AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’m not lying to you Dad, I swear.”
“Then you’d better tell me why all of a sudden you’ve decided to turn delinquent.”
“I can’t. You wouldn’t understand.” And I don’t want to hurt you. I don’t want you to know the sad reality of my life now.
“The hell I wouldn’t! Now you’d better start talking or else I’ll have to resort to cutting you off financially, because I’m not going to fund whatever messed up lifestyle you’re living down there.”
“Fine. Do that then.”
“I’m serious Tegan.”
“I believe you, and to be honest I really don’t care anymore. Cut me off. Go ahead.” I’ve become angry at his harshness. I could never tell him the truth, it would be too weird, and I really just want to forget about Matthew. It’s bad enough that my heart hurts every day. If I tell my dad I’ll have to re-live it all, explain to him what happened, and I just can’t go there right now.
“You’d want to start acting right, you know that?” he threatens down the telephone. “And I’m not sending you any more money until you get yourself back to college and your head on straight.”
With this he hangs up, and tiredly I put the phone back down on the receiver. My lack of sleep last night is beginning to catch up on me. For a few minutes I just sit there, dejected. I don’t feel up to going back to college just yet. I can’t do it. I need to go slowly. Maybe I can repeat next year or something. A moment later my phone rings again and I pick it up.
“Look I’m sorry…” I begin, but am interrupted.
“Sorry for what?” asks a smooth male voice.
“Who is this? Ethan?” I reply.
“The very man,” he answers happily.
“Oh. Hello.”
“Aren’t you going to tell me what you’re sorry for?” he asks, humour colouring his tone.
“How did you get my number?” I ask.
“That’s for me to know and – well, you know the rest.”
“Creepy, very creepy.” I say, irritable after my previous phone call with Dad.
“Not so much. I asked your blond friend for it when I got back to the club last night.”
Well, maybe the means aren’t so psychopathic after all. Still, I’m wary of his persistence.
“Oh.”
“You don’t sound too pleased.”
“I’m having a bad day.”
“Then you should come to the club tonight and unwind.”
“Not likely.” I answer in a tight voice.
“Suit yourself,” says Ethan with a soft laugh.
“Sorry. You just caught me at a bad time.”
“How so? Are you okay?” The concern in his voice is touching, seen as I barely know him. However this only functions to make me ever more suspicious of his motivations.
“I’m fine, I just – I’m having money problems, so I think I’m going to have to forget about going back to college and start looking for a job.”
“Interesting.”
