The Girl Who Didn't Join Glee Club

Prologue

Coming Back Home

A new beginning. A fresh start. But why did it feel so scary?

She tended to be a laid-back person, but once she stepped out of the plane, she was nervous. She was going to see her dad after not seeing him for a couple of months. Sure, they would talk on the phone, but it was always short.

Would he be mad at her? Did he blame her? To be honest, she still blamed herself. If only she was more considerate and more attentive, her mother would still be here. They would still be in New York, not in Ohio.

Once she exited the gate, she saw her dad and her heart stopped.

He had a beard now with a few white hairs.

His hair was extremely long.

He was so skinny; his face looked so hollow.

When he saw her, he gave her a small smile with his arms open.

"Hey Dad, new look huh?" She asked as she gave him a hug.

"Oh yeah. I keep forgetting to make an appointment to get a haircut, and it's not like I have a reason to go out. " Her mother would be the reason. She would make them go out to the city and explore.

With a grim smile, she commented, "Yeah, but it must be getting hard to take care of though. I'll help you schedule somewhere near once we get to the house?"

"Sure, honey. Here, let me grab your stuff." With that, he grabbed her bags, and they walked to where he parked.

As he drove, there was an awkward silence between the two, neither knowing what to say until he spoke again. "So, how's everyone there? Your abuelito?"

"They're doing okay, they all said hi. They said that they plan on coming to visit us soon. But you know them, soon can mean three years." She responded lightly.

"I doubt they will come. They couldn't even come for your mom's funeral, they're all talk." He said bitterly. She didn't know how to respond to that, so she tried to change the topic into something that might get his spirits high.

"Yeah, so did you watch Barcelona play this past weekend? They were amazing!" Not the smoothest of transitions, but it did bring a small smile to her dad's face.

"They did okay, not like Real Madrid. Now they played like champions." He refuted with a bragging smile.

"Okay dad, sure. Whatever you say." She said in a disbelieving tone. "I heard that the school I'll be going to has a soccer team. Do you think it would be okay if I tried out?" He turned his head sharply, looking at her. Then realizing that he was still driving, he turned his head to face the road again.

"I don't think there would be a problem with that. But what about ballet?" They were entering a dangerous zone.

"If it's fine, I think I want a break from it for now. And you said that the basement has a studio, so I can always practice once I'm ready. It's just that it's hard to do it without her here right now." Her steady voice broke by the end of the sentence. He didn't say anything, and it was eating her up.

"Okay. We can go later to get you some of the equipment you'll need."

"Thanks" The silence came back, but neither tried to break it, both were consumed in their thoughts about the woman who left them too soon.

Cataleya was too into her thoughts that she didn't realize they had pulled up into their new "home".

"So, what do you think?" Her father asked as he was getting her stuff out of the car.