My Life In Pieces (Book #1)

Chapter 8

Crap.

I hadn't really wanted to get into all that yet. All three of them seemed to be waiting on my response now. I shrugged but began to answer, "Well my parents had Elyse and then five years later had me. My mother had kids before and after us though too. I have four other half siblings I don't really know. Elyse had to watch over me a lot growing up when my parents wouldn't. I was actually born with the last name Smith-Harrison because my folks weren't married and my mother wanted her last name in there. They got married when I was like one but had it annulled a few months later because heaven forbid they get an actual divorce. They split when I was almost two and she left my dad and married some guy with the last name Stephens. She tried to change my name to Stephens-Harrison but my dad fought her on it. She stopped coming around as much when she started popping out kids with her new husband and my dad married my stepmom."

Aaron interrupted me then to ask, "So what's your legal last name now?"

"Harrison. Just. Harrison." They didn't need to know that drama right now, so I moved on. "Dad started dating my step-mom Jordan Baker when I was five. They got married when I was eight and that's one of the reasons I stopped coming up here. She didn't like it here. She has a son named Patrick who is a couple of years older than me. He lives with his dad some times when he feels like it. Jordan and my dad actually split like two years ago but the divorce wasn't final until about six months ago. They've been battling out custody of me since Dad moved here last year for work."

Elle looked confused and like she wanted to ask me something but was afraid to. I raised my eyebrow indicating she could just ask already.

She sighed and said, "Sorry to pry but why did your stepmom try for custody? And what about your real mom? She didn't fight to keep you in Texas?"

Right in the gut. Thanks Elle.

I still wasn't ready to get into all that. They didn't need to know that I rarely ever saw or heard from Amanda. She only cared about her perfect life as Mrs. Stephens. They had a big house with a dog and two sons that were several years younger than me. Patrick was more of a family member than those two snot nosed brats.

Ari seemed to sense it too. "Alex don't tell us anything you don't want to."

Elle looked disappointed but I was thankful for the out.

"Yeah it's just really complicated. But Jordan is still my real mom to me. I just have always called her Jordan."

I had a frog in my throat then. I missed her and Patrick.

Ari was still reading my thoughts apparently because he was trying to move the subject way off of me. "Let's get back to our drama and let Alex get her mind off hers."

"Well Alex, what else do you want to know?" Elle looked ready to tell me anything at this point.

I thought about it for a minute. "You and James both said there are like mini cliques in this massive one. Who's all in them?"

Elle smiled, in her element apparently.

"Well you know all the grade 12 hockey boys are best friends. The rest of us not so much. James and Ty were almost inseparable until Ty started dating Brenna. Now James hangs out with Dylan and the other Hockey guys more than any of us." Elle pointed to the three of them and said, "We have been the three musketeers for a while now. Reece and Ryan stay to themselves a lot but hang out with us when they need a group to be their beard. Nina, Annie, and Laura hang out together and with the other Cheerleaders at school. Danny and Miri come around when they want to. Landon doesn't really get along with most of us but you'll see him at every party trying to pick up someone. Landon does get along with his stepbrother Declan though. Declan is like James; he works out all the time with the guys but otherwise keeps to himself."