Mixed Signals

Chapter 13

Bay

" Where do you want to go out tonight?" Dylan asks the next morning.

I'm sitting on the couch, consuming a bowl of strawberry oatmeal, watching the television when he walks in. His hair slicked back. Dressed like a damn model, fresh out of the shower when he asks the question.

"What?" I ask, suddenly startled. What's his game here?

He laughs as he makes his way to the couch, sitting beside me. "Oh come on, Bay. You heard me. Where do you want to go out tonight?" He asks again.

"I, um..." Shit, what the hell do I say to that? Fuck! "I wasn't aware we had plans of going anywhere tonight."

"Well, we do now." Dylan states. "Come on, it'll be fun. Anything you want. You can't expect me to allow you to be cooped up in this house eating oatmeal and watching sitcom reruns and movies all day? You know I'm not that kind of guy."

"Okay," I sigh, setting my empty bowl down on the coffee table beside me. "Well, I really don't have a preference. Tell ya what...you pick what you think I'd enjoy, and we can go out and do that? How does that sound? Surprise me."

"Are you sure about that? I mean, do you really trust me enough with that sort of thing?"

"As long as you don't do skydiving or rock climbing, or anything that could possibly kill me, I think I'll be alright. Hell, even if you buy out an entire theater for an afternoon and let me pick anything I want to watch, or just a simple dinner at a semi-crowded restaurant, as long as I'm with you I'll be over the freaking moon. But, I'm serious about the really sporty stuff. I mean, I can run and all. But that's about as much athletic ability I have. And you can thank my mother for that, and all the years she spent running track. Least that's where Dad says I get that from. The 'no bullshit about boys' thing I get from him. Hell, I bet the two of you would get along one of these days."

"Well, he sure does sound like a decent man. I know it's been hard on you, not having him around. But I'm sure he'll be out of that place any time. And when he is, I won't be jealous if you ditch me to spend all your time with him."

"Oh, I think I can handle that. After all, I'm the only family he has. Well, the only family he has that will still talk to him and tolerate his erratic behaviors, because I know what he's been through. Even after all this time, my father still struggles. For his sake, we don't talk about Mom or Ally and Sophie."

"Who?" Dylan asks, as if he has no idea I'm talking about my sisters. And he wouldn't, since Ally was four years younger than me, and I'm two years younger than him. And Sophie is six years younger than me.

"My sisters. Yeah, they were with my mom that night. I, on the other hand, was spending the weekend before Christmas break with Mia because we had one last paper for our English class that we had to work on and turn in before school let out for break. So, I stayed with her that night. If I hadn't...if I had gone with them, I'd probably be dead to. Dad, on the other hand, he was lucky. And he was the one driving. He wasn't the least bit drunk. But, damn slippery roads, the car hit black ice and ended up flipping over in a ditch on M-46. And...well, my mother and sisters didn't make it. Obviously. Ever since then Dad's been in that damn facility, trying to move on with his life. And, well, it's been nearly four years since they died. I can't do much but try and move on with my life. I know they would have wanted that. I'm not so sure they'd be proud of dad, though. It's been a long time since I've seen him completely clean. Though, this last year in that damn facility seems to have straightened him out a bit."