I started to answer, but surprisingly AJ spoke up. “Her mother passed away a few years ago and she had a really hard time. Her father was in denial that anything was wrong, and plus he was too lost in his own hurt from losing his wife to notice that Leila was having problems.”
“I’m still trying to understand why she did this. It doesn’t make sense that someone would hate someone so much that they’d do a thing like this. Did you date this girl?” Mom asked. I was embarrassed by her forthrightness.
“Mom!” I scoffed.
She became defensive. “What? It was just a question. If he doesn’t want to answer, he doesn’t have to answer.”
AJ laughed at my short quarrel with my mother. “It’s fine, really. I don’t have anything to hide.” He cleared his throat before speaking. “Yes, we were together for a little while, but she started acting strange and I tried to back away. She didn’t like that too much and that’s when she started following me. I ignored her for the most part because she hadn’t done anything too drastic, but then when Sam came into the picture Leila kicked it into overdrive. I tried going to her house and talking to her father before she went too far and tried to hurt Sam, but he blew me off. But I hope you understand that I did everything I knew to do to protect Sam.”
Daddy was obviously pleased to hear that AJ had stood up to Leila’s father in my defense. He was learning new things about AJ and I could see in his eyes that he had now completely knocked down the walls that were built up between them.
We sat there talking like this until after two in the morning. My parents seemed to enjoy hanging out with AJ and I as much as we enjoyed them. Daddy locked up as Mom straightened the living room before they went up to bed. They said goodbye to AJ and retreated to their room. I watched him pace toward his car, and I found myself missing him even before he was out of sight.
*****
The next morning, mom woke me up at five minutes to eight. She’d planned a big day for us. She made nail, hair and massage appointments. We had reservations at a restaurant near the spa for lunch too. I rubbed my eyes sleepily, threw my covers to the floor and dragged myself to the bathroom to shower. That woke me up a little, but I still dozed off once while I was eating my cereal. The long night had me feeling a little disconnected, but mom was alert and chipper – annoyingly chipper. “Come on honey. We’ll be late,” she said. I followed her to the car unwillingly, trying to muster up some excitement, but it was useless.
Six hours and one bad hairstyle later, we returned home. I couldn’t wait to get to my room to fix the mess of curls that were fluffed out all over my head. I stared into the mirror at the poodle-like do. The only thing missing was the tiny bow in the front. I grabbed my comb and raked it through my hair – breaking a few of the teeth out of it as I pulled it. I heard the front door open downstairs and Daddy was talking to someone but I couldn’t make out the other voice. I peeked out my door and down into the foyer, but Daddy and whoever the visitor was, were no longer standing there. After I turned and walked back to my bedroom, Mom called me down to the living room. My hair still wasn’t cooperating, so I pulled it up into a messy puff ball on top of my head and gave up with a sigh. I tossed the comb back onto my dresser and traipsed down the stairs.
I rounded the corner to the living room to find Mom, Dad, and AJ standing there. AJ was smiling at me as soon as I entered.
“What’s going on?” I asked suspiciously.
Mom didn’t say anything as she moved toward me smiling. She covered my eyes and led me out the front door. AJ grabbed my hand and helped me down the walkway and when we came to a stop, mom uncovered my eyes.
My vision was a little blurry at first, but it didn’t take me long to realize what they’d done. “Surprise!” Mom screamed.
“I love it!” I yelled. It was a brand new car – a sleek red convertible.
“Your father and I were planning to get it for you as a graduation present, but it became a necessity after the old one got totaled. AJ met Daddy here and hid his car in the garage after you and I left this morning.” She was so proud that she’d pulled this off without me having any idea what was going on.
I hugged her tightly around her neck. “Thanks, Mom. It’s perfect.” I ran over to Daddy and hugged and kissed him too. They went back inside and left AJ and I outside to take the car for a test drive. I hadn’t been behind the wheel since my accident, so I was admittedly a little nervous.
The engine barely made a sound as I started it up and gripped the wheel tightly. When I didn’t move for a few seconds AJ realized that I was hesitant. “If you’re not ready, no one’s forcing you to do this. It may take some time.” He said reassuringly.
“I’m fine.” I shifted the gear into reverse and backed out slowly. He rested his hand on my back and tried to keep me calm. On the main street I drove about five miles under the speed limit which was still faster than I wanted to go. A car swerved in front of me and I tensed up.
“It’s alright.” AJ said, trying to keep me from spazzing out. “Do you want to pull over and I’ll drive back?” He asked.
“No, I have to do this. I can’t let that one incident keep me from living my life.” I paused. “Once I do it this once it’ll keep getting easier. I just have to get through it.”
He seemed to understand my feelings, so he sat back and just tried to be supportive. We drove a few miles further down the road and then I turned to go back toward the house. When we pulled into the driveway again, I felt a sense of accomplishment for conquering my fear and AJ was proud of me for not folding under the pressure. This was the first step in getting past the tragedy that took place, and I knew that soon, things would be close to normal again.
*****
“That’s everything.” Daddy said as he loaded up the last of my boxes into the back of the moving truck. He and mom turned to go back inside to check all the windows and doors before we left. My throat tightened as I realized it was time for me to leave my home and my family behind. Saying that I was afraid was an understatement, but it was time for me to grow up and embrace adulthood. I heard AJ pulling up behind me on the street. There was no way that I wasn’t going to miss him. It would surprise me if I was able to function without him. Letting go, even if only for a short time, was going to be one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. He cut off the engine and stepped out; he couldn’t even look at me as he came in my direction.
“I was starting to think you wouldn’t make it,” I said quietly.
“My dad insisted that we finish loading my things so we can get on the road in an hour.” He smiled weakly, attempting to mask his true emotions.
“We’ll see each other tomorrow. Don’t be so down,” I said as I reached for his hand. My words didn’t make the sadness fade in the least. AJ still looked like the world was coming to an end.
Behind me, I heard my parents coming from the front door and Daddy’s keys jingling as he turned them in the lock. AJ straightened his posture when he saw them coming toward us. I think we were both shocked when my father greeted him with an embrace. “Good luck, son. Hope to see you here on Thanksgiving. You already know you have a standing invitation.”
He released AJ and took a step back. “Thank you, sir. I’ll be here.” AJ smiled and I could see that Daddy’s words meant a lot to him.
I walked toward daddy and nearly knocked him down when I hugged him. He could never know how much it meant to me that he’d laid his prejudices aside and gave AJ a chance. In his arms I thought back to when I was a child, for a brief second it felt as though nothing had changed – I was still daddy’s little girl. Leaving him and Mom was going to be harder than I thought it would be. Of course I’d miss mom’s cooking and the sense of security I had there, but I’d also miss being surrounded by their love. Mom always had the best advice and she’d become a friend in addition to being my mother, and I now had a better understanding of daddy’s overprotective nature. He wanted nothing more than to protect me from the harsh realities of l
ife while ushering me into being a well-rounded and productive adult. I appreciated the way they loved me – even when it was tough love.
Daddy squeezed me tightly and kissed my cheek – I saw him quickly wipe away a tear as he turned to walk toward the truck. Mom was crying, again. She squeezed me in her arms and turned to hug AJ briefly before turning to walk away.
AJ seemed to pick up on my growing sadness as I thought again about everything changing so quickly. “You’re gonna be fine. I promise,” he assured me. I hugged him and kissed him once on the lips after checking to be sure that my parents weren’t watching.
“See you in New York,” I whispered into his ear before finally letting him go.
He smiled halfheartedly and replied, “See you in New York.”
I walked slowly to the car and AJ moved aside, watching Daddy back the truck out with mom and I following closely behind in my new car. She shifted gears and started down the street as I watched AJ through the back window. This was by far the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. My heart felt like it was torn in two and the largest part of it remained there with AJ. Would we make it through the tests that were sure to come? Was his father going to find some way so stop him from coming to Charleston to be with me? Was there still a possibility that he’d find someone else? With so many unanswered questions I stared at AJ with tear-filled eyes as he mouthed the words “I love you” before disappearing in the distance. With the very real challenges that we were sure to come against, I had to ask myself a question that I wasn’t quite sure how to answer: Is our love really strong enough to survive this?
To be continued…..
Bonus Excerpt
Free Falling Book 2: Secrets
Rancid thoughts and sordid images pumped anger through my veins like venom racing toward my heart as I lunged, tackling him and narrowly missing the coffee table. Over and over again, my fists struck his face with such force that the left side began to swell before I even finished with him. The floor and wall were spattered with his blood and the stains grew each time I made contact. Even when one of his teeth flew out of his mouth, I didn’t let up; I couldn’t.
Desperately, he used his last bit of strength to try tossing me to the floor, but there was no way I was going to miss this opportunity to make him feel the same pain that he’d inflicted. I clasped my blood-coated hands firmly around his throat and squeezed until I nearly lost feeling in my fingers. The smell of fear was heavy in the air and I couldn’t get enough of it. I was drunk with the need to make these his final breaths. As his eyes dimmed I smiled as consciousness began to slip farther away from his grasp.
This was the first time that I’d actually seen red. I’ve heard people say it before, but I didn’t fully understand what that meant until this moment. My blood felt like ice flowing through my limbs as I brought him within inches of death. As he stared up at me, I somehow managed to squeeze tighter as the blood vessels in his eyes burst and the last bit of air sputtered from his mouth. It was such a rush knowing that in this instant I could end his life like he deserved. I continued to stare at his lifeless body lying on the floor long after I’d let him go. Watching him, I still felt like I hadn’t done enough compared to what he’d done. My fists were clenched as another wave of rage rolled through me. I couldn’t control it. The feel of his slick, warm blood on my hands made me want to hurt him more; one hit was all it would take at this point and I could see to it that the only way he’d be leaving here would be in a body bag.
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