The Voice (Luke Hemmings)

3. Starbucks

I woke up, not by my alarm this time. I woke up because I had enough sleep. Wow, that really never happened. But today I didn't have school. It wasn't the weekend though, it's Tuesday today. But school decided that we didn't have to come. But you don't hear me complaining.

I walked outside in my sweatpants and a tank top on my way to Starbucks. Let's have a really unhealthy breakfast. Starbucks was only two streets away, so I didn't have to walk much. I walked past some stores and past a couple of street workers. One of them whistled at me and I looked at him in horror. I knew I looked older than I actually was, but this was just ridiculous. "What's your problem? I'm fucking 16!" I shouted at him and the grin was wiped off his face. His co workers laughed at him and he bowed his head in shame. Serves him right. Fucker. I walked further and the Starbucks came in sight.

When I stepped inside the smell of coffee filled my nose and it was the best smell ever. There weren't many customers. Lucky for me. I walked to the counter and a girl around my age with obviously dyed red hair stood behind it. It looked really cool. When I stood in front of her she asked what I wanted to order. "A middle Macchiato Caramel, please." I said to her. She nodded and grabbed a cup. "Name?" She asked. "Skyler." I answered. Normally I didn't look at the worker's name tags, but it caught my eye. Her name was Quinn. Quinn Munro. Okay, that was really weird. My middle name is Quinn. And my last name is Munro. And Munro isn't a name that a lot of people have... "It's coming right up." The girl, Quinn, said to me and I nodded. What if she was my cousin? My uncle's daughter? That would be cool... "Can I ask you something?" I asked her. "Um, yea, sure." She answered. "I know this sounds really weird, but my name is Skyler Quinn Munro. And I read your name tag and your name is Quinn Munro. And I just thought that that was really weird." The girl frowned. She probably thought it was weird too. "I just wanted to ask, does your father have a brother called Mason? Because I have an uncle, but I never met him. So maybe there's a slight chance that we're cousins...?" I said. Ah, fuck. I totally rushed into this. This was probably really weird. "Your father's name is Mason?" Quinn asked with a frown and I nodded. Her eyes widen and she gasped. "What's his middle name?" She asked. "And his birthday?" I frowned. "Umm, his middle name is Joe and his birthday is on the 2th of June." I answered. She began shaking. Her hand covered her mouth and with her other hand she gripped the counter tightly. "Hey, are you okay?" I asked. She looked at me up and down before nodding. "I just... Wait a minute." She said before rushing off. Okay... That's weird. "Um... Skyler?" The guy who made the coffee said. I walked to him and grabbed my coffee. I sat in the corner booth, waiting for Quinn. This was so weird. Maybe she really was my cousin? A minute later Quinn came walking from behind the counter and sat in front of me in the booth. "Have you been crying?" I asked when I saw her red cheeks. "No, no. I just... Don't freak out by this okay?" She said and I nodded slowly. She took a deep breath. "My... My father's name is Mason Joe Munro and he's born on the 2th of June. He's been with my mom for 20 years. They aren't married, but they are in a serious relationship. Because, well, they have me." My eyes widen when the information sunk in. "He... He WHAT?!" I shouted. Quinn grabbed my hands and calmed me down. "We... We're sisters?" I asked her. "Half sisters I guess." She said. Tears blurred my vision. "I knew my father was a dick, but I never thought he would betray my mother like that." I sobbed. Quinn stood up and hugged me. When I calmed down I looked at her and saw that tears were rolling down her face too. She sat back and took a deep breath. "So, my mom married my father, 3 years later they had me, but my father was cheating on my mom with your mom, got her pregnant, they had you in the same year, my father keeps the relationships a secret for the other woman and used his work as an excuse to not be home" I summed it up. This was fucked up. Quinn nodded. "And I have a sister." I said shocked. She nodded. We were silent for a moment, just letting the information sink in. "I'm sorry, I need to go. I need to tell this to my mom." Quinn said and I nodded. "Are you going to tell your mom?" She asked me and I shrugged. "Their relationship is already fucked up." I said. "Did he... Did he hurt you?" Quinn asked quietly. "You see this bruise and this cut?" I said while pointing at my face. She nodded. "I guess that's a yes." I frowned. "You too?" I asked and she nodded. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I stood up and smiled slightly at Quinn. "Can I have your number? So we can keep in touch?" I asked. She nodded and handed me her phone and I did the same. She gave me my phone back and I frowned. "What a nice surprise." I said sarcastic and Quinn chuckled. She sighed and looked outside with a sad look on her face. Then she looked at me and hugged me tight. I hugged her back. "I know that you don't know me, but we can be there for each other. Like sisters." She said. I smiled and nodded. "That would be awesome. Thank you." She sniffled and broke the hug. "Okay, I'm gonna go home now. Tell my mom." I nodded. "Good luck." I said.

I tossed my coffee in the nearest garbage can while I walked home. I wasn't hungry anymore. I got my phone out of my pocket and texted anna.

Me: I need to talk to you RIGHT NOW
Anna: What? You're on your period and want someone to distract you from the pain?
Me: I'm being serious, This is major.
Anna: Wanna talk about it over text or Skype?
Me: I'll call you with Skype when I get home.
Anna: Okay

That's another reason why I loved Anna. She was so weird, but if needed, she could be serious and give good advice. I fast walked home. I probably looked retarded, but right now I didn't care. I ran up the driveway and slammed the door behind me. Nobody's home. Good. I really needed to tell someone as soon as possible: Anna. I ran up two flights of stairs and plopped down on my bed. I grabbed my laptop and turned it on. After that I opened Skype and saw that Anna was already online. I called her and she picked up after a couple seconds.

After I told her the whole story she was silent for a while. "Wow. Just... What the...? And how? I mean... That's just... Fucked up..." She said and I nodded. "But I don't know what to do... I mean, should I tell my mom? Or should I pretend like I don't know anything?" I asked her. She frowned and thought for a while. "I think you should tell your mom. But in the right moment, you know?" She said and I nodded. "And maybe she will divorce your dad and you won't have to see him again...?" She said and I smiled. "Yea... that would be nice. But I don't think my mom will do that. She's too dependent on him." I said and Anna shrugged. "Well, I hope she will." She said and I smiled weakly. Me too.