Chapter 8
Waking up with the Sun in my eyes and pain in my back.
I stretched out but the pain didn't go away. My old room was now my parents new guest room.
I got up and made my way to the bathroom only to find that the door was closed. I knocked and hoped it was empty, that someone had just closed the door.
"Go away!" I heard Felix yell from inside the bathroom.
"I have to pee!" I yelled back.
"So! Go downstairs!" He yelled again.
I walked my way to the stairs and looked down. I hated basements. The dark and the cold, it made my stomach turn into knots.
I made my way down and turned on the lights. Even with the lights on, it didn't help my stomach.
I got to the bathroom and closed the door. I made sure to be as quick as I could. When I was done, I washed my hands and I was out of there.
I quickly made my way upstairs and walked towards the kitchen.
"You're awake." I said to my dad who was sitting at the table with his coffee in front of him and his head resting in his hands.
His head jerked up quickly making me realize he was asleep.
"Sorry." I said feeling bad.
I remember when I was younger and I hadn’t known him for long, he always did the same thing each morning. Do coffee, bring a cup at the table and rest his head in his hands and fall back asleep. Either my mom or I would wake him up.
"Don't worry. There's coffee." He said with a small smile.
"You never were a morning person." I said laughing a bit.
"If I remember correctly, neither were you." He said.
"That's true...my back is killing me." I said.
He gave me a look telling me to continue and to explain.
"I don't like your new mattress in my room...sorry guest room. It always hurts my back."
"It's always going to be your room. Nothing will ever change that. Yes, if we have guests that are sleeping over, we tell them they can use your room. We don't use the words guest room, only you do." He clarified. "You seem in a good mood though." He added.
"Nothing can wake me up better than to use the bathroom in the basement." I said sarcastically but mostly to myself.
"Yeah, you never liked going down there."
"Is mom still sleeping?" I asked, curious if she had talked to him.
"Yeah she’s still sleeping. It took her awhile to fall asleep. What was your walk about last night, if I'm allowed to ask?" He said.
"I'll let mom tell you."
"You can tell me anything. You know that don't you?" He asked.
"Yeah, I know. I think she needs to say it, for her. Maybe I can ask you a question regarding that subject?"
"Go for it." He said.
I could tell he was more alert than before. His focus was more on me instead of around me.
"It's about Jesse." I informed him.
The second I said his name, my dad sat up straight in his chair in full alert. "Okay."
"There are only three people I know who can answer this question, you, grandma and grandpa."
He nodded his head so I continued. "When we were...you know...did Jesse have…girlfriends, did he talk about other women or go out. Do you remember that? …seeing it or hearing about it."
"Why?" He asked.
"Because I want to know." I said, hoping that was a good enough answer. I didn't want to explain everything again. It was pretty easy to put two and two together but I know my mom needed my dad and she needed to tell him herself.
"Wow, hard to think on the spot." He answered.
"You don't have to answer right away. If you think of anyone, tell me?" I asked.
"Of course." He said. "Oh, before I forget, did you check the paper like I asked?"
"Um…no not yet. Sorry." I said, feeling guilty.
"You need to take care of your car, it's important. Anyways, I grabbed your keys when I woke up and check myself. You're due." He said.
"You went out in pyjamas? Wait, you went through my car?" I asked.
"Yeah." He said, like it was nothing.
"Dad! You don't need to do that, and I don't want you do to that. I know you're trying to help but don't snoop, it's rude." I said.
"I was half asleep Amanda. The last thing on my mind was to snoop in your car. I just wanted to check the paper and it was exactly where I left it from last time. Then I locked and closed the door. I came back inside…took my cup and filled it to the max with coffee." He said, giving me a play by play.
"Fine...thank you." I said feeling relieved.
I didn't have anything to hide but I never liked when people snooped in my things. Invasion of privacy was something I had trouble with, it could make me extremely angry in seconds.
"So I was thinking Wednesday, you could come by after I'm done work and I could change it then or leave me your car for a night…that would work too." He said.
"Wednesday sounds good, except if I'm working we might have to find another day, that's the only problem I see." I said.
"If you're working, that's what we'll do. I have no problem with that." He said, giving me a small smile.
"Thanks dad."
I sat down at the table with him. We both talked about work. I never brought up the subject of Blake.
My dad didn't know Blake and I were...whatever we were. I never told him and it wasn't Blake's place to say it. It's not that I'm ashamed of him or that I'm trying to hide it. I wasn't ready to say anything yet. With our conversation from the other night, we were starting to know a bit about each other.
Sex was one thing but a relationship was completely different. It didn't matter if we'd be just friends or more…I didn't want to rush it.
Also, I didn't know how my dad would handle knowing I was sleeping with a guy from his work. I knew my dad liked Blake from previous conversation but knowing that his daughter was sleeping with him, might change their friendship.
"How's the homework coming along?" He asked, referring to Emily's homework.
"Working on it. Did a little bit of progress but it’s too soon to tell." I said.
"Well, trying to have more girlfriends is hard. Women are hard to understand." He said.
"Yeah, some are the worst. Remember the girl that kept bullying me after school? Lisa showed up and kicked her in the leg and she started to cry?" I said with a big smile on my face.
"That's one reason why your mother and I always liked Lisa. She always had your back, never judged and always listened. She pushed when you needed a good push and you wouldn't listen to your mother and me. She a good kid to have around." He said.
I smiled knowing it was all true. Even though she bugged and frustrated me, making me feel like she was my second mother, I could always count on her being by my side whenever I needed her. I hope she knows that it also goes the other way around. I would give her my life because she saved mine so many times.
"So what's her name?" My dad asked, bring me back to reality.
"Um...yeah, I'm not going into that." I stated.
"Why not? She's not into drugs or anything illegal right?" He asked worried while I laughed.
"No dad, nothing like that. It's just...it's not a she, it's a he." I said.
"Oh."
Looking at him, I could see by his facial expressions his thoughts were moving quickly. I tried to find something good to say but not knowing what or how to start.
"Is he..." He started to say then paused. "Okay well, not to old, no drugs or illegal things…yeah... your mom should give you a... a talk...." He was saying but I had to cut him off.
"Dad, I’m 20 years old, seriously I'm good. I don't need a talk...of any kind. He seems nice but I don't know him well so...time will tell."
"How could Emily tell you to become friends with a guy you just met?! That's...crazy. She should know after all these years that you don't work that way..."
"Um, I didn't just meet him. I've known him for..." Do I lie or do I not lie? I asked myself. "About two months now."
"How can you not know someone after two months? I know it takes time and all, but you should know him more than a little bit." He said.
Oh my goodness, I wanted him to stop talking and to stop thinking. I could see where this was going and the last thing I wanted him to say out loud was, 'you're sleeping with him and you don't know him?!' That would be the worst thing ever.
"I don't see him often. We actually met two months ago but we don't talk a lot. You know how I am with talking on the phone...it drives me nuts." I said. I decided to lie instead of telling the truth, I knew my dad would one day find out but…I didn’t want the day to be today.
"Oh yeah, that makes sense." He said.
I took a deep breath trying to relax a little and hoping that this subject was over.
"Finally you twit! What the heck were you doing in there?!" I heard A.J. yell.
"I went to the bathroom...brushed my teeth...then..." Felix was saying.
"Yeah right! Move!" He yelled.
I saw A.J. slam the bathroom door with Felix starring at us.
"Hey kiddo." I said with a small smile.
"You clogged the toilet!" A.J. yelled from inside the bathroom.
The door quickly opened and A.J. walked out. We all froze, including my dad, as A.J. went downstairs.
"You hungry?" I asked, trying to change the subject.
Felix stood there looking at us for a few seconds. He gave me the impression that he didn’t know if he wanted to come sit with us or run back into the safety of his room.
My dad got up and walked towards Felix. "Did you clog it good?" He asked.
My little brother was looking up at my father and I could tell he was scarred.
I wanted to laugh but didn’t dare. I wanted to hug my brother when he started to nod his head to answer my father.
My dad bent down, "We talked about this last time. Remember?" He asked and Felix just kept nodding his head.
My dad stood back up, "Go sit with your sister, I’ll be back." Felix walked towards me while my dad slowly walked into the bathroom.
When Felix got in front on me, he gave me a hug and said, "Do you think he’s angry?"
"No, I don’t think so, he has seen worse. I was first and I messed up a lot. Then A.J. and we both know about him so…they’ve seen pretty much everything. You’re perfect, if you’re not…then you’re pretty close." I kissed the side of his head and stood up.
"I can make eggs, toast and maybe bacon?" I offered.
"Is it going to make me sick?" He asked and my dad started to laugh walking back from the bathroom.
I looked at him then at my father. "That's not funny! Oh course it won't make you sick! I learned a lot from last time." I said being honest.
I wasn't a great cook, I was learning and to become better I had to practice. I knew I probably traumatized Felix when A.J. was throwing up in the bathroom after eating the bacon I had cooked last time but practice makes perfect.
"I'll tell you what…she can make the eggs and the toast while I do the bacon." My dad said.
"You can get sick with the eggs you know." My little brother said.
"Okay, I'll supervise her with the eggs. Better?" My dad asked.
He nodded his head, giving us permission and I went to the fridge to grab everything we needed.
When my dad came to help me I looked at him, "He's exaggerating. My cooking isn't that bad. My bacon was slightly under cooked. A.J. probably just had the flu at the same time because no one else was sick." I said, trying to think of a better reason, other than my cooking, for making my brother sick.
My dad just stood there with a smile on his face.
"What? It's true." I said and he shook his head.
"Do you remember when we lived in the apartment? When you and your mother first started to live with me?" He asked.
I tried to think of back then, I remembered some things but not all of it.
I shook my head, "Some but not everything."
He grabbed the bacon from the freezer and started to open it.
"I was able to stay home with the two of you for a little while but then I had to go back to work. Your mom wanted to learn how to cook, again. So I came home and she had done this big dinner. You'd think we were having company over she had made so much. Carrots, potatoes, chicken, ham and other stuff. She was so proud of herself for doing everything on her own and seeing her smile like that…was something I had missed a lot and she didn't smile like that often, during that time." He said.
I could tell he was back in that moment with the smile he had.
"Made you sick?" I asked, being curious. I was surprised I didn’t remember.
He laughed and nodded his head, "Oh yeah. You weren't talking to me yet, everything was still new. You just nodded and shook your head to say want you wanted. If your mom needed more details you'd talk in her ear. Every move I'd make…I had to be very slow. I'm not sure if you didn't like me but you certainly didn't know me and you most definitely didn't trust me, which was completely understandable. I was terrified I'd give you a heart-attack, even as young as you were. Your eyes were always on me, making sure I didn't come to close. That night, you and your mom ate the ham and I had everything. I wanted to support her but maybe an hour later...the toilet was my best friend. Throwing up…felt like hours and your mom felt horrible."
"The chicken was undercooked?" I asked.
"Yes it was the chicken. She felt so bad and I felt bad for making her feel bad. I remember thinking that the chicken tasted...different but she had added some spices so I wasn't sure, big mistake. With chicken, you can tell if it's not completely cooked by the color. If there's pink, don't eat it. Also, if it's like rubber and your fork doesn't go through it easily, again don't eat it. My point is, don't give up. You don't learn to cook over night and if you're not sure, check the internet or better yet, ask me." He said with a big smile.
"Mom got better over time." I said.
"Yes she did. She learned that cooking meat for a longer period is safer, even if it's dry and a little burnt, while I learned to look more closely before eating it." He said.
"Dry and a little burnt eh?" I heard.
My dad and I both looked at each other and turned our heads towards my mother’s voice.
"Um...Just a little mon amour. I still think your cooking is fantastic." He said.
"Oh, you're in trouble." I whispered to him.
"Yes he is." My mom agreed. "And calling me mon amour, won't help you." She added.
"Hey, I didn't say it was horrible. Did I?" He asked.
"Felix honey? Do you like my cooking?" My mom asked him.
Felix froze and just looked at all of us. "Um..."
No one was moving and all eyes were on Felix.
"Mom, I love you but your cooking sucks." A.J. said passing beside her and coming into the kitchen like it was nothing.
I started laughing. A.J. was always very blunt and direct. I never knew what was going to come out of his mouth and he always showed up out of nowhere.
My mother’s mouth was open in shock.
"You never said that before. You always said you liked my cooking." She said when she finally found her words.
"No I don't. When we eat dinner, you ask if it's good...I nod my head, I don't answer. I don't answer because I know better." He said with a straight face.
He was so much like Uncle Justin. He could say almost anything with a straight face. As for our mother, everyone always underestimated her, even us.
I could hear my dad laughing, almost silently and so I looked at him. He face was down and he was trying really hard to stay silent.
"Oh honey. I'm sorry." My mom said coming closer to A.J.
"It's okay mom. You're not that bad, you could be worse." He said.
I closed my eyes, I knew what was coming. Jeez my brother wasn't the brightest and obviously didn't know when to just shut his mouth.
"I know, I'll work real hard on getting better. Give me 3 weeks? I'll practice and that should help." She said.
"Okay, good."
My mom smiled, "In the mean time, you'll be cooking for those three weeks so that you can learn as well. You're right. This will be good, no... This will be great. You're so wonderful Andy, thank you." She said and he sat down heavily on the chair.
She kissed the top of his head, smiled at everyone and said, "I'm going to be right back." then left heading towards the bathroom.
"What just happened?" A.J. asked, looking at the three of us.
"You got promoted, congratulations." My dad said finally laughing out loud.
"So glad I don't live here." I said, sympathizing with A.J. He should have known better than to mess with mom.
I looked at Felix, "And you will be perfect." I told him, making him remember our conversation. He smiled his big proud smile at me and nodded his head.
My dad and I continued to cook everyone’s breakfast. My mom was in a great mood which everyone, except A.J. was happy about it.
When we were done, I helped with the dishes that couldn’t go in the dishwasher.
I was preparing my stuff to leave. All my laundry was done and now I had to go back home.
It was going to be a long day. Lucas had giving me an 8hr shift today which was great, it would help with the bills but I was already tired and the day wasn't enough half over.
"Hi baby. Getting ready to leave?" My mom asked, leaning on the door frame.
She had never stopped calling me baby. It annoyed the heck out of me in High School but I got used to it and now it didn't bother me. It was just her way of saying I love you without having to say it every minute.
"Yeah, I'm working later."
"Let us know if you need help at the end of the month. Is it a big shift today?" She asked.
"Not to bad, 8hrs. It's going to help." I said smiling at her.
"Your dad will come and help you to bring those bags to your car." She stated.
All my dirty clothes fit in a large garbage bag but my clean clothes took two of them. In one of the bags my clothes were neatly folded and the other bag…it was clothes I didn’t care much about so they weren’t folded.
"That would be awesome." I said. "Mom?"
"Yeah?"
"You're going to tell dad right? I asked him a bit about the…girlfriend part but he doesn't remember. I told him you'd probably talk to him later." I said to her.
"I'll talk to him about it once we're alone." She said.
I nodded and smile at her. "Thanks mom."
"Anytime baby. If you want to talk or anything, I'm always here and so is dad. I love my family, you all…own my heart." She said.
"I love you too mom." I said to her.
When everything was in the car and I was ready to go, I kissed my parents and said bye to my brothers.
I heard my phone beep so I took it out of my back pocket of my jeans.
It was a text message from Blake.
'Hi, are you working today?'
'Yeah later today, 8hr shift.' I wrote back while walking to my car.
My phone beeped again,
'I'll come and see you later.'
'Okay.' I wrote with a big smile on my face. Now I was looking forward to going to work.
****Please Vote & Comment! Thank You!!****
Hope you liked it! It's either a good or bad sign when you laugh at your own stuff...
Next upload is Tuesday!!
Happy Easter! Joyeuses Paques!
If you don't celebrate...have a wonderful long weekend! lol
xx