Up in the Clouds

Chapter Thirteen- An Explanation and A Date

Mom finally explained to me that dad was there for the first few months but left for another woman. Cliche, right?

"Why did you even lie, mom?" I ask

"Would you really want to know he left you and I over another woman, without even staying in contact for you?"

"Yeah. I had so many questions, mom. Why he didn't even try, if he even knew about me or cared. Maybe if you had told me, I wouldn't be so damaged."

Her forehead creased "You are not damaged, Annalisa."

I scoff "Really? Recurring nightmares at ten, no friends for over eleven years, masking the seclusion I felt when no one wanted to play with the little fatherless weirdo isn't damaged?"

"What about Tony?" she asks ridiculously, though I can tell she knows it's a stupid question.

"Tony happened after forcing his way into my life when I refused to let him in after half of my life alone." I felt like giving up on explaining. "That isn't enough."

We are in the kitchen, where I found her throwing some shredded papers into the trashcan. The moon is high in the overcast sky, making it perfect weather for a horror movie. There wasn't much of a difference, actually.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you." she says after a while

"Do you know where he's living?" i ask quietly

"No, I never bothered keeping in touch. I know he lives somewhere in Arizona, but thats all."

I always wondered why he didn't want to meet me. Now that I know he met me, even got to know me for a few months, and still left without so much as a phone number, well that feels like more of a betrayal than before. "I'm going to bed." I finally say, ignoring her pleads to further talk about this.

It took me hours before I finally collapsed into a dreamless sleep.

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"Do you want to go or not?" Tony asks a few days later.

"Wow," I start "what a charming guy you are." we're in the school parking lot, heading to Tony's car.

"I'm sorry. It's just awkward for me." he apologizes.

Some girl came up to us with a flier to "Vote for Sandy as your Winter Formal Queen". From that sparked the impending question of "Do you wanna go to the dance with me?" from none other than my... friend? Tony.

"No, I don't want to go." I say simply.

We reach his car, me quickly getting inside to warm up, and avoid his hurt gaze.

"It's not that I don't want to go with you, I just don't want to go at all. We can do something else that night if you want to." his face almost immediately brightens.

"Okay, cool, like what?" He buckles himself in and stares at me.

"I don't know, a movie? Please turn on the heater though, holy cow I'm freezing."

He huffs "Okay, okay fine." After turning on the heater, he pulls out of the lot and towards the bookstore. "So it's a plan then, no daddy drama, no bullets, no seizures, just a movie with popcorn and kissing."

My cheeks burned at that remark, and I quickly looked away. "No drama." That's all I could really make out without sounding like a squeaky little girl.

I could feel his eyes on me, but I couldn't meet his stare. Not when I felt like this.

He pulls up to the curb of Once Upon a Time and looks over at me. I must stare back. "Do you like me, Anna?" Tony asks.

Suddenly the heater is too hot and I feel like I could melt. I'd been afraid to ask myself that question since we met. I couldn't lie to him though, I knew that. I couldn't lie to myself. "Yeah." And because I can't think of more to say, I shrug.

Tony laughs "Good. I like you too." Suddenly he's three inches from my face with his eyes closed, waiting for me to meet him. And of course I do.

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Longwait, short update, I know.... I suck. But considering I didn't even have a computer to use... YOU'RE WELCOME! Anyways, love and peaceskies!