Boy Troubles: King of Thieves

Chapter 21

*Christina's point of view*

How was I supposed to react to last night? Piper and Lucy ran in the house out of breath to tell me Piper smacked Lucy's mom and Lucy is gay. I didn't mind that Lucy was gay, but Piper smacking Margaret? I'm not going to lie, she deserved it. Piper just doesn't seem like she would do that.

I walked downstairs to see Bobby going through the mail at the dinning room table. He took one letter and gave it a long stare before getting up and tossing it in the trash. He sat back down and took a sip of his coffee.

"What was that?" I asked, walking closer.

"What was what?" He replied.

I walked to the garbage can and opened it to grab the letter.

"Christina, leave it." That didn't stop me from looking at it. "Christina."

Sent for Piper V. Plizak

"Why are you throwing away her mail?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Did you see who it's from?" He asked me.

Sent by Billy X. Gera

"I wonder what he has to say." I took a stern look at the envelope in my hand.

"The last thing we need is for Piper to have another flashback. Just throw it away."

"Should I open it?" I asked curiously. I was truly curious. I wanted to see what he wrote. I wanted to see what thoughts he put down and sent to my daughter.

"I don't know, it's probably not a good idea."

I shrugged and I figured I would read anyways.

Dear Piper Victoria,
I know I messed up. I didn't think of it at the time, but I knew I was in the wrong. I still know I was in the wrong. I guess giving you my antidepressants wasn't the best idea while you were intoxicated. I was also under the influence, and I honestly believe that's why I did what I did. The next day when my mom yelled at me through the phone I was at Henry's, so of course I had to play it cool. I was breaking on the inside. Hearing my mom say, "YOU RAPED HER!" just made me feel like I should be here, in this detention center. I know you'll never forgive me, I wouldn't either, but I want you to know if I was sober I wouldn't have done anything like that. I loved you. I'd be lying if I said I don't still love you today. I'd be lying if I said I didn't think about you everyday, or think about my arms around your waist. The worst part is that when I think of your amazing, gorgeous, to die for, drop dead beautiful hazel eyes, is that I also think of the tears that filled them because of me. I'm really sorry Piper. I cannot imagine what you have gone through these past few months. I just hope that when I get out, I can tell you in person. I can tell you word by word because I've been thinking about what to say ever since I realized what happened. I can tell you how much I feel bad and how much I loved you. Scratch that, how much I love you. I'm sorry it took so long for me to write this.
I really am sorry,
Billy Xavier Gera

"Whatcha reading?" Piper asked, scaring me. My heart fell out of my chest and went back down my throat, causing me to choke on my words.

"Um, nothing, just a stupid letter." I put it behind my back.

"From?" She chuckled.

"No one." I tried walking away, but playfully Piper held on to me. "Piper!" I let out a laugh as she tried snatching the piece of paper from me. She held the paper in one hand and tickled me with the other. I heard Bobby laugh at me while I was dying of laughter trying to keep the letter away from Piper. Sadly, she won the battle. She took the paper and turned around and tried reading it before I threw her over my shoulder. Her laughter stopped and I figured she started reading the letter.

"Put me down." She requested, trying to squirm out of my arms. I did as requested and set her on her feet. "He wrote me a letter and you tried to keep it from me? Better yet, you were reading it?"

"I just wanted to see what he had to say. Your father was going to throw it away and I got curious." I spoke truthfully.

"You invaded my mail, Mom! You weren't going to let me see it and it's the apology I've been waiting for, for months!" She was furious with me and I couldn't help, but feel guilty.

"I'm sorry, Pipes, I didn't know."

"Of course you didn't." She looked down at the paper and continued reading. She chuckled to herself. "He said he was sorry; that he stills loves me."

"I wouldn't believe him." Bobby mumbled into his cup as he took a sip of coffee.

"I don't. If he did love me he wouldn't have done what he did. Drunk or not." She laughed. "Oh wait, he says otherwise. I should have known he loves me as the flashbacks come back in my dreams, or when I saw his grandma at Steak N' Shake yesterday, or when Lucy's mom called me a rape victim. I should have known this whole time he loved me. Just a drunk mistake, right? He loved me, I loved him, but when I told him to stop he kept going. True love." She stared into my eyes as she went on. A tear rolled down her cheek. "I hate him." More tears came down and her breaths got shorter. She sat against the wall and put her knees to her face.

I kneeled beside her, and placed her face between my hands. "Piper, look at me." Her eyes poured tears as they looked around until they finally met mine.

"I lied." She whispered.

"What do you mean?"

"I said it won't define me, but it's all that I think about." She shook as I held her. She cried into the crook of my neck. "I hate this."

"Piper, look," I raised her chin with my hand and planted a kiss on her forehead. "It is Lucy's first morning with us while she stays here, how about we go out for breakfast?" She smirked because we both knew that meant Denny's, or IHOP, and that means pancakes.

"Wish I could join darling, but I have to leave for work." Bobby folded the newspaper and left it in the middle of the table.

"You don't work on Saturdays." Piper sniffled. Which was true, Bobby hardly ever works on Saturdays.

"Well, boss called me in." He seemed to be awkward about it. "And I as a worker, shouldn't have to deny my boss. More work, more money." Really awkward.

"But did I hear breakfast?" Lucy hopped down the last few steps. I nodded my head and kneeled up to help Piper.

"Sorry I can't come with, but I gotta go." He kissed Piper's forehead, Lucy's cheeks, then pulled me close to him by my waist. "I love you." He leaned down to kiss my lips.

"I love you, too." I responded as he left through the door. "Well let's go, girls!" I grabbed my keys then my purse before heading out the door. "Oh and Piper?" I looked back at her while I opened the car door. "I really am sorry about the letter."

"It's okay. I know you were just trying to protect me. I know I've waited for the apology, yet that won't change anything. But can we talk about how weird Dad was being?" She mentioned as she buckled her seat belt.

"He said he had to work, so I believe him." I nodded as I buckled my own seat belt and waited until Lucy did the same before driving off.

"And I believe in Santa Claus." She chuckled to herself.

"Pipes, he and I have gotten in enough arguments over trust issues, so I've learned to go along with it. I trust him, he trust me. End of story."

"But seriously," Lucy started. "I'm starving."