AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Sky
Four months earlier
“Fuck, I’m on a highway to hell,” I huff, looking in my rearview mirror as I change lanes.
“That’s not funny, Sky,” my mom warns, her beautiful voice echoing through the speaker of the car I rented at San Diego Airport. I took the afternoon flight out from New York, and if I’m lucky it will still take me about another hour, with traffic, to get to my father’s BMX compound in the middle of freaking nowhere.
A wave of nausea hits me, and I skid to a halt on the side of the road. Grabbing the steering wheel, I squeeze until my knuckles turn white. “I don’t know if I can do this, mom,” I say, locking eyes with her over FaceTime.
She lets out a deep breath, and walks onto the balcony of our Park Avenue penthouse, the dark skyline of Manhattan glistening with a thousand lights.
She takes a cigarette out of the pack and blows me a kiss. “I know you can, baby girl.”
“I thought you didn’t smoke anymore?” I ask, laughing, through the tears that threaten to spill over.
She rolls her eyes. Sometimes she looks so much younger than forty. She winks, and says, “Don’t tell your stepdad.”
A small smirk tugs on her lips, and I can’t help but snicker thinking about Conrad’s reaction, the man adores my mom.
We are both quiet for a while.
“Mom …” My voice breaks.
“You can do it, kiddo,” she whispers.
“What if Jay doesn’t want to see me,” I sob, trying to sound strong, but breaking all over again. “I…I…need…” I can’t even finish my sentence through my hiccups.
She covers her mouth with a trembling hand and starts to cry. “You’re strong, baby. If anyone can do this, you can.”
“I don’t know what’s going to happen,” I say, brushing away a tear with my sleeve. I clutch the necklace Jay gave me in the palm of my hand. “It’s been years.”
“I know, but he misses you, just as you miss him,” she tells me.
Our eyes meet. “Why didn’t he love us enough to stay? Why does he only call once a year? Why did he never come to get me?”
“Oh, honey,” she whispers, tears streaming down her pretty face.
“Mommy.”
“Give yourself some time, it’s going to be good for you both. And then you can come home to us, and your brother.”
“Okay,” I smile, wiping at my nose. “I googled Jay’s info on the plane. The itinerary on his website said he will be home tomorrow when the tour ends.”
“I just don’t want you to get hurt. BMX was Jay’s life; it still is. I don’t know how much he’s changed.”
“I don’t care, and you know why?” I ask as she looks up, and brushes a stray lock behind her ear.
“Why?”
I run my fingers over the necklace. “Because you taught me to be strong,” I whisper, kissing the screen.
“Promise me you’ll come home to us. I’m not ready to lose you. But I also know you have a strength inside of you,” she says, placing her hand on her heart. “I know you need to mend things with Jay, and maybe there are still parts of yourself you need to find as well. I love you so much,” she tells me.
“I love you too, and I’ll come back,” I promise, ending the call, never wanting to let go.
My father bought some land in Chula Vista, one of the number one training areas for BMX, and started his company not long after the last time I visited. I turned fifteen that summer, five years have gone by, and I tried not to think about him or his life here.
I put the car in drive, pull back on to the highway and focus on the road ahead, slowly breathing in and out until the lump in my throat disappears. Turning up a Metallica song blaring through the speakers, I pull in a tight breath and blink back my tears. “Get it together. I’m strong. I can do this.” I try to convince myself.
