Caged Birds ✔️

Chapter Twenty-One

Sam's P.O.V

"Tell me that wasn't the last time you saw Matt until tonight?" Jenna begs, wide-eyed.

"What?" I blink.

"Tell me that the last time you saw Matt was not six years ago when you were working as a striper and sleeping with your boss!" she cries.

I smirk "don't worry it wasn't" I assure her, "we're only just over halfway through the story"

"Are you serious?" she rolls her eyes.

"Hey, I told you that it was a long story," I remind her. "Do you want me to continue?"

"Might as well" Jenna sighs.

"Okay, well I didn't know it at the time but my older sister was pregnant" I announce while filling up my glass with more champagne. "She was twenty-one at the time and was able to hide it from my parents, which she has to do because being pregnant at that age and being unmarried would-"

"She would have been disowned" Jenna finishes for me.

I nod. "So whilst my older sister, Diana was hiding her pregnancy from the world...I was in Manhattan...It was a few months after my one-night-stand with Matt when I was at Tim's Bar, talking to Bobby and Dylan...We were at the bar where me and Bobby were sitting at the counter drinking dry beer in a pint glass"

"This Bobby person" Jenna starts "is he the same Bobby at the bar over there?" She asks as pointing to the bar.

"Yes it is"

"Really" she smiles with mischief

"What?"

"Nothing" she smiles again which makes me roll my eyes.

"It was when me and Bobby-" I start but Jenna cut in.

"So is Bobby like a nickname you gave him or-"

"Jenna!" I cry.

"Sorry go on"

It was when Bobby and I were at the counter at Tim's drinking our beer when a news reporter from Channel 3 came on. She stood at what looked like a highway in which a car accident occurred. There were paramedics, other reporters, firemen and even the police scattered around in the background. What killed me was when the woman from Channel 3 said that the car accident occurred in Chicago. It was five seconds later when she told us that a man and a woman in their late forties were killed at the scene. It was when they said the casualties names when my heart tore in half.

"The casualties names were Lydia and Francis Carton" the reporter announced, "the couple share three children who are now left without parents...The man in the other car..."

"What a shame" Dylan sighed while wiping down the countertop in front of me, "all because one idiot decided to do something stupid, a whole family had to suffer"

It was over. My parents were gone and I no longer had to run and hide from them - dreading the day they would drag me back to my cage. That cage was destroyed, tortured and pulled apart, bar by bar. I didn't have to run anymore. My freedom had been gifted back to me by what seemed to be, the God my father believed in. I was overcome with a weird feeling when learning of my parent's passing. I didn't know if I should thank God for setting me free or be angry at him for clipping their wings. That's what happened after all, isn't it? He exchanged my life for theirs. He granted me my freedom and in return took my parent's souls. Maybe my prayers were misheard? Perhaps he misunderstood exactly what I was asking for? I had trouble understanding it at the time. I got everything that I ever wanted but at what cost?

I spent days contemplating whether or not I should go to the funeral. Even though my parents were gone, I knew that returning to Chicago would be hard. All my friends and remaining family hated me and the guy that was willing to marry me wished that I was the one in that car.

I did end up driving to Chicago that weekend for the funeral service - I wonder if things between Matt and I would have been different if I hadn't.

On the day of their funeral, I stood right at the back, far away from the crowd so no one would notice me. I also wore a black dress and covered my face with a black veil so even if someone did notice me, they wouldn't be able to see who I was. I didn't recognize half the people there anyway so I knew there was little chance of that happening.

After the service, I watched as the crowd began walking slowly out of the cemetery. My sister, Dianna was the only one still standing at the tombs. When she began to follow the crowd to the parking lot, I approached her slowly.

"Princess," I curtseyed.

She looked at me with a wide smile and tears streaming down her face. My sister threw her arms around me tightly, for the first time in years.

"Sam, thank god, thank god," Dianna then pulled away, examining me with her eyes, head to toe. "Are you okay? How have you been? Where have you been?"

"I'll explain it all later," I assured, "I promise"

"Are you moving back here or?" She asked.

"No" I shook my head, "I'm just here for the funeral"

Dianna nods "I wish you could stay longer, I really need you around...Especially now"

"Why? What is it?" I furrowed my brows.

"A boy" she sniffed, "Oh, Sam, I'm pregnant!"

I looked at her clothing and noticed the baggy black coat that she wore over her long black dress.

"Diana!" I cried "what did mum and dad say?"

"They didn't know" She shrugged.

"How did they not know?"

"I hid behind baggy clothes" she admitted. "Only you and Kiley know"

"Who's the dad?"

"Henry Mishagan" Dianna lowered her voice.

Henry Mishagan was a long term crush that every girl in town had. Diana and I had been best friends with Henry since preschool. Henry has also been in army training since he was 10 (as a cadet) and has been fighting in Syria since he was 17.

"What happened?" I questioned.

"He came home for a few weeks and we slept together the day before he went back"

"And he doesn't know?" I asked.

She shook her head violently. "I've only been to one doctor's appointment since I found out...They said my blood pressure is high and that it could hurt the baby..."

I squeezed her hand fearfully, "What can I do to help?"

"Stay"