"And we are now in Philadelphia." I let out a long breath as I parked the RV in the corner of the parking lot.
"I will go check us in." Liz grumbled as she opened the passenger side door, climbing out. She walked towards the hotel without another word.
"Let's get our bags." I mumbled as Ana was already grabbing her things.
We were only going to take in a few items of clothing and the stuff we needed for showers, as well as our laptops.
"I am going to get a good nights rest." I let out a long breath as Ana and I stepped out of the RV, locking all the doors.
And we headed into the hotel.
I handed Liz her bag as she met us in the lobby, handing is our room keys in return.
We had two conjoining rooms, due to the fact we each wanted our own beds.
I stepped into the room, dropping my bag on the bed closest to the window.
"I'm going to talk to Peter." Liz said as she sat her bag down on the bed beside mine. She pulled her laptop from the bag.
"I might go downstairs and sit for awhile." I mumbled. "Or drive into town."
"Go see your sister." Ana shrugged as she sat on my bed, tucking her legs under her bum. "Take the car. We'll be fine here."
"It's getting late. I don't think I will tonight." I shook my head.
"It's five o'clock." Liz chuckled as she plugged her computer in at the desk, opening it up. "Go see your family."
"Alright." I bit my lip. "I'll be back in a few hours. You want me to pick up dinner?"
"That would be fantastic." Ana said. "Get those cheese steaks you were telling us so much about."
"Will do." I nodded, grabbing the car keys. "I'll be back."
*
I hated being in the neighborhoods of Philly. It seemed as if there was always crime, everywhere. And my parents spent so much time getting me away from that. It didn't feel right turning around and going back.
I banged on the door to her house before stepping away from the door that would swing open.
Sure enough, the door swung open a few seconds later, revealing my nephew, Gabriel.
"Auntie Zee." He smiled once he saw me, nearly running into me as I picked him up.
"Hey Gabe. Where's your momma at? Didn't she tell you not to open the door without her?" I asked as I stepped into the house, closing the door behind me, yet still managing to carry him.
"She's upstairs." He said as I sat him down.
"Gabriel." I heard the voice say behind me, met with loud footsteps. "I told you not to answer the door for anyone unless I'm with you."
I turned around to see my sister, holding a small kid in her arms, who was two years old, and heavily pregnant with her third child.
"Hey." I smiled, though she seemed anything but friendly at that moment.
"What are you doing here?" She asked, narrowing her eyes at me.
"I wanted to see you. To talk." I mumbled, looking away from her. "In person."
"There's nothing to talk about." She snapped.
"Yes there is." I responded, desperate for her to hear the truth. "Please let me explain."
"I want you out of here." She sat Aliyah down. "And I don't want you back."
She pushed me out of the house and I stumbled down the few steps that were there.
"And if you come back, I'll tell Dad and your Mom what you did." and the door was slammed in my face.
"This is an excellent start to our trip." I mumbled, pulling my coat tighter around me.
I climbed back into the car and headed towards the opposite side of town, where the remainder of my family was.
I hoped I'd have better luck with them.
*
I stepped into the house without knocking, knowing that I didn't have to, since it was the family house.
"Zee?" My Aunts face lightened up at the sight of me before she was screaming, running up to me as she nearly tackled me. "Oh my gosh! What the hell are you doing here?"
"My friends and I are in town. I just wanted to stop by. Is Shawn here?" I asked, looking over her shoulder.
"Yeah. He's downstairs with the boys." She nodded, hugging me again. "It's nice to see you again. I want to see you before you leave."
"I'll make sure of it." I nodded, smiling.
I headed downstairs, into the basement, where a group of guys were watching a football game.
Shawn was standing off to the side of the group, on the phone. But I knew who he was talking to the moment his eyes met mine.
He hung up the phone, making his way towards me in the process. He grabbed my arm, pulling me into the bedroom that was down there.
"Not that I'm not happy to see you," he began, his voice low, "but all I've heard from Mel about you, is bad things. So what the hell are you doing back here?"
"I need you to listen to me." I said. "And I need you to talk to her for me. I am eighteen and I can't keep thinking she hates me for something I didn't do."
Doubt shown in his eyes. "Why should I?"
"Because you owe it to me. For not being there when we were younger." I said, seeing that I won him over. "Because you weren't there to be our brother."
"Okay. Talk." He reluctantly agreed.
And he listened to what I had to say.
