The Outcast ✔️

Chapter 12

Date: April 15th, 2021 (Thursday)

"Lauren it's time to wake up," Maddie said to her while shaking her a little.

Lauren woke up immediately and got out of bed to get dressed. Maddie was shocked since she never gets up the first time they ask her to. What Maddie didn't know was that Lauren had something very important that she needed to do today so she wasn't going to give anyone a hard time this morning.

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On the way to school, Lauren was completely silent. Maddie, Owen, and even Brett tried to engage her in conversation but she didn't even notice that they were talking to her. She was lost in her thoughts.

When they arrived at school Lauren started walking towards her school. Maddie and Owen walked towards their school. About two minutes later Lauren turned around and she could no longer see Maddie and Owen. That's when she turned around away from her school and started walking towards the hospital where her mom was. She knows that if her siblings find out that she skipped school, and walked to the hospital by herself she would be in so much trouble but she honestly didn't care. She needed answers.

At the hospital

Lauren was somehow able to get past all of the security and hospital staff and was standing outside her mom's door. She knew if her mom confirmed what her dad said was true her life was going to change and never be the same again.

She took a deep breath and thought that it was now or never. She pushed the door open and saw that her mom was watching tv.

"Mom, we need to talk," Lauren said with some nervousness in her voice.

Lisa looked at Lauren startled. Wasn't her daughter supposed to be in school? How did she get here? Why is she here?

"Lauren, Shouldn't you be in school? Do your siblings know you are here?" Lisa asked her.

"No, my siblings don't know I'm here. I walked from school but that doesn't matter. We need to talk. Dad said something to me yesterday and only you can confirm if it's true or not and please don't lie to me when I ask," Lauren said with confidence.

"Ok, go on," Lisa said, confused but curious.

"Cameron isn't really my dad, is he? He said that I have a different father."

Lisa took a deep breath. She didn't want to tell Lauren until she was 16. She and Cameron agreed on that but then again you can never really trust Cameron with a secret.

"I didn't want to tell you until you were 16 but yes. Cameron isn't your father. Your real father's name is James Baker and at the time he was in medical school. I was having issues with your father and he was away on a business trip. I was super stressed out with having to take care of all your siblings so your dad's brother gave me the night off and babysat all of the kids. I ended up going to a bar where your father was with some of his friends. We had a conversation and well things happened. I never told James that you were his so he doesn't even know you exist."

Lauren was in shock. Cameron really wasn't her father which means her siblings aren't even her full siblings they are her half. Everything she knew about her 11 years of life was a lie. All of a sudden Lauren felt betrayed and angry at her mom for keeping this a secret from her.

"Mom, how could you keep this from me? We always tell each other everything. I can't believe you," Lauren said in an angry tone with frustrated tears falling down her face.

"I am so sorry sweetie," Lisa said. She was on the verge of tears because she could tell how upset Lauren was. She wasn't sure how Lauren was going to react to this news but she never thought she was going to be this upset.

"I can't even look at you or be in the same room as you right now. I just can't believe this," Lauren said and walked straight out the door ignoring the pleas of her mother begging her to come back.

Lauren snuck out of the hospital without being seen and ran straight to the park that's near her school. She hid behind a tree for the rest of the day until school was let out.

She thought about how someone named James Baker was her father. She wasn't ready to meet him just yet but that's fine. However, she is curious about who he is as a person. After all, maybe she has some of his traits or physical features. She also wasn't sure if she was ready to tell her siblings yet about the truth. She knew she was going to end up breaking down her walls within a week and tell Maddie and Owen but she was afraid of what their reactions might be. Would they still love her? Would they push her away? She was scared, upset, and had no idea what to do.