Chapter Thirty-nine: A Little Reunion.
Dad was just absolutely ridiculous sometimes. He knew I was meant to have a big moment tonight but he still made me come to work in the restaurant!
My perfect day was crashing even more before my eyes; almost all the girls from the school were here, the heat from the kitchen was seriously frizzing my hair, I was trying hard to not look like a wreck in front of the customers and that was hard because Angelo wasn't replying my texts which was weird because he said he always had his phone on ring for me and all the tension mixed together was really making me want to find the nearest bucket and...vomit!
"I'm going to text him to cancel it!" I cried out in front of the bathroom mirror and made a grab for my phone. But Annie was quicker.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa no!" She said, holding it away. "Calm down."
"Yeah, he's going to reply any second now." Susan assured me.
"It's not just that, everything's just going wrong... please, just..." I sighed, feeling more nervous churning in my stomach. "Those girls are still asking for photos with my dad, aren't they?"
"I keep reminding myself that it's for the good of the restaurant." Susan said factually.
"Yeah, let's focus on other things, one at a time." Annie soothed, rubbing my back.
"Yeah," I nodded, "this is silly, it's just a date."
"Hey, maybe it is!" Susan shrugged, throwing her hands up. "Come on, back into the ring!"
Dad walked out the men's room just as we walked out of ours and I wondered how he passed his crazed fans unscathed.
"This is your fifth five minute break, Violet." He reminded me before doing a double take at Susan who looked like she was about to explode with happiness. "Stop... doing that."
"He talked to me." Susan sighed, grabbing my arm as Dad hurried away. "Can I please work here with you?"
"No." I replied instantly.
After ten more minutes of serving these girls (cough, Hattie Jensen and her friends, cough) who just kept hanging around and ordering the cheapest meals we had just in case they could see the chef, I was ready for another break and nearly dead inside.
"Table fourteen needs attention kid!" One of my coworkers said, and before I could tell him to do it himself, he was gone.
So I dragged myself over with my pen and notepad. "Good evening, may I have your...?"
It was three girls in identical black hoodies and sunshades which did nothing to hide them from me since I already saw too much of them today. "Cassandra?"
This had to be a nightmare.
"Ugh, why's it have to be you?" Tina Duke asked.
"I'm sorry, if you didn't want to see me then maybe you shouldn't have come to the restaurant my Dad owns!" I said.
"Oh please, I'm here for this, being a waitress suits you." Cassandra gestured at my appearance before peering at me over her sunshades.
"And hiding in shame seems to be doing wonders for your skin" I replied, sweetly. "Get out of my restaurant."
"Violet Zara Adams, did I hear that correctly?" Dad suddenly called and I turned to see him walking over to us.
"No!" I whispered, trying to get him to turn around but Cassandra suddenly flopped to the ground, she had time to pull off her hood to reveal her long flowing hair too.
"Good lord! Are you alright, customer...I mean Miss?!" Dad asked, kneeling next to her while Tina and Emily gasped.
"I'm so sorry, I..." Cassandra sighed prettily. "I faint when shock comes over me, Violet and I were such good friends once...I can't believe...!"
Dad looked up at me with a frown. "Violet, what on earth are you doing? Help her up!"
"Dad! She's obviously lying, she hates me, it's mutual!"
"So untrue!" Emily and Tina chorused and I was forced to help poor, poor Cassandra up into her seat.
"Do you remember me, sir?" Cassandra asked, batting her lashes. "Vi and I have been friends since kindergarten. I'm Cassandra Manuel. I used to come over for playdates."
The only thing Dad probably remembered was that Mr. Manuel was one of the richest people in town.
"Of course!" Dad said eagerly. "Please forgive Violet for being so... inconsiderate, she's having a rough day, I'm sure you understand..."
"I don't know, she's being especially bitchy today." Tina said sadly.
"Almost kicked us out, but you saved us, Dadd- I mean, Sir!" Emily added, pitifully.
"I don't know what I ever did wrong," Cassandra sniffed. "But she just can't truly forgive me."
I could have grinded my teeth together till they were stubs I was so mad. "Of course I can. I forgive you and we can end all this here! Right, Dad?"
"Yes! See? She's back to being your friend!" Dad said, eagerly. "In fact you girls are welcome to our house anytime during the weekend, and we could all..."
"YES!" They chorused.
NO! Why?! What was happening?! I felt like I was about to faint myself but not as prettily.
Dad looked proudly at me like he'd done something amazing.
"Thank you Mr. Adams!" Cassandra squealed, getting up to fling herself at him but Dad quickly stepped back and held his hand out for a handshake.
"Anytime dear. And please, call me Jimmy." He said. Cassandra gladly shook his hand, looking starstruck.
My tummy ache was getting worse and now a headache was forming, just perfect.
"Now, what may I interest you girls in?"
If he made me continue waiting on them, I was going to...
"Angelo's finally replied!" Annie announced, bounding over and I could suddenly see other colors besides red.
"Really?" I squealed and spun around to face her, taking my phone from her hand.
"What's going on, here?" Annie asked, suspiciously looking at everyone around table freaking fourteen.
"A nightmare." I deadpanned before going on to open Angelo's messages.
Angelo: Sorry to worry you, my Darling, I realized I forgot my phone at Tio Damien's office halfway through my trip.
Angelo: Had to turn back to get it.
Angelo: Did you forget I was picking you when you closed from work? Or do you want to move the time earlier?
Oh yeah I completely forgot about that. And yes I really wanted to move this date earlier. I could have collapsed in relief at seeing his message.
Holding the phone to my chest, I sighed. The nervous churning was gone. I typed a reply.
Violet: I'm sorry, I just let my anxiety get the best of me. Work was stressing me out but I think I could handle it now. Nine is fine. Please don't reply me while driving. Can barely wait to see you!"
"Do you feel okay now?" Annie asked, arms akimbo, "is your heartbeat back to normal, is your skin glowing?"
"Oh my gosh, Annie, I think it is!" I said, holding out my arm for her to check before giggling "Let's see if I can get another five minute break."
So I took a while to hang out with Susan, Annie and Jason who told us that Hunter was running late, but all too soon, it was time to get back to work.
"When I come back we can start getting ready." I told them and went on to attend to Hattie and her fellow pests.
"You're still here. Should I get you the same thing you've ordered three times?"
"Nope!" Hattie spoke up. "We have a complaint, there's a hair in my jelly, I demand to see the chef!"
At this point, I'd had quite enough of them.
"You are not going to see my Dad! You're not going to get a picture with him, stop this behavior and go home already, your actual parents are waiting for you!"
They just sneered and shrugged their shoulders.
"You can't make us." One of them said.
"Yeah, we've done nothing wrong, we're customers." Another said.
"And we'll just keep coming back to see our sweet Jimmy." Hattie said, dreamily.
"He's old enough to be your father!" I pointed out. Just in case they didn't know.
"So?"
"What, so you'll just hang around till you get a dumb picture?!"
"Uh...yeah."
"Which would hopefully lead to marrying him someday." Hattie murmured to her friends and they all burst into giggles.
"He's a married man!" I exclaimed out of frustration, earning a few looks from some other customers around.
For some blissful seconds, Hattie and her friends looked stunned and short of words.
Yeah. Dad was completely off the market, if I'd known, I'd have used that excuse ages...
"That never stopped anyone!" They chorused and burst into obnoxious laughter, actually startling me which made them laugh harder.
I just sighed and left the place, ready to talk to someone else when the main doors opened and in walked one of the most glamorous people I'd ever known.
She was wearing long high heeled boots today and a nice green dress that made her seem taller, and her hopeful eyes were searching the place till they landed on me.
"Mom..." I mouthed, staring back at her. She looked fine, the part of me that was filled with worry for her finally dispelled and it was so relieving that when she opened her arms for me, I forgot about being angry, about all the questions I had and just ran to hug her.
She let out a small, surprised laugh. "I didn't think you'd..." Her words trailed off and she just pulled me into her warm embrace.
"I'm so glad you're okay." I whispered under my breath. But I still had questions, there were so many things to say so I pushed back to look at her.
"Mom you're here, I- "
She had lots of things to say too. "Look at you Violet, it feels like ages since I last..." Grabbing my face, she looked me over, before grabbing my cast arm, "When did this happen? You look so stressed, why are you even working here? And your hair is...!"
"Mom!" I said, pulling her hands away and looking around. "Can we move please? We've got a lot to talk about and I'm sure other people might be interested."
Nodding, she gave one last worried look at my cast and I led the way to an empty table where we could talk freely, on the way I got a shrugging gesture from Annie to which I quickly responded by pointing at my mom and giving them two thumbs up.
I got six more in return.
"Gosh, I forgot to ask if you wanted a drink." I murmured, taking a seat opposite her.
"I'm fine, how's...Moo?"
"You know, sassy and demanding as always! Also a bit chunkier, because Angelo's sister kind of loved her too much when we..."
"Angelo's....sister?" Mom supported her chin with her hand.
Oh right, she had no idea who they were. Well, I couldn't begin to explain that right now.
"My friend." I said, simply. "Um... What was that, Mom? With the big guy with the glasses and all the drama the last time you were here." I said and anxiously wondered if I was taking the right approach here.
"Keith." Mom looked at the table.
"You got a boyfriend."
"A bad choice, I know. I... believe I must have paid dearly for that, I tried to eat my cake and have it but only ended up hurting the people I love"
That was us, right? Me and Dad? Hopefully!
"What exactly happened? You literally disappeared and you and Dad weren't even actually divorced..." My fingers found my thumb ring, spinning it round and round. "I just need to know. Were we too boring? Is that it?"
Biting on her lower lip, Mom folded her hands on the table. "I didn't intend to leave you behind, Violet and Keith was actually supposed to just be a travel partner but one thing turned to another and I let him get under my skin. Too well.
"You see, I thought that if we had the same interests that we could work out and...you know, I'd get what I thought I needed. I really wanted to make it work, so I took his excesses, I let him call all the shots, and when he did anything wrong I'd forgive him the moment he asked me to because I thought I needed him around to stop feeling so horrible.
"There were nice times, I suppose, but I can barely remember them because before I realized it, he had full control over me. It felt easier to not fight back, that way we'd never disagree on anything, he loved to travel and we got to see places he'd never seen. It felt great because he loved me, and wanted me all to himself which meant I couldn't talk to anyone he didn't like, I couldn't answer your calls unless he was there to supervise, I couldn't keep in touch with Jimmy because I had to leave my past behind... I had nobody."
Even though I'd figured the way things were by watching them the other day, this was still shocking to hear. I could barely believe that the one person I looked up to was going through the same thing I did.
We both made bad choices and decided to sit in our guilt instead of moving on.
"I was tired all the time, went through a depression stage." Mom continued and I wondered how she could explain this easily while I was fighting back tears. "And then you'd call saying you wanted to meet up with me- I couldn't let you see me like that! What could I have told you? I was afraid that you'd no longer see me the same way..."
"Well I don't..." I blurted out and she stiffened, watching me with hurt in her eyes. I was hurt too! "How could I? You stayed away without explanation. I mean, I have one now but you could have come back, we're your family, and I for one would have definitely understood you because I went through the exact same thing, Mom!" I raised my right hand and I might have heard her gasp.
"What?" She asked, her voice trembling.
"Isn't it funny?" I sniffed. "We're both kind of stupid."
"Violet how?"
"Hale, the guy I was convinced was perfect for me." I said bitterly, "everytime I called, everytime I stood at your door for hours, I was trying to get you to help me. I thought you hated me at some point and I really hated you back."
Reaching across the table, she grabbed both my hands, tears shining in her eyes. "Oh my baby, you had every right, this was my fault after all, I don't think I'm supposed to call myself a mother now...."
I tried to remember when last I'd seen her this vulnerable and realized this was about the first time. She was always the strongest person in my eyes. That was probably why I felt horrible whenever I couldn't be like her and beat myself up.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry...." She kept saying, not letting go of my hands as she held them to her forehead so that I had to wipe my eyes with my shoulder. "This will never happen again, it can't happen again, I would always be there if you ever need me, if you ever decide to trust me again and I would do everything I can to be there for you."
"I... I understand that you can't do everything." I murmured. "But I still love you, Mom. I can't help it."
Letting out a big sob, she got up and I followed suit, allowing her to pull me into a big, heartwarming hug.
"I love you, Violet." She said, squeezing me. "Do I even deserve you?"
My breath came out in shudders as my tears dried up. I knew she'd keep her promises.
After a while of breathing in her citrus scent, a comforting smell that reminded me of a long time ago when my memories were golden, I opened my eyes, sniffing.
"If you're here right now, does that mean you finally got rid of him?"
I felt her nod and I raised my head to look at her. She had a small smile tugging on her lips.
"I kept having dreams about you." She said, chuckling.
My eyes widened slightly and I imagined myself with a shining halo, calling her back to myself in her dreams. "Really?"
"Yes." Mom said, "you were mad, glaring at me and folding your arms while tapping your feet on the floor like this."
She did a little comical demonstration and I laughed. "No way."
"Yes way," she nodded, with a small smile. "I'm just glad I can laugh at it now, with you."
"Was it easy? To leave him?" I asked and she seemed to think about it for a while.
"Well the main hustle was to get him to leave my house... but it was smooth sailing once I'd gotten my head in the right place." She said. "I got the police involved and now all I can think about is how free I feel, whatever trouble I went through to get here was completely worth it."
"Well, you're more assertive, and I wasn't lucky." I shrugged, showing her my cast. "But I guess Angelo was right when he said scars could mean good things, like healing... Although he didn't really say it like that, he was kind of ...high... Why are you looking at me like that?"
Mom grinned, shaking her head. "Nothing. I just have a feeling I'll be hearing much more about this Angelo. He sounds... interesting."
I tried to play it cool but I couldn't help but let out a bashful giggle. "He is." I said, "and he's supposed to pick me up soon."
"Wait, for a date? Today?" Mom asked, narrowing her eyes.
"Yes, why?"
"You're sure about going?"
"I've been preparing for this since yesterday, Mom."
"Does your Dad know him at least?" She asked, gesturing with her hands.
I smirked. "Oh, Dad definitely knows him and he's probably one of his favorite customers."
"Okay..." Mom said, "I'll have to talk to Jimmy though."
"Um, excuse me." Annie said and we turned to look at her. "Hello Ma'am, can I steal Violet away?" She held up my phone and pointed at it.
"Oh yeah!" I said and turned to Mom. "I have to get ready."
After a pause I looked back at her with a smile. "You've got nothing to worry about, I promise."
She just shrugged, whatever she was thinking hidden behind the smile she sent back. "I'll be the judge of that."
I could have laughed as I walked off with Annie.
"She back?" She asked.
"She's back." I replied, hooking my arm with Susan's as she joined us.
"For real? That's awesome." Susan gasped before giving us a knowing look. "Angelo's in so much trouble." She added and we snickered.
(~￣³￣)~
I had to admit, it was hard to choose what to wear when all I had to work with was 'dress warm'.
"Next time, I'm choosing the location." I said to myself as I checked my hair which Annie had worked her magic upon in the mirror.
It was back to maximum condition, defined curls and all, I picked a rubber band and attempted to make a ponytail but Susan smacked it out of my hand.
"Why?!" I exclaimed, holding my hand to myself as she smirked evilly.
"Trust me, you want your hair down if it's cold." Annie said, coming to tuck my cream, knitted sweater in a bit.
Susan came to stand in front of me, narrowing her eyes, "I just want to know how you managed to put on this gigantic-"
"It's not that big." I cut in.
"- boho skirt and still have curves."
"That's the thing, it's not gigantic, it's just long." I chuckled. "Plus I tightened the waistline."
It was the sweetest, vintage nude colored skirt ever and I'd paired it with platform sneakers and cream leg warmers.
"Alright, time to go." Annie said, handing me my bag, before fluffing up my curls again.
"Bleh." I said, pulling a strand out the corner of my mouth.
"Knock em dead!" Susan said, ushering me out the bathroom while I tried to pretend I wasn't anxious at the moment.
"You might have to go save that boy from your mother." Dad informed me, pointing at the main doors where Hattie and her girl friends were gathered, watching something through the glass.
"On it. See you at twelve?"
"Eleven thirty."
As I approached the doors, the crowd of girls split to let Mom come in first, her sunglasses tucked into her hair.
She seemed to melt when she saw me.
"Oh! You look so beautiful."
"Thank you, where's Angelo?"
"Ah yes, him." She nodded. "When I asked if your father knows him, did you perhaps forget to mention that so does virtually everyone in this town and beyond?"
I grinned. "Surprise?"
"Heather Frances-Sullivan's only son." She told me, wide eyed.
"Yup."
"He is a really interesting fellow, and very soft spoken, I barely managed to break through that cool exterior of his." Mom said before winking, "barely."
"What did you do to my date?" I gasped and leaned over to peek behind her.
"Violet, he's Hale's cousin." Mom said, making me look back at her.
"I know that," I shrugged. "And I understand your concern but Angelo's pretty much the best thing that's happened to me in a while, so..."
Mom watched me for a moment and I stared back at her. "You're in love with him?" She asked in a whisper.
"Oh ho ho okay." I walked around her and headed backwards to the exit. "Too soon, Mom. See you later?"
"Yes, just don't stay out too late!" She added quickly.
I chuckled, turning around, "No pro..." My voice got stuck in my throat as I halted to a stop before Angelo "...mises"
Good Lord.
When would I stop being surprised at how beautiful this man was?
I found myself hoping that day would never come.
Yes, we'd last seen each other a few hours ago but somehow he looked even more amazing in a trench coat and a turtleneck sweater that I just wanted to- I don't know... eat him up!
"He has a piercing?!" Someone moaned.
I understood them completely.
The diamond on his ear caught in the light as I walked the rest of the distance to him.
"Hey," I said and his lips parted, but I just stared back into his widened, silver eyes. "Are you good?" I chuckled, touching his arm.
He nodded slightly, his voice a soft whisper, "Perfect."
My smile grew and I gave his bicep a playful squeeze (or tried) and eagerly went past him to the exit.
"So freaking lucky." I heard one of Hattie's friends whisper to another and I just gave them a little smirk before looking over my shoulder.
"Are you coming?" I asked Angelo and he immediately came to hold the door open. If I didn't know better, I'd say he seemed a bit starstruck.
Though he snapped out of his little daze as we stepped into the cool evening air where right there on the sidewalk, he took my hand and pressed a kiss to my knuckles
"Half the time I'm convinced you came straight out of the sky." He said staring down at me till I felt like I'd truly fallen from the sky.
I blinked up at him in surprise, feeling myself swoon over. "Angie..."
"We should go, we have an audience." He reminded me and I nodded immediately, very eager to leave.
"Yeah, let's."