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“It’s because, like me, you desperately need your parent’s approval.”
Heat burned across my face.
“No need to be ashamed of it. I’m right there with you. And, like me, there’s only one path you can take to get it. I’m that path and you know it. Being with me will give you the only thing you’ve truly wanted your whole life. That’s why you’re going to choose me,” he said with a smug smile.
I thought about it. His words were scalpels peeling my skin from my body. I was exposed.
“I can’t deny what you said,” I admitted. “My family’s approval was the only thing I’ve ever wanted. It was. You know what the greatest thing is about finally being loved, it makes up for all of the love you didn’t get when you needed it most,” I said realizing that I was finally free.
The smile on Sey’s face disappeared. When I saw that, I smiled.
“Titus?”
“Titus,” I told him.
Sey leaned back in his chair and released a slow deep breath.
“This would have been so much easier if you just saw it the way I did.”
“Well, we can’t always get what we want,” I said feeling good.
“I’m glad you said that because you’re right. But here’s the thing, I always do.”
As I watched, something sinister entered Sey’s eyes. It sent a chill down my spine.
“I didn’t want this. But it seems you’ve given me no choice.”
“What, Sey?”
“Did you know that Titus is paying for school mostly with a state grant? It’s to help less privileged kids pay for college. I didn’t know anything about it, but it was explained to me by a family friend who’s in charge of the program.”
Terror washed through me.
“No, Sey.”
“Wouldn’t it be a shame if he lost the grant that allowed him to attend East Tennessee? It would certainly be a bummer for our football season.”
“You wouldn’t.”
“I would, and more. In fact, did you know that the town he’s from is applying to become incorporated? They want to self-govern. Isn’t that adorable. They’re growing up. And, do you know whose name is on the petition? Titus’s! A different family friend told me that.”
“You wouldn’t,” I said horrified.
“Didn’t you hear what the stakes are for me? Of course I would ensure his petition isn’t approved. It would be so easy. What you really should be worried about is the hard thing. Do you know what ‘eminent domain’ is?”
“Oh Sey,” I said feeling my heartbreak.
“Eminent domain is the right a state has to acquire land from its owners in the name of progress.”
“No Sey.”
“You see, for decades, the state of Tennessee has been wanting to build a freeway. But where? That’s a decision being made by another family friend.
“Funny thing, I ran into him recently. When I did, I suggested a route. It missed every populated area but one. And the place it cut through didn’t even appear on a map, Snow Tip Falls. Ever heard of it?
“Luckily, eminent domain would allow the state to acquire the land and build the freeway. How does that sound? To me, it sounds like progress.”
Tears rolled down my cheeks.
