woman looked at me up and down then sighed. "How old are you kid?"

"Sixteen..."

"I wasn't listening at that age either so I don't have much to say. But I do understand where you are coming from. I was adopted when I was a child and I remember being just like you. The hunt was real but I had limited resources. For twenty dollars, I can give you legal access to your fathers information. This birth certificate is proof that you can have it."

I didn't hesitate to pull my wallet out of my backpack. All my lunch money for next week was gone in a day. But it was worth it. "Okay. Here's your receipt. Let me go to the machine."

"For twenty dollars, your dad is going to shit on himself when he sees you." Frankie gave me a hard kiss on the cheek. "Who knew it was so easy! You're one step away, Yvette!"

My heart was beating so fast and so loud that I could throw up. Watching her staple some papers together and make her way back over to us only made this feeling worse.

"Here you go Yvette Walson. I hope you find what you're looking for." With one last smile. The papers were finally in my hand. "Next!"

The only way I moved out of the way of the next in line was by Frankie pulling me aside. "So what do you want to do? When do you want to do it? I can go with you today, tomorrow. Next weekend." I handed Frankie the papers because I was shaking and sweating too hard to maintain them anymore.

"You want to go to?" I barely could speak. "What if... he's one of those dads who are super protective. Doesn't like white people and owns a gun. She did say he had a history. I don't want you to get hurt."

"When she said history, I think she meant that he joined the military, spent numerous occasions in jail for domestic abuse, and being publicly intoxicated. Going from honorably discharged to dishonorably discharged making him a humiliation to the USA itself." Yvette snatched the papers back to make sure he read them correctly. "And... your dad is white." He pointed to the print stating RACE. "You're just like me!" Frankie cheered.