Born To Fly

Seventeen-Arrival

Seventeen

I woke up and Joel was still sleeping under me. I ran my hand over my face and pushed my hair away from my eyes. I looked around and it felt early. Like waking up at around noon has a certain feeling, but when you wake up around 7 or 8 there is an earlier feel to the sun and the house in general. I got up from the couch and walked into the kitchen. I looked at the mircowave clock, it was about 7:30. I went upstairs and I got a shower and got dressed. I wanted to look good for meeting my parents the first time. I got dressed in a pair of my good school jeans and a tank top with a long sleeve shirt over it. I put on a pair of converse and Joel walked into my room. His hair was wet from the shower. I looked at him and he walked over to me.

"It's going to be okay, I'll be right here the whole time." He gave me a kiss and there was a knock on the front door. And butterflies erupted in my stomach. I looked a Joel and he moved out of my way and motioned to the door. I ran down the stairs, and he was right behind me, moving with a little less excitement. I cracked my knuckles and pulled the door open and there they stood. Just like in the picture; they were my parents. And my father looked at me and my mother just started to cry. I couldn't believe it. They were alive; I let them in and I shut the door again. And I just looked at them. My mom came forward and touched the stone around my neck and smiled sadly.

"You found them faster than I realized you would; those tapes..."

"I haven't listened to them all yet. Only the first few." She touched my cheek and I couldn't help myself. I started to cry, and Joel moved to my side and my father's attitude compeletly changed.

"You...."

    "Dad, this is Joel. My boyfriend."

"Is he?"

 "Yes he is. I'm not stupid." My dad came over to him and shook his hand and Joel moved back to let him have the distanace to let his attention fall to me. And he smiled and he looked like I always thought my father would look like. He had my blonde hair, and a strong jaw he stood about 6 foot and he was built with wide shoulders, and he looked like he was able to withstand anything. My mother was so graceful. She looked nothing like her sister. Her hair was also honey blonde, and I had her blue eyes. Walked over to her and just hugged her. To just listen to her voice was torture without her being here; and to hear my father and not be able to see him...they were my family. They would accept me without questions and they wouldn't make me do anything I didn't want to.

"Why didn't you raise me?" My mother looked to my father and they took me to the kitchen and I looked back to Joel. I still needed him here.

"Baby we just did what we thought was best. They weren't interested in you; they wanted us and if they ever found out that we had faked our deaths' before you took control of the pack then you would have been in danger anyway."

"But now that you two are back you can take the pack from me and I can..."

"It doesn't work like that baby girl." My father looked up and he looked to my mother.

"We are considered elders now, we will fight if it comes down to it, but we won't be able to lead anymore. Now that you have stepped up you cannot step back down."

"But i'm only 18 I can't run a pack..." And I thought about a few months ago how I didn't even know what I was and what I was entitled to.

"We aren't going anywhere, and you can come to us for anything, you don't have to be alone in this. You have this lovely young man to help you, and you have the rest of your pack mates. You have Randy, and Ally. You were never alone in doing any of this." My mother reached out and took my hand. And it felt like I imaginged it would; to have my own parents and my father stood.

"I need to have a talk with this 'lovely young man.'"

"Daddy..."

   "Not about that, about something else." Joel stood and he gave me a reassuring smile.

"It's alright Bailey." And my mother looked at him and then to me.

"We named you Alice."

   "I prefer to to by my middle name." She looked at me and she looked a little stunned by my decision. And they walked out of the room and my mother smiled at me.

"You have grown up so well. Although I wish I could have spared you the pain of being left here alone..."

"You wrote music?" And she seemed taken back by the sudden jump of subject.

   "I use to...yes." I smiled.

"I play the piano, and i'm an artist. The best at the school." And pride seeped into her eyes.

   "Honey that's great."

(Joel)

I walked out of the house with him and I looked toward the door, not sure if she would be okay.

"She's going to be fine. I just wanted to talk to you about your father."

"I don't know who my father is." He looked at me surprised.

   "Who has raised you?"

"My Godmother Claire." And that seemed to be something he wasn't expecting.

   "So you don't know that your father is the alpha male of the rouge pack, which puts you next in line for the position?" And I looked at him and the idea of being that man's son made me sick.

"No." And he looked at me and he was unsure of what to do.

   "I'm not his son."

"You are, you were born the month before our Alice...well you call her Bailey, but either way. You are his son, she was invited to all of your birthday parties. And me and your father used to be friends until he attacked my family."

"Stop. Wait..." And the next thing I knew Bailey was at my side, she stepped in between my and her father and he walked back into house with her mother.

"Bailey...you know now?"

"I heard, I don't care. You don't have to follow in your father's footsteps. You can be your own person."

   "I was there when they  tired to kill you. I was nearly 3..."

"You don't have to feel guilty about anything." I looked at her and her eyes were still open and honest even though she knew.

"I have to go." It made me sick to think that I had come from that man. He was everything that I had been taught to hate, and he was my father. He created me and killed my mother.

"Joel wait please...." She ran after me and I didn't stop.

   "Joel..." I stopped because of the utter sound of heartbreak in her voice. I turned around and she held her hand out to me. I needed to get away form here, from her. He would try to use me against her. I walked back to her and wrapped her in a hug. She hid her face in my chest and I took one last smell of her scent. And I pulled the stone off my neck and handed it to her and the look in her eyes nearly killed me.

"I can't stay now."

   "You can't leave me." She caught my wrist and I could have easily broken her grip, but I didn't want to.

"I have to go..."

    " I could make you stay..." And that was right she could, and I would not object to that, I wouldn't be the one to blame if she got hurt, but I would still feel the  guilt.

"You could...but you won't. You know keeping me around now is dangerous..."

   "I need you...I.." She looked away towards the woods and I touched her cheek, catching the tear before it left her eye.

"You what?" I leaned my forehead against hers.

  "I think I love you Joel, and you can't leave me here alone to do all of this. You are my strenght. I can't just be alone."

 "Aw...Bailey..." I pressed a kiss to her lips and she reacted with such passion that it nearly ripped my heart out to turn and run from her; but I did. I left her standing in the front yard. Crying with a broken heart....and I just ran until I couldn't feel anything but the pain that was radiating from the shards of my heart.