The Game

Once Upon a Time

Gianna's POV

I sat in the drivers seat just staring at the steering wheel. Once I told Cody about my mom an awkward silence fell over us. Cody had no idea what to say and I didn't know what to say either. So I got off his lap and slid back over to the drivers seat just waiting for him to say something. Maybe I should say something? I mean this is a huge a bomb I just dropped on him. Most people think my mom is dead just don't bring her up because they're too worried they might upset my brother, dad, and I. Which is understandable seeing as how there are no family photos on the walls with my mother in them.

"Your mom?" Cody said ripping me out of my daze. I could feel his eyes on me but I don't dare look at him. I must look like a dog attacked me. I just nodded my head keeping my eyes on the steering wheel.

"Surprised she's alive?" I asked him with a joking tone in my voice. Cody stammered not sure what to say. I let out a laugh.

"It's okay if you thought she was dead or if you didn't even notice her absence." I told him trying to make him feel more comfortable. The only people outside my family that know about my mom are Nikki, Karli, and the boys. They're the only people brave enough ask or maybe they think they have a right to know. I don't mind talking about my mom we just don't. Any stories with her in them that we tell we just cut her out if she's really important then we mention her but since everyone thinks shes dead they don't ask about her.

"What. Gia I'm not." Cody was trying to find the right words but it's hard I know I've seen all the boys, Nikki, and Karli go through this.

"She and my dad got divorced when I was 10 and Reid was 11." I explained for what seemed like the millionth time. Since I didn't meet Karli til 3rd grade and Nikki til freshman year the only person who was really there during the whole thing was Dylan.

"Okay. And Reid is a Daddy's boy or what?" Cody said clearly not understanding. I scoffed if only it were that easy.

"There was a reason for the divorce. They didn't just fall out of the love like some couples. My father was a welder for this one company that had him do tons of overtime so he was hardly home. My mother raised us mostly but my dad also made a lot of money. We had everything we could ever want and my mom had more money than she knew what to do with. When my dad was off for a weekend we would go on a trip to the beach or Disney or Six Flags. One time we traveled to Ohio because they had the 1st fastest through the 3rd fastest and tallest roller coasts in the world. They was the last trip we ever all took together." I bit my lip in order to stop from crying. If I thought back hard enough I could still feel the wind ripping through my hair which I made my mom let me keep down and my hands gripping on to my brother who had his arms up laughing the whole time. The best part of that memory was hearing my mom screaming and my dad laughing at her just like how my brother was laughing at me. Once we got off we all went to the ride happy. We were all happy. My brother was running trying to find the shortest line while I was on my dad's shoulders and my mom was holding my dad's hand. Everything was great." I smiled at the memory I closed my eyes looked back I could see my brother running up ahead calling back to us, I could feel my dad's pace pick up, and I could see my mom smiling up at my dad just like she always had.

"That sounds like you have an amazing family Gia." Cody told me taking my hand and running his thumb over my knuckles.

"Had. I had an amazing family. Little did Reid and I know while my dad was at work all the hours so my mom didn't have to she was also screwing around with other guys. I guess she found one she liked because one day she took us to the arcade to play games. This wasn't uncommon we always went to the arcade or to the mall but our mom's friend met us there. He seemed nice enough I didn't think anything of it. When I was playing Deal or No Deal Reid came over and grabbed my arm pulling me off the stool. I remember shouting at him about how I was just about win 300 tickets. He told that didn't matter and we were going home. I asked where our mom was and he swapped to holding my hand. I could hear our mom shouting after us but Reid was running so fast I could barely keep up let alone stop. Reid we have to go back for mom! He didn't say anything he just let me outside to the parking lot where he ran to a car and got low so no one would see us. Then he got out his phone and called Dad saying something happened, we were at the arcade, and he needed to come get us then he hung up the phone and turned it off. He took my phone and turned it off too. I tried to ask lots of times what was going on, where was mom, why he wouldn't answer me. Once our mom came out and starting yelling for us Reid told me the guy our mom was with was bad and we couldn't let them find us. I was only 9 I had no idea what was going on. I listened to my brother. About 20 minutes later my father showed up with 2 police cars following him. As soon as Reid saw his car he ran over to it dragging me with him." I started to choke on my own words this part of the story was always the hardest I could remember it like it was yesterday.