Hide and Seek (Completed)

Chapter Four

Avery finally closed her gaping mouth. The wheels in her head were turning, then finally she spoke. "If you're gifted, and your dad is gifted, then you're the first to ever have been born with two parents with flairs. And live." She said it as if it mystified her. "How is that possible? How- Why, did- what happens-" Her eyes were wild now. She was a little bit freaked.

"Avery!" I pleaded with her to just shut up. "Please let me and my mom have a conversation real quick. Please." I begged with my eyes to Avery and she seemed to get the message and stepped away slowly, then turned around and took a left down the hall, obviously having a conversation with herself about the idea of this. It was so her, so normal, for her to be the brains and to think things out like that. The wheels in her head were constantly turning. And it just seemed normal compared to the last however many hours.

"Emma, where is your dad?" The woman in front of me said. "Is he... alive?"

"Why do you care? You're the one that left him." I spat.

"No! I didn't leave-."

"You left me when I was sick. When I needed you!" I fired back, sudden anger rolling through me. In response, her shoulders sagged.
"The best part is, I ended up in the hospital, too. You left right before the worst of it. They still don't know what was wrong with me. Just that one day, I was miraculously starting to get better. You left me and dad. When you left, you ruined us. You ruined dad."
The shock on her face made me feel more and more guiltily happy. She deserved it. I had never realized before how angry I was at her. At what she left for me.

When I was younger, nine going on ten, I had gotten very sick. They don't know what was wrong with me, only that I constantly had a fever, dizziness, and pain in every muscle in my body. It had been five weeks of this, and my birthday was coming up. We celebrated at home, and the day after mom had dissapeared. I went to the hospital when the migraines worsened and naseua set in. Weeks after that, it started going away. It was a total of two and a half months of discomfort. And with mom being gone... it didn't help dad or my situation.

"You and your dad were so close when I left." She said. "I was sure you would get along. And I left when you weren't feeling well. I thought it was because you were dying. Because you had two gifted parents."
I raised my eyebrows and gestured for her to continue and explain.
"I think we should sit down in my office. You tell me your story, I'll tell you mine." We both nodded in agreement. And she lead me towards her office door.

Inside there was a desk filled with papers and picture frames and a laptop. There was an easel in the corner next to a paint splattered table. The whole back wall was lined in book shelves top to bottom and the walls were covered in paintings and pictures.

Painting had always been her thing. I painted too. But not a lot. It always brought back painful memories.

Mom pointed to a red cushioned chair sitting in front of her desk and I sat there, uncomfortably. She went around the desk and sat in a plain office chair.

"So, tell me how it all happened. How you got better. What life was like and how you ended up here. Everything from the day I left. Of course, shortened a bit." She crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, expecting a story.

"Fine." I said, begrudingly starting my story when it should have been her going first. "The day after you left, dad took me to a hospital so I could get checked out. Plus it had been getting worse. There was nothing wrong with me except the worst migranes and sore muscles but the naseua had come in as well. It went on for four or five more weeks or so before I woke up one day and the pain was nearly gone. Dad took me home from the hospital, kept a close eye on me. When he was sure I was fine, about a month later, the pain seemed to catch up to him. Of you leaving, of me, sick beyond a cure. He walked up to his room and didn't come out for days. I was just ten years old, fending for my self. A while later, I met Avery. She always helped me even though she didn't know what was going on. A couple days later, though, I started hearing random voices in my head. I told dad, hesitantly. I didn't want him to freak out again. He looked worried and started to let me take therapy classes and stuff, thinking I was stressed and probably blaming himself for not being there for me for a week. After two years I could turn the voices off. I thought I was crazy. But look where I am now." I shrugged. "Then, four or five days ago, I can't remember, Avery came over. We swam and at the end of the day- by the way, Avery's mom is engaged even though you haven't met her- when she was gone, I was going down the stairs because I had the money for a pizza we ordered and I fell. You remember the stairs, right? Hardwood, long and very hard steps. When I got to the bottom, dad was there and I ran in to him. I heard a glass breaking, I'm guessing on him because he was passed out too. Then I lost counciousness and woke up in a hospital. Avery said she had called 911 and stuff. Anyway, when I woke up Avery was there. My Flair showed itself because I'm at the age where it is super powerful and overreactive or something. They thought dad was abusing me and were going to seperate us. Dad got better quickly. He only had the one gash on his head. I had two broken ribs," Mom took a sharp intake of breath. "A huge concussion, a broken foot, and my head had cuts and my whole body was sore and still has bruises, even after Luck litterally just walked in the door and pretty much healed me. Then I changed out of my hospital gown and we raced towards my car and got the heck out of there. Now I'm here." I finished. "Your turn. Since the day you left."