The New Girl

Turner

Turner

Gabby

I received a phone call in the middle of lunch and the name Father was what appeared on the screen. I thought I deleted his contact the other night after I called him, but I guess not. I pressed decline and tuned back into the story Dakota was telling. Truthfully, I didn't listen to it at all: I couldn't get my mind off of my brother. Mom told me she was going to be signing him out of the hospital today. A huge part of me has a feeling she's not going to. All weekend she has been making up excuses to not sign him out.

Father: Gabby, please call me.

Me: I'm at school.

Father: I know you're at lunch. Please.

"Excuse me." I murmured as I stood up from our lunch table. After the last talk I had with my dad, the last thing I wanted was to have to speak to him again. I went to missed calls and pressed call back next to my father's contact.

"Thank you." My dad breathed into the phone. I was disgusted just by the sound of his voice; I hate what he did to my family.

"What, Dad?"

"How is your brother?" I wanted to scream in his ear, but I didn't, given the fact there were students and teachers walking around the hallways. Half of this school already thought of me as the weird new girl for no reason - I don't want to give them a reason.

"Here's an idea, Daddio, give him a call yourself." I snapped, "I'm positive Dom would love to hear from you." I tried calling him Matt and Mr. Turner the other day, but my mom yelled at me.

She doesn't even understand how horrible what he did to her and Dom was!

I ended the call on my dad, then turned my phone off.

I don't want to hear from him. Not now and, preferably, not ever.

"Everything okay, G?" Dakota asked.

I offered him a small smile as I sat back down next to Ayden. "Yep."

"What're you doing tonight?" Ayden asked.

Spending the day with my brother. "My mom needs me to stay home today, not sure what for." Lies.

They were probably beginning to be suspicious seeing as I only ever talk about my mom. And I do feel bad for lying to them all of the time, most specifically Ayden. It was my dad's fault I was so ashamed to even think about being a Turner.

I, so badly, wanted to let Ayden in, but I just wasn't ready. I couldn't take that big of a step so quickly, it'd only be a step in the wrong direction. I cannot allow myself to get caught up in any drama whatsoever. I have 7 months left here, and I can't do anything to screw up my brother's chance at a normal life again.

When the end of lunch bell rang, I absent-mindedly stood up and walked to class with Ayden. I was losing focus. What was my focus? To graduate without any problems. I have been spending too much time around Ayden and B, C, and D and it will come to bite me soon enough.

Today, when I get home, I'm going to tell Dom all about Ayden. He seems different. All of the popular guys at my old school would constantly pick on the new students, but Ayden and his friends welcomed me right in.

A girl came running down the hall right past Ayden and I as we were walking to our next class. Ayden chuckled and stopped moving, watching her book it further down the hallway jumping right into Colton's arms.

"Who's that?" I asked, looking up at Ayden.

"Emma, Colton's girlfriend. She was on vacation last week." He answered, as Bennet, Colton, Dakota, and Emma made their way over to us.