Princess

0.6

*4 years earlier*

"Excited for high school, guys?" Mom asked from across the island. She was flipping the pancakes while Chance, Alex, and I sat at the table.

"Yeah."

Alex was on his phone as usual, probably texting some girl. Chance sat next to me quietly, his jade eyes that were usually enigmatic were clouded over with something I couldn't quite put my finger on.

"Chance? Are you okay?"

He looked up from his black backpack to me, as if just noticing I was here.

"Yeah."

He looked back at his bag after answering.

"You can tell me anything you know that right?"

He hummed in response.

Then why do I doubt you do?

After mom gave us our pancakes, dad came downstairs in his dark blue robe. His dark hair had a few gray streaks peppered lightly in his hair. He had a scratchy beard that he'd been growing out for the past 2 weeks.

His blue eyes that Austin had inherited, had dark purple bags under them.

"I uh gotta go. See you later Andi?" Chance turned to face me, actually looking at me.

"Yeah." My worried eyes were dragged to the purple skin jutting out from under his sleeve. He quickly kissed my cheek, our usual goodbye ritual, but something felt off.

He exited through our back door.

"Good, he's gone." Dad said. "I've been needing to tell you guys this for a while."

"What is it?" Alex looked up from his phone for the first time this morning.

I glanced over to mom but her dark eyes are castes on to the floor, as if her feet were the most interesting thing in the world.

"I'm leaving."

"Well when will you be back?" Alex asked.

"Never. Here's the thing. I'm tired." He ran a hand through his hai, something he only does when he's either frustrated or angry. "I'm tired of being your dad. Four children is too much. I didn't even want kids. Your mom and I, we were only married because I knocked her up."

My heart stopped. Is he...?

"It doesn't help that that Chance kid is almost like our fifth kid. So I'm leaving. I'm not happy. You guys don't make me happy. The divorce has already been finalized. And I'm leaving tomorrow morning."

"B-But I, I thought I was your baby girl?" The words tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop them. Tear drops splattered against the dining table. "You said to me, th-that I'd always be your baby girl. Were you just lying to me?"

"You guys are your mother's children. Not mine." His voice was void of emotion as he got up and walked out of the kitchen.

"What the hell?! You come back here you bastard!" Alex's chair skidded back before tipping over and falling.

"Alex-" Mom began.

"No! You don't go around saying shit like that you dick! And you especially do not make my sister cry!"

Alex chased him out to the family room.

"Alex please-" I cried, mom and I following him.

"You don't talk to me like that." Dad sneered, pointing his finger at him.

"Maybe not if you were my dad but you said yourself, I'm my mom's child, not yours. So drop the fucking fatherly act."

"You came down to the kitchen, ruining a day that was suppose to be good. Then you basically insult my mom. That was a bad idea. But making Andi cry, that was the worst mistake you ever made."