“What?” he asks.
“William, did you know about Brian?”
“I assume he messed it up,” he says.
“You could say that.” Even though we have had our issues, I’d hoped he would be shocked and ask what the hell I meant. “Why?”
“Dad is trying to help. You have no direction. No purpose. You don’t come to family dinners anymore. You cut him off. He wanted you to settle. Apparently, Brian wasn’t the man for the job.”
Tears sting my eyes, and it pisses me off.
“Thanks, Brother. I should have known I couldn't count on you to be on my side.” I don’t wait for a response, so I hang up and drop my phone in the cup holder.
Flexing my hand, I close my eyes briefly, taking a deep breath. This is nothing new. I shouldn’t be surprised or hurt. I can’t help but feel a pinch in my chest, though. My silly heart hurts, but not as much as my hand, so I’m calling that a win. They can’t do much more to make me want to run away and never return. I buckle my seatbelt and start my car. I back up carefully and suck back tears.
My father wants me to work at his company, but I refused. I don’t want to sell houses to other rich people. Sure, it would be good money. I don’t like the strings that come with it. It’s not the first time I’ve disappointed him, and it won’t be the last. Instead, I choose to work random jobs, and when I want to try something else, I do. Is it a bonus that it pisses him off? Yes. Yes, it is. I shouldn’t take joy from it, but good or bad, I do. When I dyed black streaks in my blonde hair at age fifteen, he almost exploded. His reaction caused me to turn the strands blue a year later. He finds anything outside the norm ridiculous, and his little girl not conforming is too much for him to bear. Being a father isn’t his strong suit.
This latest episode is a prime example. Basically, hiring Brian to make me fall in love with him, give up my life, and turn into a smiling wife. Neither of them like a woman who talks back, and I’ve always had a problem keeping my mouth shut. He hates that his daughter works as a waitress. I love the small restaurant and the people there. They care about their employees. Unfortunately, one of my coworkers introduced me to Jenica. She came in a few times and sat in my section. I had no idea she was scoping me out. Brian visited me twice, and only stayed for a few minutes, but it was long enough for her to see that we were together.
My phone rings, and I roll my eyes as I see Brian’s name. Denying the call, I grit my teeth, and make a note to block his number. I’m sure he's regretting his actions, not because he wants me back, but because he doesn’t want to admit to my dad that he failed. He will wait as long as possible to be honest with my father. I have to move on. Chalk this up as another lesson learned.
Instead of dwelling on them, I focus on pushing them to the back of my mind and remind myself that I’m better off withoutthem. There is one person who is excited to spend time with me, and I drive away, intent on the adventure ahead.
When I was twelve, my teacher thought it was a brilliant idea to enroll all of us in a pen pal program. She thought it would help improve our social skills and writing. We all rolled our eyes, but accepted the challenge. What choice did we have? At first, I hoped to get through it, get the grade, and move on. To make it fair, the teacher did a random draw of names out of a hat. I got two picks, and reluctantly wrote my first letters. The first girl wrote back, her letters were short and dark. Apparently, she had a complicated childhood, but didn’t give me any details. In an attempt to make her comfortable, I lied, writing pages of how much I loved my wonderful life. We had nothing in common, but I hoped she would open up. We stopped writing shortly after we started.
Rylee was different and sweet. Our communication started hesitantly and distrustfully. What was once a chore turned into a genuine friendship. As time passed, and we moved up a grade, we continued to talk. Eventually, we exchanged phone numbers. The first conversation over the phone was odd, but it didn’t take long to relax.
When we turned seventeen, she disappeared. I called and called. I gave up, hurt, but I assumed she had moved on. I thought about her all the time and hoped she would reach out. I graduated from high school and left my father's house as fast as possible. My life went on. Years later, she found me. I wondered about her disappearance, but I didn’t want to push for answers. Her voice was filled with sadness, and she eventually opened up. Her family is worse than mine, and she told me a man rescued her, and took her in. She thinks of him as a brother, and I’m grateful to him.
We have been talking about meeting for years, but life has gotten in the way. Honestly, after writing down our dreamsand fears on paper, it’s nerve-racking to meet face-to-face. She’s always busy, so I decided to make the effort and go to her. Flying isn’t fun, so I thought a road trip would be a better option, which is why I’m driving roughly twenty hours to get to Oregon. I had to bust my ass, work extra shifts, and cover for other employees to take three weeks off, and I plan to make the most of it. The events of the morning, and Brian’s connection to my dad, have reminded me to trust myself. I’m protective of Rylee and our connection, so Brian doesn’t know where she lives. I should have found it odd that he didn’t ask.
“Call Rylee.” I keep my eyes on the road while I wait for her to answer. I promised to let her know the moment I left.
“Are you on the road?” she answers.
“Yes. I’m driving halfway today. I got a hotel room for the night, so I should be there early tomorrow night.”
“I wish you had flown,” she grumbles.
“Getting on a metal can terrifies me. Don’t worry.”
“Haven, you look like a princess. Of course, I’m going to worry,” she sighs.
“An edgy princess,” I correct, grinning.
“Fine, I’ll give you that, but still. You have to check in constantly. I have people here who can come rescue you.”
“I can’t wait to meet them. You’ve talked about them enough.” I’m grateful my friend has found a family that gives a shit.
“They are going to love you,” she says.
“At least someone will,” I say dryly.
“What happened?”
“Brian was fucking a woman.” She gasps. “I walked in on them.”
“Asshole.”
