Her Dad My Daddy ✓

Chapter Twenty-Eight | Shopping Adventure

Karter was panicking.

Flynn was no help with telling him what to wear for his first day at his new job. It was a weird feeling, but he finally had a job again.

It had been a week since Ryan and him had made up and worked on telling Ember about their relationship. However, now wasn't the right time-not that there really ever would be.

A week ago Ember got a note on her door along with a picture of Holland walking to work. It was then Karter learned about Ember's sister, Caterina.

Ember didn't seem too fazed by the note, the fact it involved Holland did, however.

The story went that Caterina was in an on-again-off-again relationship with a guy named Greg. 'He was nice at first but then something snapped. He would yell at her over trivial things when he hit her.' Ember paused before taking a breath.

'We didn't realize how bad it was. I knew she was seeing him again behind Ryan's back but I didn't say anything. I didn't do anything. I just thought she was doing what she wanted as usual.'

Ember didn't tell Karter much more than that and he didn't ask. The thought that he tried to do the same thing as Caterina left him uneasy at how much it affected a person. All the hurt that it brought.

Karter never told anyone about his time spent in the hospital. His family were the only ones who knew, even if it was a small town.

Ember had told him not to mention it to anyone, but to keep an eye out for someone that fit Greg's description. Red ginger hair, a slightly built guy who was around six feet. All of which Karter thought could be easy to find, but there weren't all that many redheads on campus that fit the rest of the description.

Karter felt kinda odd knowing all this when Ryan didn't. He thought he should have known if a dude showed up at his daughter's college dorm. However, at the end of the day, Karter figured it was up to Ember to tell him.

He also didn't know Ryan had another daughter, whose name was also the name of his new work establishment. Karter remembered the tattoos Ryan had on the side of his wrist as well. The messy flowers that looked like a kid drew them.

Karter brushed the events of the past week out of his head and stood half-dressed in front of his closet. Everything he owned was either worn and not work appropriate or nonexistent.

"Come on just wear a button-up and your nicest pants. You can go shopping for some clothes once you get paid," Flynn spoke, getting ready to leave.

"I'll look like a salesman for shitty cars," Karter stated matter of factly.

"Well, you need to figure out something or you'll be late," Flynn stated in the same matter of fact tone.

Karter groaned and put on a pair of black jeans, ones without any holes or rips in. Then he stared in his closet again like it was haunting him.

"Good luck," Flynn cheered way too positively for the hour. He left to go to class as Karter put on a shirt after shirt only to reveal he hated them all.

The knock at the door got his attention and forced him to pick something. He picked the outfit he went to the interview in. It wasn't his best but it looked better on him than a funeral outfit, so he told himself.

When Karter got the door, Holland and Ember were there. He looked confused at them being there and Holland chuckled at that.

'I thought you might want this,' Ember signed. She handed over what looked to be a plain black tie.

"Thanks, but uh-I can't tie this." He felt bad for saying that since he didn't get gifts all that often and when he did, he always felt awkward. However, she brushed it off like he wasn't being the most awkward person in the room.