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She’s worried Pops will come back out of nowhere. I’m stronger now, he can’t threaten us anymore. I don’t think I’ll ever see him again, though. He got what he wanted in the end.
God, I can’t even imagine what Sally is going through. Her parents wished she had never been born, and now she’s forced to figure out what to do with their house. Fuck, I practically told her they had a party when she left.
I should have known they were the same person. Maybe in my head, it was all wishful thinking that someone just like her would show up out of nowhere and fill the emptiness in my heart. The emptiness she had left behind herself.
“Moms tend to worry a lot.” I give my little brother a reassuring grin.
“I don’t want you to get hurt either.” Well, that tugs on the heartstrings.
“Boys, time to come in. Dinner is almost ready. Marc, can you help set the table?” Mom calls from the sliding glass door.
I slap my hand over Marc’s shoulder as we make our way back toward the house. “How can I help?”
“Oh, honey, I’m just happy you’re here.”
“Nope, if I’m gonna be a part of this family, I’m gonna help just like everyone else.”
Emotion flashes in her blue-green eyes before she wipes it away. “Okay, do you think you could grab some drinks from the basement?”
Dinner carries on without delay. I tell Mom and George about my plans to travel. Mom doesn’t hold back her worry, though.
“How long do you think it will take you to get the van put together?” George asks the next morning out on the porch, each of us nursing a beer.
“Well, depends on if anything else goes wrong with the shack. Luckily, I have some good friends that helped pull together some money for when my pipes stopped working.”
“You know, Lansing has a lot of great job opportunities—even for people that don’t go to college.” He gives me a little side-eye. “You know if we had more funds, we’d help send you.”
I instantly shake my head. “That’s not your responsibility. Plus, even if you could, I don’t think college life is for me. I’d feel too trapped, having to be in one place for an extended period.”
Being in Alliance is one thing, but moving to a college town to waste money on an education I don’t even know if I want would be a waste of time.
“Still, there are a ton of jobs here that pay more than a vacation town can afford.”
There’s an eagerness in his voice that I’ve just now picked up on.
“Did you talk to him about it?”
I turn my head to find my mother standing meekly by the door, her eyes bouncing between the both of us.
“I was getting there, but I think you should take over.” George stands to walk away but gives me another glance. “I’ll just say, if you want to move here, there’s a reason we have a guest room.”
Not knowing how to respond, I just give a nod, and he walks inside. Mom walks over and takes his seat before nervously rubbing her hands together.
“Mom?”
“I don’t want you to go back to Alliance,” she bursts out before letting out a sigh like this is the first breath she’s taken tonight.
“Mom, my life is in Alliance. I have two jobs there, and the van is there.”
“I think you know how I feel about that.” I know she doesn’t like the idea of me being filled with this wanderlust. It reminds her too much of Pops. “I just got you back, and I want to selfishly keep you.”
Then I see the worry in her eyes. The wetness gathering in them was the same kind she had before I went back home. I’m not done with Alliance yet.
“Just think about it, okay?”
“I can do that.”
She starts to get up. “Hey, Mom, if someone you really cared about…” I try to find the right words because I’m not going to out Sally. “…were to change a lot, would you still care about them?”
