One Thousand Miles

Growth: Part One

One Thousand Miles

Chapter  |  Growth

Part  |  One

As I stood there in the doorway of my dorm, I couldn't help but think about my life from birth all the way to now. It's been a roller coaster ride that just won't stop, but I somehow managed to hop off the ride while everybody was still on. I was finally doing what I wanted to do without my father's very much unappreciated input. He had been controlling my life from birth all the way to now. Here I was eighteen.

Eighteen years without a mind of your own must be pretty tough.

"Steph, those were the last of the boxes so....." my mother trails off.

It's not that my mother never had anything to say. It was just the fact that she hated to finish off a bad situation. She didn't want to face the fact that I was now officially an adult and living on my own. Well with my roommate of course. 

I turned to face her and slowly nodded my head with a small smile on my lips. "Yeah mom, this is goodbye," I finish off for her.

I instantly see the tears swell up in her eyes before she wraps her small arms around my slim figure. I instantly hug her back and bury my face in her shoulder mumbling things like, "It's going to be okay," and "Don't worry I'll come visit you guys when I get the chance."

Mom pulled back and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes just as one of biggest smiles forms on her face. "Oh, mama is so proud of you Stephanie. I'm so glad that you're all grown up and trying to become something in life. It feels like just yesterday I was changing your diapers and cleaning your throw up from my shirt."

I laugh just as I wipe a tear from my eye. "Mom even though I no longer look like a baby, I'll still be your baby girl," I say, my southern accent coming out just a bit.

She grinned and laid her hand down on my shoulder and began guiding me out the room and outside to where my father was leaning against his new Lexus RX he had bought this summer. As we approached him, I expected him to turn around with one of the happiest smiles on his face, but what I didn't expect was a scowl that almost looked just a bit painful.

I sigh before looking down at my broken into converse. "Look, daddy I'm sorry that I'm not going to become the next biggest CEO in New York City, but can't you at least be happy that I'm going to become somebody and not some bum living in a box." I could have sworn I saw his lips twitch a bit, but this was my father I was talking about. At that exact moment his face seemed to soften and a small disappointed smile appeared on his face.

He brought me into his warm chest and squeezed me tight. "I'm not happy about your career choice, but if it's what you want to do then fine. If you like it, I love it, I think that's how it goes."

I laugh and pull back from the hug. "Daddy I promise you if anything happens I'll call you, okay?"

He sighed and ran his fingers through his greying dirty blond hair. "Sweetie that's for anything, after college life isn't going to be all peaches and cream, it's going to be hard. So when you're actually out there, don't hesitate to call your old man if you're in trouble."

"Of course," I say as I walk over to the passenger side and open up the door for my mother. She gives me a quick thank you and smiles. I shut the door before moving over to the sidewalk once again. 

"We'll be sure to call you once we arrive home," my father says, before closing his own door.

I nod my head slowly and watch as my father starts up the car and slowly starts to drive down the road. I give them a small wave and watch until they are no longer in my eyesight.