Chapter 9—The “R” Word
My dad was drinking coffee, while I helped my mom prepare dinner.
Seth was upstairs with that random girl he came home with a while ago.
“So, Akira, do you know anything about that girl with your brother?” Mom asked.
I shook my head as I drained the water from some pasta.
“Apparently, her name is Q. Just Q,” Dad pointed out.
“As in…the letter?” Mom questioned.
“Yep. I didn’t even get a full name until Seth dragged her upstairs,” Dad said. “I don’t necessarily approve, but he’s legal and I can’t do much about it.”
“Honestly, that boy has no shame sometimes,” Mom stated.
“Tell me about it,” I mumbled.
*
I was about to set the table when the doorbell rang.
“Sweetie, could you get the door please?” Dad asked.
“Sure thing,” I said, heading for the entrance.
I opened the door and Dean rushed in, pulling me into his arms.
Tara walked in behind him.
“What’s going on? What are you guys doing here?” I asked.
Dean kept his arms around me. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Tell you what?”
He looked at me and then gestured to Tara.
Oh no.
She told Dean about what happened with Seth.
“Tara, you told him?” I questioned.
“I had to, Akira. I thought that maybe he could help.”
“You—you shouldn’t have done that,” I said.
“Shouldn’t have done what?”
My parents approached us.
“What’s going on here?” Mom asked.
“I…”
“Akira, you need to tell them,” Dean said. “They’ll understand.”
“Please, tell me you’re not pregnant,” Dad stated, crossing his arms.
“No, I’m not pregnant, but…”
“But what?” Mom asked, urging me to continue.
They were all staring at me.
Mom, Dad, Tara, Dean…
Their gazes were too much for me to handle.
I had to break this cycle.
I had to tell them the truth.
“For the past two years, I’ve kept a huge secret,” I started out. “Seth—”
“Why am I hearing my name?”
The monster headed downstairs with Q following close behind.
“Akira was about to tell us something important, and apparently it has something to do with you,” Dad explained. “Now, go on, sweetie.”
I hesitated to answer.
Now that the monster’s eyes were fixed on mine, the pressure was on.
“Yes, Akira, go ahead,” Seth said.
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Teen FictionWhat do you do when you live with the monster that took away your innocence? What do you do when everyone around you sees the monster as someone worth loving. Meanwhile, you see the monster as someone worth destroying. Akira Pierce was only fifteen...
