Adopted By Kevin Olusola

Chapter 23

KYRA's POV
I woke up next to Amber. She was still sleeping. I looked at the clock and it was 4:43 am. I decided to get up and take a shower so I didn't keep Amber waiting. She and her family had to go to a family reunion. I got out of bed, put in my contacts, brushed my teeth, and started up the shower. Amber's house is 200 years old, so it takes a while for the shower to warm up. I texted Mitch because he usually gets up early.
Me: u up?
Mitch: If you mean scrolling through Tumblr and Twitter as up..
Me: what r we doing 2day
Mitch: idk :/ ur dad said that we r leaving @ 7
Me: Great! I'm getting in the shower so I gtg. Byeeeeeee :-)
I took a shower while listening to Dear No One (by Tori Kelley) and I Lived (by OneRepublic.) I got out of the shower and checked my phone. It was only 5:00. I got dressed and did my hair and makeup. I was sitting in the beanbag chair in Amber's room on my phone. I was checking Instagram when I got a text. It was Noah.
Noah: Hey Beautiful! I hope you have a supercalifragilisticexpialidocious day! <3
I can't believe he remembered the supercalifragilisticexpialidocious was my favorite word from our first conversation. He is the sweetest.
Me: Hey! Whatcha doin?
Noah: Well, Ferb and I are building a rollercoaster! Wanna help?
Me: Of course, Phineas. I'll go get all of the other fireside girls.
Noah: tbh that was the best convo of my life
Me: Same here! But really, what are you doing?
Noah: Laying in bed and texting my favorite person (I'm talking about you)
Me: That's fun! I'm sitting in my friend's bedroom waiting for her to wake up. btw I'm in South Carolina because the North Carolina show was cancelled
Noah: That's awesome! Gtg! My brother has a sporting event and I am forced to go. Wish me luck!
Me: Poor you! Ttyl and Good Luck!
I love texting him. He gets me. The only other people like that are Dad and Amber. I was so lost in my thoughts that I almost didn't realize Amber getting up.
"Hey!" I said.
"How long have you been up?" She asked, still half-asleep.
"Since 4:45," I said, "So about an hour and a half."
"You're insane!" She said, "I'm going to go take a shower, so make yourself at home. I bet my mom is probably making breakfast if you are hungry."
"Thanks," I said, "I think that I am going to go see what my dad is doing."
"Okay," she said as she walked into the bathroom and closed the door.
I walked down to Dad's room. It was right next to Avi's. I walked past Avi's room and he was snoring louder than the crowds cheered at the concerts. I looked at the time and it was 6:20. I knew that we were leaving in 40 minutes.
I walked in and stood next to him. I whispered, "Avi, it's time to get up." Nothing. "Avi," I said a little louder. Nothing. "AVI!!" I yelled.
"WHAT IN THE WORLD?" He yelled, startled. He saw me. "I'm going to get you," he said. Before I knew it, he was tickling me, being careful not to get my rib. Finally, he stopped. I told him that we were leaving at 7:00 and I left him to get ready.
I walked into Dad's room to see him sitting on his bed, playing Beyoncé. "Hey!" He said when he saw me walk in.
"Hi!" I said, sitting in his lap, "What are we doing today?"
"We are going to a famous slave plantation where movies and TV shows have been filmed," he said.
"Yes," I said, "Every history nerds' dream!"
"Go downstairs and eat breakfast," Dad said, "When you are done we can get going."
I went downstairs and ate breakfast with Kirstie who had just finished showering. While we were eating breakfast, Amber and her parents left for their family reunion. Kirstie and I talked about stuff that we wouldn't necessarily want to talk about with the guys around.
Around 6:55 the boys came downstairs. Avi had his hair in a bun, but it wasn't even, so I got up on a chair and fixed it. We all walked outside and got in the van that we had with us on tour to go places when we weren't performing. We drove to the plantation and I pointed out everything that I recognized along the way. We pulled into the plantation and I realized that it was one of my favorite places on Earth, Boone Hall Plantation.
"Have you been here before?" Mitch asked.
"Been here?" I said, "More like grew up here! My parents worked here, so I spent a lot of summers here! I can't believe that I am actually here!"
"Awesome!" Said Mitch, "Let's get going! There is a lot to see!"
We went on a tour of the mansion, a tour of the grounds, and a tour of the slave cabins. We were about to leave when I remembered that there was a presentation on a slave language called "Gullah."
"We have to go to that!" I said pointing to the performance area.
"Oh, all right!" Dad said. We all went over to the outdoor performance area and sat down on a bunch. The woman had the audience sing some songs with her and for some reason she was in love with Avi's voice. Most people are. We were sitting enjoying the performance when I saw a bee fly past. It was hovering around me and it was freaking me out. Of course I had put flower scented perfume on today.
"Dad," I said, "It's a bee."
"It's okay," he said, "It can't hurt you." He forgot about my allergy to bee stings. I was kind of embarrassed to have to tell him because it might make him seem like a bad parent. The bee didn't stop flying around me. I tried to swat it away with my hand, but it came up and stung me. I started breaking out in hives and my tongue swelled up, causing me to have a hard time breathing.
Dad was very intrigued by the presentation, so he didn't notice anything. Scott must have heard me breathing, so he turned towards me and when he saw my face his face was as pale as a ghost.
"KEVIN!" He all but yelled. Dad turned towards me and started freaking out.
"Epi-pen," I somehow managed to get out.
He dug in my purse looking for my Epi-pen. He finally injected it into my leg and my symptoms stopped. I started breathing normally and my hives started to go away.
I looked around and saw that the performance had stopped and that everyone was staring at me. I got up and started running. I ran to a hiding place in an indented part of a tree that Amber and I had found when we were 6. I hid there and cried. I almost didn't notice when Avi came in and sat with me. He picked me up and put me on his lap.
"Hey, Little Dragon," He said, rubbing my back, " Shh. It's okay. It's not your fault. Do you want to go to the car?"
I looked up into his green eyes. "Can we just stay here for two more minutes?" I asked.
"Anything you want," he said in a soothing voice, "Cool hiding place."
"Thanks," I said, "Amber and I found it when we were 6."
"Seems like something I would have found as a kid... or now," he said.
"I'm sorry about what happened back there," I said, "I probably really embarrassed you guys."
"No, no, no," he said, "It's not your fault. Please don't think that."
"Okay," I said, "I'm kind of dizzy. Can you carry me to the car?"
"Of course," he said as he pulled me onto his back.
He carried me back to the car and set me down on Dad's lap. No one talked the rest of the way to Amber's house. We pulled into the driveway and Amber wasn't home.
Suddenly, I was really tired. "I'm going to take a nap," I said, "My allergic reaction really wore me out."
"Okay," Kirstie said, "Let us know if you need anything."
"Okay!" I said, "Love you guys!"
"Love you, Kyra," Dad said.
I went to sleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.
I was in my old foster home. I look around and I see a belt lying on the counter and I look over to see my foster father grab the belt off the counter. He hits me with the belt, "Worthless, Money-wasting, Skinny, Stupid, child. You are the cause of all of this family's problems. Everyone wishes that you never existed!" I screamed. He hit me again with the belt. In the face, the neck, the back, the stomach. Everywhere. I screamed again and again.
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KEVIN's POV
I was talking with Kirstie about Kyra, when all of the sudden I hear screaming and crying. I run up to Amber's room where Kyra is sleeping.
"KYRA! WAKE UP! WHAT HURTS? ARE YOU OKAY?" I yell.
"Don't touch me," she pulls her arm away from me, runs to the bathroom, and locks the door.
I hear her sob in the bathroom. I can't stand to see her like this. I ran to my room and tried to lock the door. Unfortunatley, there is no lock on the door. I cry to myself for a few minutes until Avi bursts in the room and sits down next to me. He gives me a hug, but says nothing. Avi knows exactly how to deal with situations like this. I cry into his shoulder and he just lets me. He is the best friend ever.
"What's wrong?" He finally asks.
"I d-don't know," I said through sobs.
"I just heard her scream, so I walked in and tried to comfort her. Instead of accepting it like I thought she would, she yelled, 'Don't touch me,' and ran into the bathroom."
"Kev," Mitch said, popping his head into the room, "Where is Kyra?"
"She locked herself in the bathroom," I said, "I think she had a nightmare or something."
Mitch came over and hugged me. "I'll go see if she'll let me in," he said.
"Thanks," I said, lying my head down on the pillow.
"I'm such a terrible father," I said to Avi.
"Shut up, Kevin," Avi said, "You know better than anyone else that Kyra loves you more than anything. She is just going through some rough times. We've only had her for about a month and she lived a crappy life before coming to live with us. Life isn't easy, especially not for Kyra."
"Kyra lived here before her parents died," I blurted out, "She didn't want me to tell any of you guys."
"That explains how she knows the place so well and why her friend lives here," Avi said.
"Don't tell her I told you," I said.
"I promise," Avi said.
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MITCH's POV
I walked to the bathroom door and knocked lightly. I heard Kyra sob quietly in the bathroom. I tried to move the door handle and it opened. Amber's mom had mentioned that the house was a couple hundred years old and that some of the doors would open even if they were locked.
I looked down to she Kyra curled up in a ball, head in her knees, rocking back and forth.
"Ky," I bent down and touched her shoulder. She screamed. Then she looked up at me and saw that it was just me. She started to breathe slower and more evenly.
"Kyra, what's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?" I asked.
"You probably don't want to know," she said, "I don't want you to pity me anymore than you already do."
"Kyra Hope Olusola!" I said, "You mean the world to me. I could care less about anything else when you need something."
"Okay," she said, "I lived here before my parents died and this is reminding me of my first foster home. When I was there I had and abusive foster father. I had a nightmare about him and when Dad came into my room, I thought it was my foster father."
"Honey," I said, pulling her into my chest, "You don't deserve to be treated anything like that. You are perfect, Kyra. You are beautiful, kind, funny, and perfect. No one should ever treat you differently. We all love you and none of us would ever hurt you."
"I know," Kyra said, "Thanks for coming in here with me. I-"
"Kyra! Ohmygoshareyouokay?" Amber said, running to Kyra.
"I'm fine," Kyra said, "Just a bad dream. It's a long story that I don't have the energy to tell."
"Okay," Amber said, "I have to go help my parents with something." She ran downstairs to help her parents.
"Thanks, Mitch," Kyra said, "I'm just still a little shaken up. Can you help me up?"
"Of course, princess," I said causing us both to giggle, "Is your rib bad?"
"No," she said. I could tell that she was lying because I used to do the same thing.
"Nice try, but you're not tricking me."
"It was worth a try..." she said. I picked her up and sat her down on Amber's bed.
"Où t'es? Papaoutai?" She asked.
"I'll go grab him!" I said, "Stay here."
I walked into Kevin's room to find him bawling into Avi's shoulder. "Kev," I said, "She asked where you were, in French..."
"Thanks, Mitch," he said, "Wait, French?"
"Papaoutai..." I said.
"I'll go talk to her," he said.
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KEVIN's POV
I walk into Amber's room. Kyra is lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling. "I'm sorry," she said, unable to make eye contact, "I had nightmare about one of my past foster fathers."
"What happened?" I asked.
"Well," she said, "When I lived there, he was very abusive. Whenever my foster mother was around it was okay, but as soon as she left he would abuse me. I had a dream that I was back at that foster home and that he was being abusive. When you first walked into the room, I couldn't see because I didn't have my contacts in and it looked like you were him and it scared me."
I pulled Kyra into a hug and and just held her for a while. "Why didn't you tell me?" I asked.
"Because," she said, "I was trying to leave my part behind."
"I understand," I said, "Tomorrow is our last full day here, so we are going to do a lot. Why don't we go eat and then get some rest so we can go full speed tomorrow?"
"Food?" She asked, "Don't have to tell me twice!"
She jumped up and walked downstairs. We ate dinner together and we all went to bed. I prayed that Kyra would be able to sleep tonight.