The Densi Trap

Chapter 4

Dad picked me up from Lexie's a few hours later, since Lexie started throwing up after eating a calzone with super hot spices from her mom's kitchen. Lexie's mom told Dad that I was the good one and that Lexie was grounded for being stupid.

That's when I decided to start my plan.

"Dad, when did you and Mom start liking each other?" I asked while we were driving back to our house.

His face went blank, but then looked at me. "When I was still at NCIS. Which was a long time ago." he said kind of sadly.

"How?" I asked. "When did you first kiss?" I knew I was pushing it a bit.

"Don't, Andy. I don't need to remember what happened." said Dad, his voice getting slightly aggravated. We stopped at a red light.

"Tell me! You never told me why you divorced!" I yelled, louder than I needed to.

"Drop it, Andrea Valerie." he warned.

"Why!?" I pressed.

"Drop it!" he yelled in a loud voice that I'd never heard before, and one that made me scared. He pulled over into a parking lot after the light turned green. "Sorry, honey. I didn't mean to overreact. I just don't know whether you're ready to know."

"Does Jack know?" I asked.

"Yes. Now, how about I drive you back to your mom's." he said, pulling out.

"Whatever." I said. It was a Monday, and she was probably still working, but I needed some time alone. We drove back to Mom's and I was quiet the rest of the ride. It was around 3:00 when we pulled up to the house.

"Looks like she isn't home." said Dad.

"She's probably at the grocery store or something." I said and got out of the car. Once he pulled away, I remembered that I left my stuff at his house, but didn't care. He'd see them at some point.

I locked the door, grabbed some milk and sat down on my couch and watched reruns of Friends.

It was around 6:00 when the door opened and Mom dropped her keys onto the counter.

"Hey, babe. I thought you were coming home in a few days." said Mom, taking off her coat.

"Mandy and I had a fight." I said, lying only a tiny bit.

"Got ya." said Mom as she made her way towards the kitchen. "You want something to eat?"

"Nah. Not that hungry." I said, still staring at the TV.

"Well, you got to eat something. Eric and Nell are coming over with the kids." said Mom, plopping down next to me with a Twinkie in her hands.

"When?" I asked.

"At 6:30." she said. Renée and Felix, Eric and Nell's kids, are younger than me. But only by a few years. Renée is 15, and Felix is 12. Mom and Dad have been friends with them for years, and whenever they invite everyone over, Mom and Dad always avoid talking to each other. It really sucks.

"You awake?" asked Mom, shaking my shoulder. "You want to go clean up your room?" Her phone rang and she went to get it.

"Blye." she said. Her face slightly stiffened. "Deeks, hi."

Then Dad talked, and Mom looked at me and stared at me for a while, while nodding her head slightly.

"Seriously, Marty. When should we tell her?" asked Mom. Pause. "I don't know how she'll react when she finds out." Pause. "Alright, bye."

She came over to me and gave me a hug. "I'm sorry we didn't tell you yet, honey. I'll tell you after, okay?"

I nodded. We just kind of hugged for a while, none of us speaking. The doorbell rang, and broke it. I'm pretty sure Mom wiped her eyes and then went to go answer the door. Nell and Eric were outside with Renée and Felix behind them.

Nell's face was happy and then looked concerned. I couldn't see Mom's face, but I don't know what happened. Renée and Felix snuck behind them and Felix sat on the couch and Renée came over to me. I looked back at Mom, who was hugging Nell. Eric patted her shoulder and I took that as a cue to leave.

Renée and I went into my room, and we listened through the vent.

"Nell, I don't know what to do." said Mom, her voice a little on edge. "I don't know if she's ready yet."

"Kensi, you have to tell her at some point." said Nell.

"Yeah, but what if she gets freaked out. I can't have her scared that I might get tortured again." said Mom. Again!? When? Renée looked at me, and I shook my head ,as in saying "I have no idea what they're talking about and don't look at me.". She pulled me away.

"Let's talk about something else" she said. Renée was the type of cool person who'd listen to whatever you had to say, and would give you the best response. Kind of like Nell.

They look really alike, same red hair, and eyes, but Renée has a really cool pixie cut, with one side being a little longer than the other. Felix has Eric's hair and eyes.

"What goes on at NCIS?" I asked.

"Beats me. But I'm sure that they're safe. I mean, they're alive right now." said Renée. The evening just kinda flew by, and I'm pretty sure I fell asleep again. Renée woke me up when they had to leave.

Once the Beales left, I went up to Mom, and my voice was shaking. "Mom, were you tortured?" I asked. She looked at me with sad eyes, and nodded. I was in shock. What did my mother do to deserve it?

I just kind of hugged her. She sat us down on the couch and just stroked my hair while she told me. "About a decade ago, I was sent to Afghanistan, to hunt down some terrorist. And your father and I had just decided to start dating. And then I found out that the terrorist I was supposed to kill was my ex-fiancé-"

"Woah! Backtrack!" I said. "You had a fiancé that wasn't Dad?" I asked.

"Right, didn't get to that part. I did, once. He left me, anyway, I decided to hand myself in to the Taliban to find out the truth." she paused. "Which was probably the worst decision I ever made." Her voice cracked at the end, and the tears were starting to peek out.

"Oh geez, Mom." I said hugging her. Tears rolled down my cheeks. "Was it bad?" That's when she began to cry.

"I'm sorry, honey. I'm just super stressed out, and I don't know what to do anymore. It even hurts to talk about it." she said. I just kind of held her while we both cried.

After that, Mom shut herself in the bathroom and was there for a while. I called Hetty, who was surprisingly still awake.

"Yes, Andrea, my dear?" she asked.

"Mom told me about Afghanistan and now she's crying and just out of it." I said. I could hear her say "Oh bugger" in the background.

"That's a very painful memory for your mother to discuss. I would just take it easy, but don't baby her. I'll give her the day off tomorrow." she said, "Anything else you need?"

"No, thanks, Hetty." I said and hung up. Mom finally came out and went to bed.

I went into my room, changed into my PJs and tried to fall asleep. But all I had were nightmares and I spent about an hour tossing and turning. I finally gave up and decided to act like a little kid and go into Mom's room.

She was up, and the lights in her room were on. She looked up when I came in. "Hey, baby. Dreams?"

"Kind of." I said, jumping into her big, comfy bed. "It's not your fault though."

"Don't you worry about me, Andy. I take care of myself out there." she said, hugging me. She got closer to me and whispered in my ear, "I can't sleep either."

I snuggled next to her, and she turned off the lights. She put her arm around me and we just lied there in the dark. I have to say, I feel safest with Mom, and not to sound like a weirdo, but my mom is my best friend.

And now, she spilled one secret, but not the one I wanted most.

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