Page 14

Before letting them in, I eyeball the guy a minute too long as he shifts under my intense stare. Finally, I pull open the door enough for them to enter, “Sure, why not.”
“I know you’re probably wondering why I’m here, with this man.” She motions behind her, taking my hand and pulling me to the sofa where we sit down. “I want you to come live with me.”
My brows scrunch together, “Really?” Shocked is how I would put it, not because Aunt Josie and I aren’t close, it’s just… “What’s going to happen to the house?”
“That’s where this man comes in. There’s something I have to tell you.” She lets go of my
hand, gets up, and starts to pace the floor. “This man is from Cliffside National Bank, and he’s
here because your mom and Dad were behind on their payments.“ Immediately, I get defensive and hop up from my seat on the sofa.
“That’s not possible. Mom and Dad never missed a payment. And-and, they, and they.” I try to get the words out, but it’s only sobs as I cry for my lost parents.
“There, there, baby. It’s going to be alright. You just wait and see.” She tries to reassure me, and I’m so distraught that I let her. “You don’t need to take anything with you, I have everything you could want or need.” Her voice and reassurance calms me down as what I can only think of as a panic attack tries to take over.
“What will the bank do to the house?”
“That’s where I come in. My name is Daniel Myers, and I’m handling the sale of the property. For starters, we will give you a chance to come up with the money to purchase it back. The-” I cut him off.
“How much is it to purchase it back?”
“Roughly around sixty-five thousand dollars.” He says as if it’s no big deal.
“I’m just a sixteen-year-old kid, where am I gonna get sixty-five thousand dollars from?” Cue the waterworks all over again.
“Please, don’t cry. If there was anything I could do to stop this, I would.” He says.
I scoff, “Somehow I doubt that to be true.” Goodness, I hate when I cry. Snot and everything else starts leaking from my nose. “My parents haven’t even been dead six months, and you guys are coming in here, telling me they owe all this money and that if I want to continue living here, I’ll have to find a way to get it. Nobody has any compassion that my entire world just came tumbling down. But, what can I say, this is the world we live in. Nobody cares.” I try to run away, but Aunt Josie is there, wrapping her arms so tight around me, that I have no choice but to feel all the love within her embrace.
“We will figure it out, baby girl. Don’t cry before I start crying.” She whispers. “We must never show our weakness, if we cry, we do it in silence.” She tips my chin up and kisses my forehead.
I’m not sure how she does it, but I stop crying, wipe my face, and put on my big girl undies. “Okay.” Is the only indication I give that I trust her with whatever she has planned.
“C’mon, let’s get out of here.”
The drive to Aunt Josie’s seems to take forever, but that’s just me being dramatic. I watch in fascination as the countryside comes into view. I’ve seen trees, but these are different from the ones I’m used to seeing in the city. Massive is the only word that comes to mind. And just like that, I have a new obsession where trees are concerned.
I’m so fascinated with all the trees, that I don’t even notice we’ve pulled into the driveway. Once we get out of the car and get ready to step inside, the front door comes flying open.
“There’s my best girl.”
“Gaia! What are you doing here?”
“Nothing could keep me away. My best fran needed me, so here I am.” She wraps her arms around me, and I instantly start to think things may be looking up after all.
We all step inside, and I let Gaia lead me into the house where I’m greeted with a blast from the past.
“Mr. Bash!” Excitement takes over my voice as I shout when I see him standing there.
“Hey, kiddo, how are you?” Mr. Bash has been a friend of the family since I can remember. He’s come by to visit often since my parents died. I’ve always thought of him like a second father to me, and I expected that to stop when my parents died, but it didn't.
I ran into his outstretched arms and let the tears fall yet again. “Everything is just so, so… Ugh.” I cry.
“It’s going to get worse before it gets better, you have to know and understand that, little one.”
“No, I don’t want to.” I let go of him and run from the room. I race upstairs in search of my old room Aunt Josie made for me when I would have sleepovers with her.
Once there, I rush inside, slam the door, and shrink to the floor, exhaling a breath I didn’t know I was holding until I got inside.