Three Days Notice [Complete]

Going Home

Tuesday, December 15th, 6:30 AM

As I rang the doorbell to my childhood home, a feeling of nostalgia washed over me. I grew up in Kingston, New York with my brother, sister, and parents. My mother, Deena Aldridge, was a teacher at the local elementary school. My father, Sean Aldridge, was the co-owner of Aldridge IT. He started the business with his college roommate in the eighties. They didn't know how big IT would become, but their business blew up because of it. We lived very comfortably due to my father's job.

Growing up, my brother, Xavier, was my best friend. We were only a year apart. When Cici was being a pain, we'd go off somewhere by ourselves. In school, I never worried about being bullied because X was always there. He was always my protector. He graduated a year before I did with a scholarship to USC because of his academic success. X was always the smartest out of us children. He went into Physical Therapy and graduated as Valedictorian from his class. I didn't have as much luck in college. My freshman year was horrible. I wasn't partying or getting drunk, but my grades tanked. I didn't expect NYU to be so hard. I nearly lost my scholarship. My dad told me if I didn't get my grades up by my sophomore year I'd have to drop out of college and go to trade school. There was nothing wrong with trade school, but I wanted to be an artist. Needless to say, I brought my grades up my sophomore year and the rest of my college days were spent wisely.

Cici didn't go to college, she said it never fit her. I guess she was right. Cici was never the school type. She was good at other things, but never school. Her grades were a reflection of that. Tests simply weren't her strong point. Instead, after graduating, she took up a few jobs as a waitress before my dad decided to hire her for the IT Support Center. It was a handout, I guess.

My parents were always very supportive of our dreams and aspirations. They were at every game, graduation, and ceremony that we all had. My parents were very level-headed people. While all of my friend's parents were getting divorced, my parent's marriage was only getting stronger. They have always been there for me. I guess that's why I'm standing outside of their home. I needed their words of wisdom.

My mother opened the door and her eyes grew big. My mom always said I never visited enough. Although she'll never admit it, I was her favorite child. She engulfed me in a big hug.

"Hi, Mom," I said as she let me go.

"Hey," she smiled. "Come in. Your father just left to go get us some breakfast."

My mother took me by the hand and led me into the kitchen. I sat down at the dinner table as she looked through the cabinets for a cup. She began to fill me in on her morning while she fixed us a cup of coffee. I was half-listening. My mind was buzzing with so many thoughts.

When she sat down, my mother finally looked me in the eyes. Her face fell.

"Oh, Sammy, what's wrong?"

As soon as she asked me that, the tears started falling. The tears that I held back for hours on end finally fell. My boyfriend of six years was cheating on me with my sister for almost two years. How could I even begin to tell my mother what was happening? I couldn't wrap my head around what I was told.

"J-Justin and I are done," I choked out. "He cheated on me."

"Justin did? With who? It's not like he's a catch."

My mother was in shock. Hell, I was in shock. She was right. Justin wasn't a catch. He was a short, stumpy asshole. I took a chance on him because he kept asking, but that was clearly a mistake. Don't get me wrong, looks fade and shouldn't be the sole purpose to date someone, but Justin was never that attractive. I feel like you should be somewhat attracted to your partner. His good personality was the only thing that I liked about him, which didn't last too long. He lost his romantic touch year two of our relationship. I should have broken up with him then, but I felt like I couldn't. He followed me to NYU.