Brighton Part One

Chapter 22

Chapter 22

The flight from New York arrives at dusk. Tracy feels exhausted from overly thinking about how to break the news to Clarke about what happened. When she enters the airport from the terminal, Gracie Lynn stands there, waiting to wrap her arms around Tracy.

"Oh, there's my girl!" Looking Tracy over after the hug, she begins, "You got your hair done. I love the mixture of highlights and lowlights. My goodness, my little girl becoming more and more beautiful."

Swiping her hair behind her ear, Tracy can't make eye contact with her mother, "Can we go? I'm tired, and I feel horrible."

Able to see Tracy's fighting back the tears, Gracie Lynn bides her time to dig as they make their way through the crowd to pick up Tracy's bag.

Under the deep red glowing sunset, Tracy takes in a deep breath, smelling the dusty air she's missed compared to the dirty, trashy smell of New York City.

"God, I missed this smell at times. One thing I definitely missed was a real sweet tea!" Tracy admits, hinting she's hungry.

Instantly, Gracie Lynn sees through the smoke screen, "Then I say we get some Whataburger. I know they have some of the best sweet tea in all of Texas."

Unable to contain her giggling, Tracy smiles as she slings the bag into the back seat. After Gracie Lynn gets into the driver's seat, Tracy notices something when her mother lays her hand on the steering wheel.

"Momma, where's your rings?"

With a huff and a puff, Gracie Lynn isn't ready to break the news, "While you were gone, your father and I wrapped up our divorce." She says, looking at her daughter with a long look in her eyes.

"For months, we handled things quietly. The last thing either of us wanted was for you to feel like it had to do over you because, honestly, your father and I have had issues for years. Also, I didn't want to be the one to tell you this, but you're going to have a little half-brother or sister around Christmas."

Crushed, Tracy's heart shatters with what happened to come to the surface, "Oh my God, it's genetic!" Tracy nearly shouts, scaring her mother, "I cheated on Clarke last night, but I swear on my life I didn't mean to. I got so drunk at the afterparty that I thought I was seeing Clarke. Mom, I'm a whore."

"Tracy Wilcox! You are not a whore. I should wash your mouth out with soap!" Gracie Lynn says, hurt about what Tracy has done, "Look," Gracie Lynn sighs, "You're going to have to tell Clarke. I hate that your summer was ruined, but it is a lesson learned that alcohol leads down a dark path, and no, I do not love you any less."

"Mom. I can't tell him, not yet." Tracy curls her knees to her chest, sobbing, "Clarke's going to hate me."

Stopping at a red light, Gracie Lynn looks at Tracy, "Hey. Is it going to hurt? Yes. You need to fess up and accept responsibility for your actions. If you try to cover it up, it'll make things worse."

As tears stream down her cheeks again, Tracy wipes them away. Silence fills the car the rest of the way to the restaurant. Parked and waiting for the other to move, Tracy finally reaches for the door. Gracie Lynn gets out and walks to the door, where she waits for Tracy.

"Come here; it'll be okay," Gracie Lynn says, taking Tracy into her arms and allowing her to cry for a few minutes. "Luckily, you're both young. These first heartbreaks are always a difficult part of life, but I will be right here for whatever you need."

Tracy lifts her head, "Thanks, Mom. You're the greatest."

"Anything for you. It's my job to protect you and lift you up when life gets too hard, but c'mon, let's eat."