What I Would Give

I Am Vindicated

Here's another update of What I Would Give. The song is Vindicated by Dashboard Confessional. Hope you guys enjoy! :)

The presence of a stranger in my room sent chills down my spine. Every step we took closer to the room seemed more dramatic. Scott grabbed an umbrella, while Grey found a bat in the closet, Taylor had a metal pipe, and I was clenching a katana I kept hidden under the couch cushions.

"Why do you keep a sword in your couch cushions?" Grey whispered.

"It was a gift from a Japanese friend who moved away a while ago. He gave me the sword as a parting gift." I whispered back.

"Oh yea that makes sense. 'I'll never see you again, so here's a very dangerous weapon you could kill people with. But don't forget to write!' Still doesn't explain why you keep it in your couch," Grey joked quietly.

"Shhh...,"we all scolded Grey.

"Ahhhh!" Josh screamed from beside us.

"Ahhhh!" We turned our weapons towards Josh's direction. But, there was nothing there except for Josh, his cup of coffee, and tan steamy stain that dripped down his scrubs.

"What are you guys doing?! You made me spill hot coffee on myself because you guys look like the beginnings of a horror movie! I'm going to go changed and go to work," Josh huffed and walked back into his room to change.

The rest of us rushed into my bedroom with our weapons up, but nothing was there. Nothing seemed out of place, except for one thing. The bear Grey have to me was hanging from a bed post with a string wrapped around his neck. The creepy image of the hanged bear looked like an execution, and sent chills up my spine. Air twirled the suffocated bear to reveal a torn up message. I grabbed the message and read the bone chilling note.

Dear Daughter,

My heart grew sad when my beautiful possession wasn't in her rightful place, and instead a cheap knock off laid there in your place.  I miss our quality time together, but next time try not to make it so hard for me to get in. Then, your sweet teddy bear wouldn't have been caught is the cross hairs.

Deepest love,  Dad ;)

I could hear His raspy voice reading the note aloud, I crumpled the note, and tried to catch my breathe. The scars on my shoulder started to throb more and more, but just when I felt like I was going to slip into a panic attack, Grey put his hand on my shoulder. The sharp pain in my shoulder dissipated and my breathing slowed to a normal rate. After my nervousness disappeared, an immense wall of pure rage overcame me. Fire seemed to surround me, and my presence felt like it was scorching the floor. Each tooth in my mouth ground against the other; each fiber in my body was on fire.

HE could taunt me, but I'm not going to stand by and watch HIM torment anyone else. I charged out of the room, grabbed my jacket, and left out the door. Grey trailed behind me, "Where are you going?"

"Nowhere, please just stay out of this. I need to do this alone," I gritted. Scott and Taylor stood by the front door and stared at me like I was a monster.

"You're not going to see your dad are you? You can't, the last time you saw him you couldn't even flinch, what makes you think it's any different now?" Grey spoke up. I didn't respond, I couldn't.

"Natalie what happened to letting me in?! You're shutting me out now! Natalie if you go to him without me, I'll never forgive you and I'll never forgive myself!" Grey shouted for the first time.

"Why do you guys even care what happens to me? How does my life affect whether or not you breathe because I don't think it does! You didn't even know I was in the same area code as you until a week a go. Stop acting like you care about me because in two years you'll forget everything about me. I just need my family, not to be a pet project for some rich boy and his posse. I'm going, and if you want to try to follow me, you'll catch a glimpse of what I'm going to do to my father." I shouted back.