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“Okay, well, I’ll be back shortly,” Richard said, dressed in a black suit. “I’m going to see your grandmother, Katy, then I should be back.”
Katy nodded and noticed the stern tone in her father’s voice. “Okay, Dad. Tell Grandmother I said hey and I’ll be to see her soon.”
Richard turned and looked at his daughter briefly then turned back away as if he were in deep thought. “Yeah, I’ll do that.”
Katy watched her father walk out the front door then turned to her mother, who was now over at the kitchen table. She had gotten her tablet and was scrolled through emails on the screen. “What’s going on?” Katy asked.
Linda looked up. “What’s going on with what, Katy?” she asked. “It’s funny you ask that because I feel like we should be asking you that?”
Katy set her cup of tea down. “You should be asking me that? What, Mom? I’m confused. And I noticed how you and Dad came in here in kind of a stink.”
Linda set her tablet down on the table then leaned back, crossing her legs – something which had always let her daughter know she was about to get into a deep conversation. “Yeah, well, I thought your father would hang around to talk to you about this, but it looks like I’ll have to do it.” Linda rose up out of her seat. “Katy, what is going on between you and Brennon?”
Katy suddenly felt herself warm up – in the hot seat. Her palms sweated and she turned and glanced out of the window. After a few long seconds, she decided she needed to be brave and her parents were just going to have to deal with some things. She loved Brennon and she was sure of that.
“What do you mean what is going on?” Katy asked, wanting to pull out what her mother and father knew or thought they knew.
“Come on, Katy,” Linda said. “Seriously. Let’s not play about this. I think you should be lucky it’s me talking to you and not your father. So, are you seeing Brennon? Huh, Katy? Are you seeing Brennon?”
“What makes you think I’m seeing Brennon?” Katy asked, looking dead into her mother’s face bravely. “You tell me what you know and we can go from there.”
Linda pressed her lips together. Katy had been playing this game since she was a child, but Linda wasn’t going to let that faze her. “Okay, if you wanna do it this way, we can. Well, Katy we notice you’ve been staying out a lot more and not coming home.” Linda held her hands up in a surrendering way. “Okay, that’s fine. Whatever. You’re an adult…a young woman and whatnot. None of our business. In fact, might even be good for you so you can stopped being cooped up up under your parents. But then we hear about you getting into a car down at the Circle K that sounded offly familiar. Okay, that’s…. Well, whatever. Then now your father and I have both heard from people who’ve known you or known of you since you were a little girl that you were down at some gallery downtown last night with an older gentleman named Brennon. First, let me say you did get some compliments about this dress you were wearing.” Linda squinted at her daughter, knowing her daughter was well aware of her mother’s interest in fashion, particularity when it came to dresses. “And they said he seemed like quite a nice gentleman. Okay, so with the good things out of the way…. Katy, what the hell is going on? Are you dating Brennon? Your cousin Melanie’s older brother?”
Katy’s mind raced while she dealt with her own emotions. It was pretty obvious her parents didn’t approve, but she just didn’t give a damn. “Yes.” She nodded. “I am.”
Linda turned and looked away in disbelief, rubbing her forehead as if she needed a drink. “Katy, you can’t be serious. Your father is livid.”
“Livid?” Katy asked. “What would he be mad for? I’m an adult… I’m in my late twenties, Mom.”
“Yes, we know that,” Linda said. “Hell, if anybody knows how old you are it’s me. Katy, it’s Brennon. He’s coming up on forty, so he’s a bit older for you...especially a young lady with your demeanor. And he’s your father’s cousin’s older brother, Katy. Practically family. He used to take you and Melanie to school and to this and that when you were growing up.”
“I know, Mom, I know,” Katy said. “And what does that have to do with anything? We’re both adults now. And we’re not really related.”
Linda came from behind the kitchen table, squinting. “Katy, there wasn’t anything going on that we didn’t know about back when you were growing up, was there?”
“What?” Katy asked, putting her hand on her chest. “Mom, you can’t be serious. Brennon wouldn’t do anything like that. Absolutely not! Nothing like that ever happened when I was growing up.”
Linda nodded, still looking suspicious. “Okay, Katy. Fine. I think you should break it off with Brennon. I truly am against you two seeing one another. What will the family think?”
Katy shrugged defiantly. “I don’t care what the family thinks. It’s not like Brennon and me are related.”
“Katy, listen to yourself!” Linda snapped. “That doesn’t matter when you grew up in a family situation where Brennon was practically your big cousin. Plus, there’s the obvious age gap of darn near thirteen years or something. We have pictures of him and you and Melanie at parks and stuff, you remember. I just don’t like the look of this. And your father… I think he went to see his mother because he is thinking rather deeply about this.”
Katy felt an urge she’d never felt before. She felt like she needed to run; like she needed to be freed of this house. Sure, she’d been waiting and saving to buy a house and all that. But something was telling her that with the new developments, there was no way she would be able to spend another night under this roof. She could look at her mother and tell this was going to turn into a true discussion. For the first time in her life, Katy let her heart lead the way. Rather than even responding to her mother, she headed for the steps. Linda followed, trying to get her daughter’
s attention, but Katy headed up the stairs.
“Katy, you’re not thinking clearly!” Linda yelled up the steps from the foyer. “You’re just a young girl compared to a man like Brennon. I know you don’t see it, but I’m telling you it’s not what you think it is.”
Katy ignored everything her mother said while she packed a suitcase of clothes to last her for at least week. She didn’t know where she was going to go, but she was not the least-bit interested in being in the house when her father got home. There were times he reminded her of a dictator. She could already imagine him saying what she would do and that she will not see Brennon, as if he were going to lock her up from the world.
As Katy came downstairs, passing by her mother as if she weren’t even standing there, Linda leaned against the banister. “Okay, I’ll let you be an adult. But can you answer one question for me about this bizarre situation?”
Katy pulled the front door open, rolling her eyes at her mother’s use of the word “bizarre.” “Yes, sure, Mom. What is it?”
“You and Melanie grew up so close,” Linda said, raising her eyebrows. “Have you told her yet that you’re seeing her older brother? Or were you just planning on keeping this a secret romance from everybody indefinitely?”
Katy sighed. “No, I haven’t told her...or anyone. But I’ll do that.”
