Paying the Price

Chapter 44: Oakley Part 2

All my confidence had just burst away. I wish I could go back to about 10 minutes ago and redo this whole interaction.

What was I thinking?

Father stormed out of the room. My mother was still standing further away from us. Once Father left she came over.

"My babies," she stroked Oliver and I's check.

It looked like she was sick, she was so thin and pale. I had never seen her like this before. I made eye contact with my brother, he was picking up on Mother's weird behavior too.

She then pulled us into a hug. Each of us one by one.

I can't tell you the last time my Mother hugged me.

She then took a step back and just stood there, taking in the fact that we were here I guess. She sighed and then said "You better not ever do anything like that ever again. You had me worried sick, I thought that I would never see you again." She looked like she was reminiscing on something, almost like she was remembering someone.

"We won't ma'am," I said, just trying to break her out of the trance-like state she was in.

Her head turned back to me as she looked me up and down. "You better go see your Father, he is very very upset with you."

Thanks for the reminder.

"Yes ma'am."

She left the room and I turned to face my siblings.

"Oakley? Please don't go to Father, he is going to kill you," June pleaded.

"You got him all fired up. Why would you do that Oakley? " Oliver asked.

"Well he was just making me so upset, the way that he was speaking to the twins. I would have done the same if he started speaking like that to any of you."

It's true, I want him to be mad at me, not at any of them.

"I'm sorry but I have to go, I'll be okay don't worry about me. Take the twins to our old room they can have that it should still have plenty of stuff in there for them."

The four of us actually shared one really big room until we were about the twin's age. We could put them in different rooms but I felt like they would be more comfortable together.

"Oakley you don't have to go-" June continued.

I shook my head and then made my way to the door, "I do, but I promise that I will be fine."

"But you won't, you heard what he said, he was really mad at you. I don't think I have ever seen him so mad," June yelled as I walked out of the room.

I had to ignore them, I couldn't put this off, there was no point in trying to fight my father any more than I already had.

I made my way up to my father's room, dreading what was coming.

I knocked on the door.

"Come in James."

Great, the middle name. He's going to destroy me.

I opened the door "Sir, I want to apologize for my actions I am truly sorry and I swear that it will never happen again. I-"

"Oh, I'm going to make sure that it never happens again, believe me. Remove your shirt and face the wall."

I didn't want to but I did. I then remembered why.

I'd rather it be me than anyone else. I can't imagine June or Janae ever being in this position. I can't even imagine Oliver. It should always be me.

I think if this ever happened to one of them I would go crazy, they wouldn't be able to handle it, and neither could I.