California Dreamin

26

"My beautiful wife." Said Christopher while walking into the kitchen where his wife, daughter and stepdaughter were having dinner, soon leaving a kiss on his woman's cheek.

"How was your day darling?" She replied.

"No one died on me today, so it's all good." He sighed.
He was a doctor, a surgeon specifically. Anytime someone didn't make it out alive during operations, he would be thinking about them for days, the thought keeping him up at night.

"What about you, Nina?" He called his stepdaughter out.

She glanced at her mother. She didn't follow the lessons that day as she had to look after Susan, but she wasn't sure about telling him that.

Her hesitation and silence betrayed her though, as he understood its meaning.
He sighed again.
"You can't keep skipping lessons to be with Susan."

"Well someone has to." She shrugged her shoulders, head slightly tilted down as she knew he was right. She refused to look him in the eyes. Not because she was scared he might do something. Yes she did was traumatized for her past with her real father but she knew Christopher wasn't like that at all. She avoided eye contact out of guilt.

He was right. She was sacrificing her career to babysit her little step sister as her mother was struggling to find the right babysitter. Plenty of people were actually ready to take Nina's place and sign for that job but everytime Ms. Carter would talk to someone into doing it, she would find some flaws about those people and many reasons why they wouldn't be great babysitters for Susan.

She once rejected what looked like the perfect girl next door because she thought her eyebrows looked funny.

Christopher was actually desperate because of his wife and how complicated she was about picking a simple babysitter.

"Don't worry amor, I think I've found the perfect person. It's actually a boy this time, about Nina's age. I just need to fix a few things first." Ms. Cartes said, capturing her husband's attention and making Nina's eyes light up.

Fix a few things. She said.
She was having Richard's teeth fixed. She was paying him a place to stay just to get him off the streets. She had found him a job in a local hotel. Everyday she made sure he had everything and was actually taking care of himself, especially his hygiene.

Still, she hadn't been able to tell Nina about it. She wasn't sure of what her reaction could've been.
Sooner or later she would find out on her own.

"Wow, how is it that you finally trust someone?"
Her husband asked, trying to hide a smile so that she wouldn't sense how he was actually making fun of how complicated she has been for the past few months.

On the other hand, Ms. Carter didn't want to tell Nina. She knew her daughter wouldn't be happy at all, but could she blame her?

Richard had left her without telling her. If it hadn't been for Ruth, she wouldn't have been able to say goodbye. He betrayed her. He abandoned her. Right when they were finally together and happy.
Never a letter, a call, a visit. Nothing.

When they moved to Los Angeles, she actually thought about looking for him. But the memories of how he hurt and disappointed her managed to hold her back. At a certain point she thought he wasn't even in Los Angeles anymore, otherwise they'd eventually would've met. Eventually.

Truth is, Nina was scared. She was scared to see him again and to live him again. That love, that passion, that fire, the mystery surrounding him. The secrets he would keep from her. What he would do the nights he wasn't home. What he would do with Mike and Roberto. Why wouldn't he tell her.

"Oh it's just someone I know." Nina's mother simply answered smiling.

Nina didn't ask about it more. It's not like she didn't care. She trusted her mother so whoever it was, it was the right person, trustworthy enough to take care of their babygirl.

They waited a couple days until she had finally heard her mother telling her the words she was hoping more than ever to hear.
"Go to class today. The babysitter is going to be here right before i leave for my shift."

That was all it took Nina to grab her things and get inside the car to go to the college as soon as possible.

She was one of the few students who weren't staying at the campus, either because she didn't really need it as the college wasn't far away from her house, but also because she had to help her family out and take care of her sister.

"Can't believe you actually made it." Samantha greeted her near the big iron gate of the college.
Samantha was her new best friend, also the first person she's met after moving.

"Finally we have found someone who is going to take care of Susan." She sighed. Samantha knew the entire situation she had at home. She had been over Nina's place multiple times already, as Nina's mother was thrilled that her daughter had soon found a friend.

"I can't believe it! Your mother finally trusts someone with her kid?" Samantha laughed in disbelief.
"Maybe it's an old relative of yours who just moved?"

Nina scrunched her face.
"I don't think so, my mom would've told me."

As they slowly approached the class they had to attend, Samantha kept talking.
"How do you know? It could be a surprise." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Okay first of all-" Nina started, letting her book slip off her hands and lend, not quite delicately, on her desk, "-she knows I hate surprises, also, I hate half of my family."

Samantha rolled her eyes and let herself fall on the chair right next to her friend, who seemed startled out of nowhere.

In fact, Nina was now lost in her thoughts.
A surprise? Maybe it could be. It made sense. Otherwise her mom would've just straight up told them the name of the person she had chosen to take care of Susan.

"Nina?" Samantha interrupted her thoughts.
"At least stop staring blankly at nothing, Pretend you're paying attention to the lesson." She whispered.

Nina was so caught up in her own world she didn't even notice the professor walking in and starting his lesson.
At that point she really started paying attention. I mean it was Law.

Everytime you skip a part of any lesson, you're not going to understand anything ever.
So she tried to stay more focused than ever.