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Nineteen: Family Ties

Once Jim let me go, or more so followed me out the door without speaking to my parents; I needed some answers without their input first of all. As I got into my car Jim slid in next to me, I turned the engine on but paused gripping onto the steering wheel with fear washing over me. Jim rubbed my shoulder in a supportive manner. I turned to him with panic in my eyes, but he simply smiled in an attempt to ease me a bit more, not that it was effective in anyway.

"Ali, you don't have to do this yet if you're not ready you understand that right? Peter isn't going anywhere." Jim rationalized the situation but it didn't help what so ever, I still felt tense and there was nothing that was going to rid me of this until I got answers from Peter himself.

"It's just I want answers Jim, answers to question I hadn't thought about ever before in my life and how I have the chance to learn so much more about my family, this is something I have to do, you know Clara would want to right?" His expression changed to one more of hurt, bringing up Clara was a low call.

"What makes you think just because your parents lied to you means that mine would? They wouldn't be so low." He spat at me, we've never been in an argument before so it feels strange to have someone I confide in to act in such a manner, but I did cause this in the first place.

"Jim get out of the car." I told him and he looked shocked, I didn't want to repeat myself so I just glared to him until he scoffed and got out, slamming the door behind him.

"Ali is loosing friends one by one."

"Liar liar Ali Sugg- or should we say Mitchell?"

Negative thoughts circle my mind as I begin to drive towards the cafe which isn't too far away, I decide to turn the radio up to block out the voices as I get closer to the cafe, closer to the answers I've been needing. As I park my car I sit there for a minute, trying to control the shakes in my hands and my whole body, looking into the mirror to see how scared I looked, and no matter how hard I tried to glance away from my reflection my eyes remained glued to it.Deciding the longer I stay put the more anxious and curious I will become I open the door, taking in a deep breath of fresh air feeling as if my lungs have been cut off entirely; as if I was slowly being suffocated.

Walking towards the quaint cafe seeing the small wooden sign above the main door, swirls of faded white against the duck egg blue 'Rilohs' this place is so unknown to anyone who comes to town, I always came here to study to have some time to myself and relax. The cafe means a lot to me and always will, at one point when I came home from university for the summer and in school I always got a part time job here, just to be in the positive atmosphere, the quiet peaceful energy that travels through you and making you smile as you open the door, seeing many tables empty but never seeming empty, the cafe was always so full of life that bodies didn't matter, that was until now.

Opening the door hearing the faint bell ring I smile to Natalia, she used to be my boss but was more like a helpful friend on many occasions. She helped me study or when I was having a bad day with a temperamental coffee machine even now she has barely changed. The same black skirt and black ankle boots, with her duck egg blue polo shirt and her black hair tied in a french plait, she turned away from a customer to face me, a smile growing on her face. "Why if it isn't little miss Ali Sugg!" She said enthusiastically and embraced me for a hug, I felt a smile form on my face, Natalia always cheered me up, even now. As she let go she held onto my shoulders and looked me over, shocked and happy to see me. "What brings you here sweetie, its been a while since I last saw you." She ushered me over to the counter, since the few elders who sat were occupied with bowls of soup and the local paper, my eyes scanned over seeing he wasn't here, letting out a sigh of relief before responding to Natalia.