LUCIOUS & COOKIE: TUG OF WAR II (REMASTERED)

EMPATHIC REFLEXES

Colin

Making my way down the hall from my room towards the kitchen to get something to drink, I tossed the basketball back and forth between my fingers. It's around noon, and I just came from changing my clothes after being in the pool, although it's still a little dreary looking outside. 

Coach Brooks always likes for us to swim a couple of laps every day...and since we've been gone, I've been trying to stay in shape. This past month has flown by, but it's been so weird being here without dad and Laylah hasn't been the same since mom told her we weren't going back.  

She had a complete and utter melt down, after ma explained that she was leaving dad and we won't be able to see or speak to him for a while. She spased worse than Caleb does and that's saying alot.  Personally, I could sense something was off as soon as ma hit the door to the lake house a few hours after we made it here with Porsha. 

Her entire aura seemed darkened. Ma is ma.  Always the life of the party. Always the one trying to lighten everyone's spirits with positive vibes, but as I watched her trudge up the driveway towards the house that morning, our father nowhere to be found, fear hit me dead in the chest.  

La's eyes as we all sat around the table while mommy explained our sudden relocation, caught us all off guard to be honest.  The way she stared at her, the way she howled as if ma was the bad guy and then had a full-blown panic attack is something I've never seen from my sister before.  As my twin and I hugged ma, while she held Laylah along the floor as she cried, all any of us wanted to do was the same.  

A brief huff left my lips while I rounded the corner to the kitchen and opened the fridge in search of a snack. Caleb's on the sofa playing Call of Duty Black Ops with his headphones in while he loafs around as usual, and Porsha went into town to do a little grocery shopping. 

She's been staying with us to help ma out since we've been up here. I opened the top to my Snapple and took it down, after watching my twin play the game for a few minutes I decided to head back up to my room...this house is nice and it's really big, but it still doesn't feel like home.

I miss my dad, I miss his goofy butt trying to use slang like he's young, or the way he'd wrap mom up in his arms and burst out singing to her for no reason. I miss us being a family most of all, and still I ain't sure what fully happened between them that brought our parents to this point. 

We've all been trying to figure it out, ma and dad have never been apart this long ever, so what ever went down must have been very serious and see that's what's got me scared. I don't want my parents to get a divorce but since ma said she's not going back then I'm starting to feel like their heading in that direction.

We talk to Mal, Dre, and Keem almost everday and they're supposed to come up here to spend Christmas with us at the end of the month...but no matter how hard me and Caleb try...none of them will tell us what really happened between mommy and daddy. I've got plenty of friends that talk about how much they hate having to spend separate time with their parents because they got divorced and I never thought I'd ever be in their shoes one day.

Exhaling weightily, I took another sip from my drink, while my thoughts continued to ponder the situation. La has barely been talkin' to ma and I know it's been making her sad. Every night, me and Caleb hear them both crying when they think we're asleep and neither of us knows what to do.

Normally when ma is upset or sad dad's there to cheer her up and make her feel better. And when La is sad he does the same thing for her. But now he's not here and the fact that ma hardly ever comes outta her room is starting to make me worried.

As I continued my journey, I strolled past mommy's room to get to mine and as soon as I did, I could hear her through the Cherry Oak wood of her door. I stopped in front of it and sighed...she's crying again and it makes me wanna cry...cuz that's all she seems to do most days since we left. I ain't no punk but I love my mother dearly and I hate seeing her like this.