A Summer Like No Other

Chapter 17 - Em

"Hi honey," Mom says when I enter the kitchen. I haven't even changed yet, and she frowns. "Hope you had fun yesterday. Luckily, Nick texted me to let me know you were staying over there."

Oh, that's why I didn't have thousands of voice mails or frantic messages. "It was...interesting," I reply and Dad raises an eyebrow.

"Roberto told us you and Nick ended up going to the fireworks by yourself. But he didn't say anything about you spending the night. We didn't know until almost midnight that you were going to sleep in his guest bedroom." Dad emphasizes the word "guest." "It was okay for you two to do that when you were ten, but you're older now. I don't think it's such a good idea to spend the night at Nick's." Dad can't even look me in the eyes.

Mom clears her throat. "What your father is trying to say...is..."

"Did you ever have that conversation with Roberto?" My voice sounds pissy, but I can't help but fume. I didn't have a good night's sleep. I can't remember half of yesterday and no one wants to answer my questions. Dad must know more than what he lets on. And now this BS?

"Emilia," Dad replies.

"I mean it. Roberto used to not come home for an entire weekend. And I only recall you telling him to be careful. And to have fun. Those were your words. Why can't I be careful and have fun too? Whatever it is you meant?" My voice rises. "And let's not tiptoe around every single topic. You don't want me to hang out with Nick."

"Em!" Mom protests. She shakes her hand. "We do want you to be careful. To be careful with your feelings. Nicholas is great, but..."

"Nick is the only one who's speaking the truth to me. He's the only who's trying to help me find my real parents." I look down, not wanting to see the way my mom flinches, not wanting to see the way my father's eyes widen, not wanting to see how my words hurt.

"We told you we would help you. We are helping you," Mom says, her voice faltering and my heart breaking.

"Em, do not use this tone with us." Dad stands up. I've forgotten how tall and imposing he is, but I won't back down. Not this time.

"Do you remember Claire Carter, Dad? And why does Nick's father have documents about my adoption?"

Dad's mouth gapes open for only a second, but I see it. I see he's taken aback. Mom shakes her head. "What are you talking about? Nick's dad helped us with some of the paperwork for your adoption. But that's the legal part of it—he doesn't know anything else." She chews on her lip. "And Claire was your father's assistant a long time ago; what does she have to do with anything?"

I cross my arms on my chest. "Yes, Dad. What does Claire Carter have to do with anything?"

"I don't know what you and Nick think you have uncovered but you're ridiculous, both of you!" He sounds annoyed but then he takes a deep breath as if to calm himself. He sits back down, and attempts to smile soothingly at my mom. "Nick's dad helped with some of the paperwork. And Claire was my assistant at the time."

"That's bullshit!" I say and wince. I never curse in front of my parents. "There's more to it than this and you know it. Mom doesn't but you know it. And I'm going to find out what it is."

I hurry out of the room, stomp up the stairs to the sound of my father telling me I'm grounded, of Mom asking him what's going on, and I slam the door.

I start up my computer and type "Claire Carter" and "Wraswki & Son." Her LinkedIn profile shows up. I click on it. She's pretty: she's got brown hair, kind of like mine. I lean closer. Could she be my mother? And what would it mean? Oh my God, did Dad have an affair with her? Is that it? Is that why Mom's not supposed to know?

I shiver and close the laptop. Maybe I shouldn't dig any deeper. Maybe I'm about to fuck up everything more than it already is. Maybe, I'm going to hurt the people I love.

I lie down on my comforter, thinking about all possibilities. Again. Maybe she's only the one who took care of the paperwork. My cell rings and I smile, seeing Rob's face on the display. I need a distraction and I need brotherly advice. "I'm so happy you're calling. How is Cape Cod?"

He sighs loudly. "Drop the act, Em. One, why on Earth did you sleep at Nick's last night?"

"Because I got drunk." I can't help but sound defensive.

"This is getting better and better."

"And you sound like Dad."

"Well, maybe he has a point."

I stand up and pace around the room. "That's funny because you didn't seem to think he had a point when he first forbade you to date Jim."

"That was different and you know it. Jim was dealing drugs."

I roll my eyes. "And Nick is what?"

"Nick can't keep a girlfriend longer than a few weeks. Nick's dad fired ours."

I want to scream. "You still talk to Nick. That has nothing to do with that."

"It doesn't, but that means you should understand Dad a bit more. He's afraid for you. We're worried for you. We know what's best for you."

I hang up. I can't hear this any longer. Everyone's lying and pretending.

Everyone tells me what I should do. I change into comfier clothes, grab my gym bag and head back downstairs. Mom and Dad are no longer in the kitchen and I know Mom's going to come and check on me very soon.

Even if I'm pissed, I still don't want them to worry. I grab the notepad by the phone and scribble, "Gone to the School."

And I head out, texting Nick. "I'm on my way to rehearse. Come?"

I'm going to be the one deciding what's best for me.

Author's note:

Thank you so much for reading! I hope you're enjoying getting to know Em & Nick! I'll be publishing two new chapters every Friday and would love to hear from you, so don't hesitate to leave a comment. The full novella is already published/available on all e-retailers for only $0.99 in case you don't want to wait for the next chapter :) More information on www.elodienowodazkij.com :)