worth the risk • dean portman

chapter fifteen

morgan

Okay, I may have overreacted a bit when I was at Fulton's house yesterday night.

I don't really think I can be blamed though. I slipped up by telling Jake about Dean, so of course I'm in panic mode. The last thing I want is for my dad to find out. Trust me, it's better off if he doesn't.

Since I'm his only daughter, he wants me to be well taken care of. That's part of the reason why he's so persistent of me potentially having a relationship with Jake. He knows for a fact that Jake would be able to support me, no matter what hardships we'd face in our lives.

That's also the main reason I haven't told him about Dean. Trust me, I'm not ashamed of Dean at all. Even with his past, I'm not hiding him from my dad because I want to. I'm doing it because I honestly don't know how my dad would react to his past, and I want to protect Dean from any possible disapproval that could happen.

The problem with my dad is that he's one of the most close-minded people I've ever met, and he rarely wants to give new people a chance. That's partly because of things that happened to him in the past, and he's unfortunately carried it with him for all this time.

Today is the last Saturday before our winter break is over, and I won't lie and say I'm excited to go back to school. This last weekend has to be good, or the second half of the year will definitely start on the wrong foot.

I decide to start the day on a good note, so I make my bed and clean my room when I wake up. Having a clean room always makes me feel better whenever I'm having a bad day, a bad week, or even a bad month. It always makes me feel so refreshed and productive.

Once my room is clean, I go downstairs and make myself coffee. To me, coffee is a must if I'm going to have a good day. I don't think it's healthy to be addicted to it at seventeen, but at least it's coffee instead of other things.

I bring my coffee over to the couch, which I'm normally not allowed to do. I made sure to drink enough of it before coming over here, so that it won't spill onto everything when I sit down. The last thing I want is to get in trouble for ruining the couch.

I turn the TV on and scroll through my liked movies until I find my favorite one, The Princess Diaries. As soon as I'm relaxed and comfortable, I hear someone walk in through the front door.

"Morgan, are you up?" my dad's voice calls out, and it breaks my focus from the TV.

"Yeah, I'm in the living room." I call back, because the last thing I want is for him to be mad at me.

He appears in the entryway a few seconds later, and I'm not at all shocked to see him sit down on the couch next to me. I try not to let it bother me, because maybe he just wants to watch the movie with me. There's no way I actually thought that. Of course he doesn't, it's The Princess Diaries for crying out loud.

And of course, I'm right. I see him looking at me out of the corner of my eye, and I sit there in silence until he speaks. "Turn off the TV. We need to have a little chat."

I think my stomach physically drops to my feet, but I do what was asked of me. I pause the movie, turn the TV off, and reluctantly look at him. "About what?"

"About the boyfriend that you've had for two years and haven't thought to tell me about?"

Oh shit.

"Dad, I can explain-"

"Don't talk, just listen." he interrupts to say, and I immediately start trying to blink back the tears that are forming in my eyes. This can't be real. The only way he knows is because one of two people told him. My mom, or Jake fucking Kennedy.

And I can pretty much guarantee which one it is.

As my dad begins to talk, my mind is already in a different place. Is it because I called Jake out for being a creepy, obsessive, jealous person? It has to be. Because why else would he randomly drop the bomb to my dad that I've had a boyfriend since freshman year?

I snap back to reality when I hear my dad calling out to me. "Morgan? Morgan? Hello?"

"Sorry, I spaced out." I admit as I look down at my hands in embarrassment.

"So you didn't hear a single word I just said?" he asks condescendingly, which makes me swallow nervously.

"No."

A deep frown forms on his face. "If you were paying any attention to me at all, you would've heard me express my extreme disappointment in you. I mean, what the hell have you been thinking? Not only did you choose a boy who is nowhere near your standards, you picked this boy as a freshman and have kept it hidden for the past two years! Did your mother know about this?"

"Yes." I mumble, as I feel the tears start to stream down my face. This can't be happening right now.

"Why did she get to know and I didn't?" he bellows, and I practically jump at the sheer anger of his voice.

"This is why!" I cry out, unable to stop the sob that escapes from my mouth. "I didn't tell you because I knew you'd react like this! If only you gave him a chance, you'd see how wonderful he is to me. Dad, Jake doesn't treat me like this. Dean treats me so much better than he does."

His anger only grows. "You never even gave Jake the chance to prove himself! You've been nothing but nasty since he and his parents have arrived."

"That's because he's given me reasons to be!" I counter, watching as his eyes go wide because of my sudden outburst. "You don't see him when we're alone, you don't see how rude he is to me, you don't see any of it! I refuse to let you choose who I date, and I promise you right now that it won't be Jake. Ever."

"Morgan." my dad says slowly, and I realize that I might've gone too far. "Listen to me, and listen to me closely. Whatever you have with this boy is now over. Are we clear?"

I'm sure he sees my lip quivering, and I hope that he takes some pity on me. "You don't mean that."

His glare is unfortunately the confirmation I've been hoping I wouldn't see. "Yes I do. This relationship is over. End of discussion." With that, he gets up from the couch and disappears into the kitchen.

Instead of finishing the movie, I shut the TV off and run up to my room. All I want to do is cry, and that's exactly what I do. My pillowcase becomes soaked pretty quickly, but I don't even care.

The best thing I've ever had is gone because of a stupid, jealous boy.