AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Just… tired.
I could feel the girls looking at me even though neither spoke. And that was fine. They could look, and they could both get over it just like I was going to have to do.
My phone rang, startling me from my pretend study session as I scrambled to pick it up from the desk next to my bed. “See,” I said, flashing the screen in Becca’s direction. “It’s my Uncle Justin. Probably calling to say my parents want me in solitary confinement next week or something.”
She rolled her eyes but didn’t argue the possibility. And honestly? I was only half-joking. It wouldn’t have surprised me at all to hear that my parents wanted me to come home for spring break so they could keep an eye on me.
And it would be just like them to have my uncle call and try to sugar coat it with a fake excuse.
“Hey, Uncle Justin,” I said, smiling in spite of myself as I brought the phone to my ear. Even if he probably was just calling to do my parents’ bidding, I genuinely did enjoy talking to him. “What’s up? And please don’t mention the wordsspringorbreak.”
“What?” His deep voice boomed through the speaker. “I don’t—never mind. Janessa, where are you right now?”
I blinked. His tone was abrupt and harsh instead of the good-natured blend of kindness and gentle teasing I was used to from him. Was he upset about something? Was he annoyed that I’d made a joke about spring break?
“I’m in my dorm room,” I said, then added, “I was just sitting down to study.”
Maybe that would ease his mind a little. God, had my parents gotten under his skin, too? It seemed like everyone back home was afraid that living on campus would somehow rot my brain and turn me into some sort of beer-drinking party girl.
And okay, maybe I’d been to a few parties since I’d been here. You’re only nineteen and a freshman in college once, right? But I was still responsible. I still made it to class on time every day. And Idefinitelydidn’t like beer.
“I need you to pack a bag and come home,” he said. “Can you drive, or do I need to send someone to come get you?”
“Pack a bag?” I shook my head. “What? No. I have things to do here. I can’t come home right now, Uncle Justin. I’m sorry, but you’ll just have to tell my parents—”
“Janessa,” he interrupted. “Listen to me, sweetie. I’ll explain everything when you get here, okay? Now, I just need you to please do what I’m asking and not cause a commotion about it. It’ll be best if we can talk face to face, so just… come home, okay? Right now.”
His tone had softened a little, but there was still an edge to it that was getting under my skin. Of all my relatives, Uncle Justin had always been the most relaxed and laid-back. Something was clearly bothering him this time, though. And I still couldn’t figure out whyhewas the one calling to demand that I pack a bag and go home.
Were my parents really that tired of arguing with me? Were they just going to avoid the unpleasant conversations from now on?
Like I could be so lucky…
Still, it wasn’t a good trade-off if it just meant that I’d be getting these grumpy, demanding phone calls from Uncle Justin instead.
“I’m sorry, Uncle Justin,” I said, trying to keep my own voice steady and calm even though I was really starting to get irritated with this conversation. “I don’t know what’s going on or why they’ve put you up to this, but I think I’d better give my parents a call. I’m not coming home today or tomorrow or next week, and it’s honestly not okay to make it seem like some urgent thing is happening just because you all think I can’t handle being on my own for a while. Seriously, I’m over it.”
He didn’t say anything for several moments. The silence between us stretched out for so long that I finally had to pull the phone away from my ear just to make sure the call hadn’t disconnected.
But no. He was still on the other end of the line. Just… very quiet.
Finally, I heard him take a deep breath and then slowly exhale. “You can’t call them, sweetie,” he said, his voice breaking a little on the last word. “I’m sorry. I… I didn’t want to tell you any of this over the phone. I wanted to wait until I could explain it in person and make sure you were okay. But you really do have to come home. There’s… there’s been an accident.”
I didn't know if it was the sudden change in his tone or just the realization that something was very wrong, but every bit of irritation I’d been feeling just moments ago was suddenly replaced with fear and a sense of dread. It was so heavy and oppressive that I had to stand up just to try to keep control of my senses. I literally had to remind myself to breathe as I asked the next question—the unavoidable question.
“What kind of an accident?” I asked, somehow managing to speak even though my throat was feeling tighter with each passing second. “Is it… are my mom and dad okay?”
There was a muffled sound on the other end of the line, and I strained to hear what was being said. I motioned for my friends to be quiet even though I was pretty sure they had both stopped talking a few minutes ago. It just felt like too much was happening at once and that I wasn’t in control of any of it.
The room was too hot. Or maybe too cold. Andwhatwas taking my uncle so long to respond? It seemed like there was some other conversation happening in the background on his end, and I just needed some damn answers.
“Uncle Justin?” I asked, blinking hard to keep the anxious tears that were welling up from spilling over. “Please tell me what’s going on? Who are you talking to right now? Please justtellme.”
“I’m sorry, sweetie.” Uncle Justin’s voice sounded closed off and far away. “Your parents’ plane crashed on the way back from a cattle auction. There… there weren’t any survivors. I’m so sorry but—”
The phone fell away from my ear as I reached out to steady myself against the desk. The room was spinning, and someone was screaming. Maybe it was me.
Becca and Daisy Lynn were at my side, thank God. They were holding me up, keeping me from collapsing onto the floor.
“What is it, Janessa?” Becca asked.
“What’s going on?” Daisy Lynn’s voice was in my other ear.
“My parents,” I managed to say as the floor started slipping out from under my feet. “They’re dead.”
And then my whole world went dark.
