Infinite Clarity

two

[ two : my name’s not Adeline ]

“Are you kidding me!?” I screeched, pacing back in forth in my dad’s bedroom. I was beyond angry. I was furious. I wanted to just rip my hair out at the thought of a ring on Beth’s left hand. This could not be happening. He could not be marrying Beth. Out of all the women in this world, he chose her. Her.

          “Adrienne, calm down,” Dad eased. “Sit down.”

           “Calm down? Don’t you dare tell me to calm down! How low can you go, Dad? Proposing, really? Without even asking me first?” I sighed, letting my hands fall limp by my sides. I let the next words slip. “I bet you don’t even love her.”

          Wrong choice of words.

           “Excuse me?” I didn’t look at him. “Who are you to be telling me that, Adrienne?” Great, now I made him mad, too. I got my temper from him, but his was ten times worse than mine. “I know that Beth isn’t your mother. I know that she isn’t perfect. But you jumped to conclusions when you first met her!”

           “Dad, look at her! She’s a―”

           “No she isn’t! Look at you, you’re still jumping to conclusions!” he yelled at me, already knowing my assumption. I crossed my arms over my chest. “She is a nice, sweet, and funny woman. You don’t know her. You haven’t even tried to begin to get to know her, for Christ’s sake. You can’t even get passed the fact that she isn’t Andrea. Do you know how hard she’s tried for you to like her?”

          I scoffed and let out a dry laugh that had everything but humor in it. “Nice, Sweet, Funny? Yeah right!”

           “You just can’t see it! Adrienne Clark, I swear, sometimes I just don’t know what to do with you.” Dad stopped and closed his eyes, pinching the skin in between them. That’s one of the many signs that he showed when exasperated, along with pacing, continually running his hands through his hair,  “If I didn’t love her, I wouldn’t have proposed to her.”

           “You could’ve at least told me, Dad! Do you know how hard it is for me? My mother died, and now I have to see you move on with Beth,” I said her name like it was poison on my tongue. My mom’s death was the hardest thing I ever had to endure.

           “Well you know what, Adrienne? Andrea was my wife. I was in love with her. But she died seven years ago. I’m over it.”

           “Bull!” I screamed at him. My hands were clenched tightly into fists now. I could bet that my knuckles were even turning a pale yellow.

           “I know you don’t want me to move on, but it’s about bloody time you did!” I was already walking out of his master suite. He was yelling at me. “She’s dead! Get over it already!”

          Salty, hot tears were brimming my eyes. I slammed his door shut loudly behind me. How could he say that? I walked/jogged down the hall and into my room where I knew Eli would be waiting for me.

          I burst through my door and ran to my bed where Eli was waiting. I sat in the middle of the king sized bed with him and let the tears spill onto his shoulder. His arms wrapped around me and held me comfortably. I know he had heard the fight between me and my dad. Heck, I bet everyone in this household heard it.

           “Ade, it’s okay... he didn’t mean any of it, I promise.” He rubbed soothing circles on my shoulder and hugged me closer to him.