The Story Seeker

An Unpleasant Surprise

Conscience: Aptitude, faculty, intuition or judgment that assists in distinguishing right from wrong. Moral judgment may derive from values or norms (principles and rules).

"Mom, no."

"Please Allie, be sensible about this; she's after all your-"

"Don't."

"Allie" her mother sighed exhasperately "whether you like it or not, she is your sister. Now, will you just stop acting like a child and welcome her to your home?" She asked with her no-nonsense tone of voice.

"Absolutely not-"

"I don't want to hear about it anymore; your relationship with your father has nothing to do with the girl. Don't you dare make her pay for his mistakes Al."

Alice tightened her grip on the phone, rage bubbling int the pit of her stomach.

"That man is not my father, he was as good as a sperm donor Mother." she spat.

"Allie!" she heard her mother gasp from the other end of the line.

"No. He left, he never gave a shit about neither of us since he was too damn busy playing house with some skank and that kid. For Christ's sake, he cheated on you with your hairstylist mom. He left without even looking back and decided to randomly contact me years later to 'try to make amends'. You know it's way too late for that; you may have spoken with him and even gone as far a forgive him, but I haven't and I won't." Her voice quivered nearly breaking in the end, and her throat became uncomfortably tight. She felt somewhat betrayed that her own mother would take that man's side after everything they had gone through.

Time ticked by and the line was still quiet and Alice began to feel guilt creep into her anger-driven mind; she shouldn't have lashed out at her mother like that. A long while passed before her mother spoke again.

"Being unforgiving has always been your biggest flaw, Alice."

She pursed her lips and tightened her grip on the phone; her mother never called her by her full name, she'd gone too far with that little speech of hers, and they both knew it. "If you don't let that go, you'll end up lonely and bitter." Her mother replied with a raspy voice -she was trying to hold back tears- Alice could tell. "Don't do that for him, do it for her. That poor girl lost her mother a long time ago and your father can't handle her. Do it for her."

Alice could feel, besides a piercing stab of guilt, what she'd been trying to smother since her mother brought up the subject: a tiny slither of compassion. No matter how much she argued with her mother, deep down she knew she couldn't turn her back on the kid, as much as she wanted to. Truthfully, that's why she was so mad in the first place, she knew fighting it was useless. As much as she deeply resented her father, she couldn't turn her back on a sibling.

Gripping her red mane of hair with her free hand and letting out a long-suffering sigh, she braced herself for the inevitable and sealed her unpleasant fate.

"She can stay for the summer, the summer alone."

Surely she could keep the kid at arms' length and focus on her story without feeling the heavy weight of guilt. Not an extra load at least, there were crosses she would always bear.

Her mother let out a relieved breath. "I knew you'd be reasonable in the end Allie. I'll call George to let him know." She promptly hung up.

Alice stared blankly at the phone, wondering for the hundredth time how could her parents possibly remain on friendly terms after everything that had transpired between them. Was she really too unforgiving, or was it plain common sense -something that her mother had always lacked?