A/N: Sorry for such a long wait and such a short chapter! I haven't had much motivation for this story lately but it's coming back to me! A short chapter this time, but they can't all be long.
A big thank you to stargurlll for the gorgeous cover on the side! <3 Thank you so much!
Also, dedicated to the top person for the amazing comment she left :') She even reread the story and that seriously just made my day.
To all the other commenters (don't worry, I didn't forget about you!) thank you so much for your comments and your dedications are coming!
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Twenty-Three
“She went back home,” Dad says as turns away from me to place the box he’s carrying into the back of his SUV. It’s filled with copies of old books from Mom that are signed. I can tell that it’s a heavy load when my dad straightens out and rubs his lower back.
“Do you think you could contact her for me?” I don’t mean to make a show of looking away when he meets my eyes but I do. My right hand rubs my opposite arm in attempt to appear more nonchalant than I’m feeling right now.
“Your mother told me that you were positive you didn’t want to meet with Cade’s mother.” With his name, I cringe and I catch an apologetic expression crosses his face when I turn back to meet his gaze. “Bama, that’s what I told her. She went back last week.”
I chew on my bottom lip, hesitant. “What did she say?”
Dad leans against the side of the SUV and folds his arms across his chest. He flexes his back a few times, noticeably in pain. “She was disappointed.”
I frown. “Oh.”
“She really liked you, Bam. You weren’t just what you think you were to his family.”
I think about what he said for a several minutes, having no idea how to respond. I feel like I’m dreaming as I think about the past and all the time I spent with Cade’s family, a hand full of times when he wasn’t even there. His house was really like a second home for me, but when he passed, even though his family reached out for me, I cut them off cold turkey. I haven’t ever spoken to them again.
“Can you call her?” I ask quietly. My eyes are fixated on the ground as a wave of nostalgia passes over me. “I think I want to meet with her.”
“Your friends are coming,” he replies. “I don’t think it’s right for them to go with you to see her.”
“I want to do it alone,” I state. “I’m sure Evan and Hadley will understand.
Dad nods and takes a step towards me. “I’ll call her.”
Before I can look up he’s wrapping me in his arms and hugging me tightly in the middle of our driveway. Three cars drive by before he pulls back, but not completely.
“I’m proud of you, Bam. Really proud.” He smiles down at me but his eyes look sad. I wonder if it’s the happy kind.
“I don’t understand why,” I mumble back in response.
Dad laughs quietly and shakes his head. “That’s why.”
By the time he leaves to get another box, I still don’t understand what he means.
YOU ARE READING
As I Am
Teen Fiction"Do you want to talk? You know, about everything?" Evan asks. He's staring up at the star-covered sky as he holds our brown bag of French fries. I finish my sip of my vanilla milkshake despite not wanting to stop and follow his gaze. The stars twin...
