Running on Insulin

Chapter 71

Samantha was standing by her window, shaking like a leaf.

"Samantha!" I said running up to her. "What happened?"

"I- I got up to go to the bathroom and I saw something move in the woods. I thought it might be an animal, so I looked to see. It was a person. With a camera. They were taking pictures of the house."

"Samantha," I sighed. "Paparazzi do that sometimes. They try to get pictures of us around the house. It was probably one of them."

"I swear he could see me and he was taking pictures of me," she said.

"From the woods?  He wouldn't be able to see into your room."

I pulled her close to me and hugged her as tight as I dared. She was shaking so hard.

"It's okay. You're okay," I said soothingly. Jenna was rubbing Sam's arm.

"You still want to nap?" I asked her.

She shook her head.

"I think I'm wide awake now," she said.

"Okay. Come downstairs. You can play video games with me if you want."

"Okay," she said.

"Also, our friends Brendon and his wife Sarah, and Zack and his wife Kala flew in early and are going to come for dinner so you can meet them tonight instead of with everyone else tomorrow. That way, you'll at least have met them and you'll know them before you meet the others."

"Um. Okay," Sam said. I could see she was a bit nervous, but she'd already said new people make her nervous.

The three of us went downstairs and I set up the video game console. I was going to teach her Fortnite.  It would also be something she could have in common with Brendon when he came over. The boy is obsessed.

We played for a little while and she got pretty good. Kids. They pick this stuff up like a fish to water.

The doorbell rang and Josh, who'd been downstairs, went to get it.

"Ty, did you order Chinese food?" He asked.

"No. Why?" 

"There's like, four people here with a Chinese food delivery," he said. I looked over and rolled my eyes at him.

"Come on in guys!" I called out. Brendon and Sarah came in first and said hello to Josh. I looked over at Samantha.

"Ready?"

She shrugged and then nodded.

Brendon and Sarah came into the living room while Zack and Kala put the food in the kitchen.

"Tyler!" Brendon said, giving me a hug. "And you must be Samantha."

Samantha nodded.

"Can I give you a hug? I'm a hugger," Brendon said.

Samantha nodded.

"Just be gentle. She's got a couple of broken ribs," I said. Brendon gave her a light hug then held her at arm's length.

"What happened? How'd you break your ribs?"

"I stood up to a bully at school. He didn't like that too much. So he beat me up."

"You poor thing!" Sarah said, wrapping Samantha in a light hug.

"It's nothing. I've had worse," she shrugged. It bothered me how cavalier she was about the beatings her birth father would dole out.