Ginny and Georgia: The Younger Shadow

Chapter 21-Melissa and Caleb
As Ginny and I walked through the door, I sensed the abrupt change in the atmosphere. I tensed up and glanced over at my sister. There came talking from the living room and a few sharp shouts.
"Mom?" Ginny called.
"Ginny, Charlie... sit down, girls. Sit down." Mom saw us and patted the maroon sofa. Opposite her, sitting on the thin wooden chairs, was a blonde woman that looked like mom's mirror image. And a boy who looked very much like Austin, except for the fact he had hazel hair. Austin was sitting next to my mom, and I sat down next to him. But Ginny had an almost resigned look to her face.
"I've seen you two before - when I was working my shift at the Blue Moon Cafe. You ordered a few burgers and milkshakes." She gasped. My mom had an almost pained look on her face.
"Sure did, darlin'." The woman replied. She had the exact same Alabama accent as mom did, which was rare to come by these days. The boy next to her had a blank, and almost dead look his eyes. He looked maybe a year or two older than Austin.
"Mom, who is this?" Ginny questioned. Her voice got louder, and my mom put her hand up.
"Virginia, don't you dare raise your voice with me." Mom yelled, and was being a hypocrite. And I just stood there, frozen and torn between yelling or just being quiet.
"Kids, this is Melissa, and her son Caleb. Melissa is- my sister." My stomach twisted, and Ginny's hand flew to her mouth in horror. What the hell. Sister. Nephew. Kid. Family. They were my blood, my family?
"What the fuck?" I cried, tears welling in my eyes,
"But you told us- Georgia, you told us you didn't have siblings."
"Georgia?" The blonde woman perked her head up and glared at my mom.
"Who the ruddy bell is Georgia? Marie, what have you been telling these kids?" She snapped. I stiffened immediately. Marie? My middle name? A sudden coldness hit my core. The use of something so familiar to me made me feel horrified. This lady was my aunt. This boy was my cousin.
"Who's Marie?" Austin asked, nudging his glasses further up his nose. I had forgotten he was there.
"What on earth? Your mother's name is Marie, not Georgia. What kinda bull crap has she been telling you kids?"
"Melissa, we can discuss this later. Not in front of my children." Mom said. Her eyes refused to meet mine.
"What, so you just lied to us and said you had no family? You said our grandparents were dead, and that you had no siblings, mom? Who even are you?" Ginny's eyes blazed with fury.
"Ginny-" I started-
"No, Charlie. It's time we deserved the truth. We don't even know who your dad is! What kind of secrets have you been keeping from us, Marie?" At the use of that name, my mom stood up and slapped my sister. The sharp and sudden hit rang in my ears. It was so rapid, and I could tell Georgia regretted it at once. Ginny held her red face and ran upstairs, the  stairs creaking under her weight. The door slammed shut, and we were all plunged into silence.
"Charlie, Austin, take Caleb to your room." When I didn't move, my mom hissed, "Charlotte Miller. Now." I knew that when she used my full name she meant business. I took Austin's hand and Caleb followed us upstairs. Ginny's door was shut, but I tentatively knocked and asked,
"Ginny, can we come in?"
"Yeah," came the stony, emotionless reply. We walked inside. Ginny was lying on her bed, staring into space. She didn't acknowledge us or Caleb.
"Um, Caleb, why don't you sit down and maybe, tell us more about yourself. We are cousins, after all." Cousins. Such a simple word. One that tied us all together.
"Ok. Um, I'm sorry about my mom. She just took us here and said I was going to meet my family. She can be a bit- well, you know." I nodded calmly. For the next hour we spoke and got to know one another better. If someone had told me I would've spent the evening talking to a cousin I didn't even know existed, I would've sent them to a mental hospital.
"Caleb, none of this is your fault. Maybe it was just- just fate." I tried. Ginny snorted from where she had been sitting for the last hour, with a sullen look on her face. I stared at her.
"Ginny, stop. This isn't his fault."
"No. But all this shit is someone's fault. I'm gonna speak to Melissa. Come with me, Charlie. Leave Austin and Caleb here." Should I come with her, or stay with my cousin?
"Um, stay here, boys. Austin, you can show Caleb your car or Harry Potter collection!" His eyes brightened up at that.
"C'mon, Caleb." After they had left, Ginny and I went to the dining room. My mom and Melissa were still sitting at the table, in a deep conversation. They didn't even notice us till Ginny cleared her throat expectantly.
"Mom, Charlie and I deserve an explanation. We want to hear it all. About your childhood. You've never told us once about it."
"Peach, it's long and boring, don't you just want to go to bed? We'll sort this out in the morning." Georgia strainer her words, and for the first time ever, I couldn't help noticing the purple eye-bags she had. She looked like she hadn't slept for a year, and the notorious image I knew she always wanted had come crumbling down.
"You're my nieces. And I have a nephew. Wow." Melissa remarked. Mom scoffed when she thought we didn't hear her, but Melissa ignored her and continued to ask us questions.
"Zion is your father, right, girls?" Melissa asked.
"I remember Marie- I mean, 'Georgia' walking with him through town. He was a handsome man, that was for sure. Your ideal man, really."
"Um, Zion is Ginny's dad. Not mine." I answered. At this, Melissa seemed to get a lot more interested.
"Not your dad? Then who is, Honey Bun?" Should I answer honestly or not?
"None of your business, Missy. That man was my past, and I will not let you go around disrupting my children's' lives!" Mom banged the table hardly with her fist, which sent the glass of water next to her trembling.
"Gee, I was only asking. No need to get your pants in a twist. But Austin is- is he Zion's?" She asked, lowering her voice. She made my mother seem like the troubled and disturbed one.
"His dad's name is Gil Timmins. He's In prison." I gulped and glanced over at mom. Talking about her past was something she never wanted to do. She only ever told me my dad was called Anthony, and when he found out she was pregnant with me, he dumped her and left her to fend for herself. She told me he wasn't a good man. That it was better for me to not know.
"Why did you call my mom Marie? That's my middle name!" I exclaimed.
"Middle name, huh? Didn't know she would want a reminder of it." Missy seemed to speak more to herself than anyone else.
"That was her name but I guess she changed it." Changed it? I thought my mom's name was always Georgia. At that point, the shock had long worn off me. It was like all the pain and secrets had made me numb. Emotionless. Like a ghost. And I probably resembled one. My paper white skin had already turned a fainter colour, and the blood had long since stopped pumping to my brain. Because it wouldn't work properly. Fighting to get the words out of my mouth, I asked mom, "why didn't you tell us you had family?"
"Family? They're not your family. Not after what they did to me."
"It wasn't my fault." Missy hissed. But they were speaking things Ginny and I couldn't possibly comprehend. After a long time of speaking, we went to bed, feeling confused and befuddled. Caleb and Missy had a small mattress placed for them in the living room. That night, however hard I tried to sleep, I just couldn't.
"Ginny? You still awake?" I gently whispered in the gloom. She lifted the blanket for me to climb inside her bed. And she stroked my honey coloured hair, and eventually I managed to get to sleep. The last thing I remembered was a gentle humming and something stroking my skin.