My Year with Grandma

Unwanted?

"I'm so sorry, Mom. I didn't mean to cause undo drama by showing up unannounced."

"Don't, worry about it, Missy Ann. The truth needed to come out anyway sooner or later."

"Jimmy seems pretty upset about it. I can't believe he let her grow up without knowing the truth."

"Sarah thought it best to keep it under wraps. It tore Jimmy up to let her go."

"He still loves her?"

"You know your brother. He keeps his feelings under guard."

"Sounds like she needs to be taken out behind the woodshed." Missy Ann scoffed.

"Someone needs to go to the woodshed?" Interjected May who had just come in the front door with Bethany. "Can I do it? I haven't taken anybody to a woodshed in months."

"Maybe!!" Missy Ann ran up to her and gave her a big hug. "I've missed you!"

"I've missed you too, Missy Ann." She replied hugging her back. "So, who needs to go to the woodshed?"

"Your sister." Gram said at the same time I said, "My mom."

May leveled her sympathetic eyes on me. "Finally found out about Jimmy, did ya?"

"What? Did everyone here know?" The four of them, Gram, May, Missy Ann and Rikki, looked at each other, then nodded at me. "Does Mom know you know?" Again, they nodded. "I see. That's the real reason that she kept me away from you all these years, isn't it? She never wanted me to know who my real dad was and that he was still alive?" I took their stoic silence as confirmation. "So, everyone here that I have met, knows that Jimmy is my real father?" Gram nodded. "And no one thought it prudent to clue me in?"

"Oh, we've been dropping clues from day one. You know we don't tell each other's stories around here. Even when we really want to. So, yes, we've been leaving breadcrumbs for you to figure it out. Missy Ann's early arrival just sped things a bit. We couldn't wait for you to figure it out on your own any longer; we had to push you to push him to admit it. Not the most ideal way to handle it, agreed, but given the circumstances... I hope you can forgive us." Gram offered.

"Then why did she let me come here now? Surely she would know something like this would happen."

May answered this time. "The judge is an old friend of mine. He owed me a favor."

"She didn't want you here, but she also wasn't given a choice, Magpie." Gram added.

"So, she would rather I go to a prison for junkie teens than learn this particular family secret? Beautiful. Just fricken beautiful." I stared at my grandmother for a moment deciding whether or not despise everyone here. "Do you mind if go work on my parents' house alone today? I could use the time to think and sort through things."

"Of course. Go ahead."

"I'll drive you out there," piped up Missy Ann. "Don't say no. I can clearly see you're pregnant and that house is more than mile away." I nodded and headed out the door for the black car. "Be back in a minute, dear." She said to Rikki kissing him on the cheek.

We drove to the house in silence though I stared at her the whole time. It was crazy how much we looked alike, how much we both looked like Jimmy. How did I miss what is clearly so obvious to everyone else? He and I had very similar personalities. We are both abrasive and sarcastic almost to a fault. We eat the same foods in the same way. We are the only two people here that eats gravy on our pancakes. We have the same color hair. Same color eyes. Same build. God, I'm so stupid. I let the tears flow without caring if this clone of mine saw them. She pulled up to the porch of the house Jimmy had once chased me out of and put the car in park. "I'm sorry you had to find out like this." She said sympathetically. "You should have been told long ago."