Chapter 22: Family and Disasters

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Sorry to make you wait so long... but be pleased that half of the Nash/Jade secret is revealed in this chapter!

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Chapter 22: Family and Disasters

A month had passed in the blink of an eye and it was Thanksgiving break, time to face my parents. I stood very nervously in front of my parent's door with Nash by my side for moral support. He held my hand as I shuffled from foot to foot, gazing at the dark mahogany double doors with an elaborate lion head door knocker. I did not want to be here. I was anxious about being back in Albany for many reasons.

First, my parents were not the nicest or most approving people. They were rich snobs who didn't approve of my mistakes and life choices. Everyone makes mistakes, that's how you learn, but they were very unforgiving of my past circumstances and chided the direction my life was headed. Sure, I love them, they're my parents, but living under constant scrutiny is both demeaning and infuriating. Nothing I ever did was right or good enough in their eyes and all of my choices were judged harshly.

Not only that, but I was an only child, so all hopes and dreams for the future were pinned solely on me. They held me to an unimaginably high standard. There's nothing like having the weight of the world forced on your shoulders by your over demanding parents. Plus, they hated Nash, always had since the incident when we were nearly 17. They loved Alec of course and pushed us together on every occasion. I suppose an aspiring CIA operative and tactically trained police officer was the right choice for their only child in their eyes. There was only one choice for me and sadly, I couldn't have him. I wonder what their thoughts were on a married professor.

The Montgomery's, the boys' parents, and mine were close friends for many years which only made the situation more awkward, since their family would be spending Thanksgiving Day with us, it was a tradition. I could see it now, the disapproving glares and snarky comments directed at Nash and I every time we were together. His parents were rich as well, but entirely different and less critical than mine. They were loving and supportive instead of distant and harsh.

The second thing on my mind was Fenix. We had a friends date the day after tomorrow. And although I was eager to spend time with him away from school, I was also reluctant. My feelings for him had grown exponentially in the past month, as we spent bits and pieces of time together in a friendly way, both before and after class. It wasn't much and nothing intimate happened between us, aside from the occasional hug or nonchalant caress which showed just how serious he was about keeping things on a strictly friend basis. Still, I found myself incredibly drawn to him and not just in an 'I want your sex' kind of way. I had deep feelings for him, feeling that resembled something I hesitantly labeled as love. That scared the shit out of me.

He'd treated me so kindly lately that it only made me want him more and caused me to seriously consider telling him the truth about the baby. I wasn't certain how he would react, if he'd hate me or be happy, but I was still undecided on whether I could trust him not to cut me out of his life completely. So many things about him were so guarded and mysterious, yet I couldn't help but fall deeper into whatever it was I felt for him, whether it was returned or not.

Lastly, my concern lied with Soren. He had been almost nonexistent for the past month, which only made me more suspicious that he had something planned for my homecoming. He had threatened to divulge my secrets and also implied that he would see me during the holiday break, the last time we spoke. I was apprehensive that it was true, but still held hope that he was just blowing smoke out of his ass. Hopefully, it was just another threat, one that had no basis.

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