"How was the party?" Mom asks the second she hears the front door open.
"Can I get inside first?" I laugh as I kick off my shoes and Bryce does the same.
"No. I want details."
"Okay." I start walking up the stairs. "Bryce is here too."
"Hi, Bryce!" she calls.
"Hey."
"So how was the party? Fill me in."
"Hold on." I walk down the hall and set my bag down on my bedroom floor before going back to the living room to answer her questions.
"So?" she asks. "You're still in pajamas so did you not get much sleep?"
"Eh." I sit down on the couch and Bryce sits next to me.
"Talk to me, how was it?"
"It was good," Bryce says.
"For the most part." I add.
"What does that mean?"
"There was some drama at the beginning."
"Can I have the details?"
"This one girl I used to be friends with was a little jealous." Bryce shrugs.
"She was basically trying to make me jealous so that she'd feel better."
"Did it work?"
"Unfortunately, a little bit, yeah."
"Bummer. Did she stay the night too?"
"She didn't make it to the nighttime festivities." Bryce laughs.
"She had to be asked to leave."
"Ouch. What else?"
"That was really it for the drama." I shrug. "The rest of his friends seem really nice."
"And they like you a lot."
"That's good." Mom smiles. "I can't believe everyone was willing to come up just for a party."
"I can't believe you didn't tell me about the party. You loaned Maggie some stuff so I know you knew."
"It was supposed to be a surprise and you would've told Bryce."
"Maybe." I admit.
"There's no maybe about it." She laughs. "Do you guys have plans for today?"
"No, we're just gonna hang out. Maybe watch a movie."
"You guys should do something."
"There's actually something I was hoping to talk to you about."
"What's up?"
"Please hear me out before you give me an answer."
"Okay."
"I want to meet my father. I've been angry at him my entire life and I don't even remember him and I haven't even seen pictures of him and I just need to know who I'm angry at. I don't want a relationship with him, I just want to meet him. I need to know if he's sorry because even though I could never forgive him, if he's sorry then maybe I can stop being so mad. I've just been carrying this around my whole life and it's not mine to carry. I need to at least have a face to put to the shitty actions."
"Okay."
"Okay?"
"You've clearly thought about it so if you want to meet him, I'll support that decision."
"Oh."
"Did you not want me to say yes?"
"I did, I just wasn't expecting you to."
"Alex, I've always told you that nothing would ever be off limits as long as you had a good reason for wanting to do it. You have a good reason for wanting to meet him. I agree that this burden is not yours to carry and I hate that he left you with it. So, if you think meeting him will take some of the weight off your shoulders, I'm all for it."
"Thank you."
"Don't thank me yet. I'll let you see him, but I am driving you there. And I do not want you going in there alone so maybe ask Cassie if she can go with you."
"Actually, Bryce offered to go with me."
"Really?"
"This was actually his idea."
"Oh. Great. No matter what your father asks, you are not to tell him anything about where we live. Not what town, not what color our house is, not who we live with. Don't mention anything about neighbors. And do not talk about me. If you want to fill him in on your life, do not mention where you go to school. Don't mention anyone's last names either."
"Wow. That's a lot."
"He'll seem nice, Alex. He's manipulative like that. Do not let him fool you. Remember why you're going and remember what he did to land himself in there. You just want to see if he's sorry so you can stop carrying the weight of what he did. You do not want to be his friend."
"I know."
"Don't let him make you forget that." She turns to Bryce. "Do not let her forget that."
"I won't." He promises.
"Good. I'll get everything set up and let you know when the visit is."
"Set up?" I ask.
"You need an appointment in order to visit and in order to get an appointment you have to be on his visitation list. Visiting someone in prison is a process."
"Oh."
"So I'll get everything in order for you and let you know the details."
"Thanks."
"Of course."
I get up from the couch and lead Bryce to my bedroom.
"That was weird, right?" I ask.
"That she agreed so easily? Very." He closes my bedroom door behind us.
"Okay, good. I thought it was just me." I plop down on my bed and grab the remote and turn on the TV. "What do we want to watch?"
"Does it really matter what we put on? I don't think we're gonna do much watching anyway." He sits down next to me and wraps his right arm around my waist.
"My mom is home." I turn my head and kiss him. "Do you think you'll ask your mom again about meeting your dad? Or at least knowing who he is?"
"I don't know." He sighs. "I don't think I'll get anywhere."
"I didn't think I'd get anywhere with my mom and look how easy it was."
"Yeah, but you hadn't tried before today."
"That's true. I still think it's worth a shot."
"Nothing's changed though."
"That's not true. You live in a whole different state. Maybe your dad is still in Maryland and she'll be willing to tell you who he is now that you're nowhere near him. Maybe he's not a good guy and she just wanted to get you away from him before telling you about him."
"I don't know. If I can't meet him, is there really a point to knowing?"
"Maybe you've already met him."
"I doubt it."
"Well, maybe it's the other way around. Maybe he lives up here and she moved you guys up here so she could tell you about him."
"Then why hide it for so many years? Why give me zero information for seventeen years of my life just to give it all up eventually?"
"Maybe she was planning to tell you all along and just didn't want to do it until you could meet him. You said he took off, right? She probably knew you'd have questions and just wanted you to be able to get your answers."
"I don't know."
"I think it's worth a shot."
"And what if she still doesn't tell me?"
"Then at least you tried. At least you don't know because of her choices and not yours."
He shakes his head.
"Babe, I really think you should try."
He thinks for a moment before he finally caves. "I'll call her."
Yes!
I mute the TV and he puts his phone on speaker. It rings a few times and Maggie finally answers.
"What's up, kid?" she asks.
"Who's my dad?"
Right to the point.
"What?"
"Who's my dad?"
"Bryce." She lets out a sigh.
"Answer me."
"I'll tell you anything you want to know if we can just do this in person."
"Really?"
"Really."
"I'm coming home now then and I'm bringing Alex. Dig out my birth certificate because I want proof."
"His name isn't on it."
"Then whose is?"
"Nobody's."
"Mom."
"I didn't know what to do, Bryce. I just put unknown. I was scared and sad and lonely."
He shakes his head. "I'll be home in two." He ends the phone call and sighs.
"Ready to get your answers?" I ask.
"I don't even fucking know."
"It's gonna be okay. And I'll be right there the whole time."
"What if I can meet him?"
"Then I'll be there for that too. But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it."
"Okay." He nods. "Thank you for pushing me."
I force a small smile and turn off the TV. He grabs my hand and I lead him out of my room.
"Where are you two going?" Mom asks.
"His house for a bit."
"Were the last almost twenty-four hours not enough?" She laughs.
"Nope." I slip my shoes back on and open the door.
Bryce doesn't move so I step out first and hold my hand out for him. He accepts it and follows me out the door. I let him set the pace of our short walk to his house. His feet slowly lead the way and I'm pretty sure we're about to be passed by a snail.
"Are you nervous?" I ask.
"Not nervous. Just starting to question if this is really a good idea."
"I think it is. You'll feel better once you know."
"I really hope you're right."
"I'm always right, it's why you're dating me." I smirk.
He opens the front door and nudges me in first.
We walk up the stairs and see Maggie sitting at the dining room table with a dark blue folder in front of her.
"Can we sit on the couch?" Bryce asks.
"I think we should do this at the table," she says.
He lets out a sigh and pulls out both of the wooden chairs across from Maggie. He takes a seat in the one on the right and I sit down next to him in the one on the left. He instantly grabs my right hand in his left and gives it a squeeze.
"I never meant to keep your father from you," Maggie says. "Things just got a little out of hand."
"You think?"
"Hear her out." I remind him.
He sighs. "Sorry."
"Your father was on vacation in Maryland visiting family when we met. I was young and stupid and I spent time with him even though I knew he had a girlfriend back home. We exchanged numbers, we hooked up, and then he went home. I thought that would be the end of it but a little over a month later, I found out I was pregnant and I called him to tell him the news. He told me that I knew he had a girlfriend and that the baby, you, wouldn't change anything. He tried telling me to get an abortion and when I told him that wasn't an option he said he would offer me no help. No money, no clothes, no diapers, no co-parenting. Nothing. And then he blocked my number. I was completely on my own to raise you."
"Great. Now who is he?"
"Bryce," I say. "Be patient."
"I've been patient for seventeen years."
"So you can wait five more minutes."
He lets out a sigh and glances up at Maggie.
"About five years ago, he reached out."
"He reached out?" Bryce raises his eyebrows. "You didn't think to tell me?"
"He reached out once in all those years. I didn't want to get your hopes up if it was gonna turn out to be nothing. He just said he was sorry and that he wanted to help me out. I said I didn't need his help anymore but I wouldn't refuse anything he wanted to offer you."
"Did he offer me something?"
"He did."
"What was it?"
"Well, let's get into this first." She peels open her folder and lays Bryce's birth certificate on the table.
"Okay," he says after looking down at it. "Father is unknown. You told me that already."
"I know. I just wanted you to see it for yourself. Hopefully have you less mad at me for the next part of this."
"Which is?"
"He and I met up."
"And you didn't bring me?"
"It's complicated. Please try to hear me out."
"What?"
"You and Layla aren't half siblings."
"You're joking."
"I'm not."
"You hooked up with him twice? Almost thirteen years apart? And not once tried to form a relationship with him?"
"We went out to dinner and he gave me a check for your college fund. Things just kind of picked up where they left off all those years ago."
"Mom."
"He said he was ready to be a man and be there for his kids. But then I found out he already has kids with a wife and a mistress."
"Oh my God."
"How many kids does he have?" I ask.
"Bryce, Layla, and two others."
"Holy shit." Bryce shakes his head. "I have more siblings."
"You do."
"Have I met them?"
"Bryce."
"Can I?"
"Bryce."
"Have I met him?"
"Yes. You just didn't know he was your father."
"Who is he?"
"Jimmy Tate."
"Jimmy Tate?"
"Well, you know him as James Tate."
"The James Tate I work for?"
"Yeah."
"Wait a minute. James Tate? That's Johnny's dad."
"Johnny, like, your ex, Johnny?"
"Yeah."
"Your ex boyfriend is my half brother?"
•What'd you think of this chapter? Were you expecting Alex's mom to let her meet her dad so easily? What about Bryce's family situation? Were you expecting that one? Don't forget to vote!
~SS💘