Bookmarked - A Rodrick x Reader Fan Fiction

Chapter 21 - The Cliff: Part Two

Rodrick watches your expression, wondering when the laugh track will start. That you're just messing around and you couldn't have done anything like what you had just said. You couldn't blame him either. The whole thing sounded absolutely insane.

"What are you talking about?" Rodrick sits back, trying to grasp your words.

You know at this moment, it is another leap off the cliff. He has to understand why you did what you did. He has to still agree to be your friend even after finding out the horrible truth. That you, [Y/N] were selfish beyond a doubt and wouldn't take no for an answer. That you would do whatever it takes to get what you want, even if it meant pushing boundaries and disrespecting those you loved.

You begin to tell Rodrick your awful truth.

"I study psychology, right? I was offered an internship with the head of the department at my university, Dr. Leto. He was researching mental illness and genetics. How parents pass off genetic traits to their offspring and how those traits can be linked to mental illness. We were trying to see if there was a way to eliminate the traits so children couldn't inherit things like Bipolar or Depression. Or even Alzheimer's." You haven't said anything that would make Rodrick hate you. Who wouldn't want to cure diseases? He still watched you, his eyes dark, but still kind. There was still time for those eyes to change. Time for him to be disgusted by your actions. By you.

"For the first time in my life, I felt like I was doing something important and worthwhile. I had mentioned how my dad's side of the family had mental illnesses to Dr. Leto. I was going to be his next test subject. I only needed my dad's DNA and my DNA. One sample. That's it. I mentioned this to my mom one day and she flipped. She said that he shouldn't be a part of it because his family can't agree to it. That it would infringe upon their privacy. She said that I shouldn't be a test subject. She said it was super unethical."

"But I wanted to impress Dr. Leto. This internship could land me into grad school. I didn't listen to her, but I also didn't want my dad telling her about it. So, when visiting for Spring Break, I said I saw that my dad had a gray hair, plucked it, and sent the sample to Dr. Leto. I know it violates patient laws, but I had this need to prove myself. That I could be important to someone."

You couldn't find the power within yourself to look at him. He had to know where this was going now. Staring at your root beer can on the table was the only thing you could focus on.

"The results came in. Leto said I couldn't be a part of the experiment anymore. He didn't want to tell me why at first, kept saying the DNA was ruined in transit. Told me not to worry," you pause, "But I couldn't let it go. I had to know what happened. So, he told me. My DNA doesn't match my dads. He's not my biological father. I confronted my parents, worried that I was adopted and no one said anything. My mom confessed that she had an affair and didn't want to tell him. So, she went to Florida, where I presume my real father is. My dad needed time and sent me here. She didn't even see me off at the airport. Neither of them have even texted or called. I blew up my parents' marriage and it was all for academic validation... that I now can't even get because I'm not a part of the study!" The last part you slightly yell, earning some looks from other people in the restaurant.

Sure, you can be upset about your parents marriage, but all your hard work for grad school was now for nothing. Your parents were going to have to work this thing out. Could they really be mad at you for this? You exposed the truth of the situation. You were never that close with your mom, your dad was your hero. He deserved to know the truth. But there was the other side of it where now that he knows, would he even want to be your dad?

When you feel you have said enough of what happened, your eyes slowly drift towards Rodrick. He is sitting slightly slumped in the booth, his arms under the table. You take a deep breath, which he has to see, the type of breath that shows you had just been waiting to tell someone else.