Page 4 of Falling Again

My dad sees me out of the corner of his eye and starts walking toward me. “Chloe, get out here.”

He grabs my wrist and pulls me to the living room. He’s hurting me. He never hurts me like this.

“Stop, it hurts,” I say, and he lets go.

“Chloe, I need to tell you something.”

“No! Don’t tell her!” my mom yells from the floor. My chest is heaving, and tears form in my eyes. My face feels hot.

My dad looks down at me and says, “Chloe, I’m sorry, but I’m leaving for good. I have a family that needs me.”

“What are you saying? We need you,” I say in a wobbly voice.

My dad kneels so he’s at eye level with me. I’ve always thought I looked more like my dad than my mom. We have the same small, upturned nose and blue eyes. My mom has blonde hair like mine, but I inherited my curls from my dad. His eyes don’t look like mine anymore. They are squinting, and his dark eyebrows are furrowed together.

“I’m leaving you and your mom to be with my family.”

“But we are your family,” I say to him, grabbing his arm. “Please, Dad, don’t leave me.”

“I’m sorry, Coco.”

“Don’t call me that,” I whisper, but I don’t know if he hears me. He stands up and turns away without saying anything else. My nickname, which only my parents would call me, feels like a lie now, like something that has lost its meaning.

I watch my dad collect his bags and leave through the front door. As it closes, my mom breaks down into a sobbing heap on the floor. I try to put my hand on her shoulder to comfort her, but she swats me away, so I run back to my room and into my closet. I curl up in my beanbag and close my eyes. I close them so tightly, hoping this is all a dream, that this didn’t actually happen.

I open my eyes and leave my closet. The sounds of my mom sobbing are muffled through the door to my room. This is real life. I curl up in my bed and grab my phone, texting Annika:

Me:

heyy u there?

Anni

U don’t have to ask if I’m there every time u text

i will just respond

Me

lol idk how this works!!

what up?

can i come over?

ugh, i wish. my dad took me and my bros to the hardware store

i’m trapped here! D’:

is ur mom home?

No, she has a doc appt

everything ok?

yah, im just bored

txt u when i get home