Unpredictable Love

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Friday 2:04pm

Karleigh's POV

Buzz! Buzzzz! BUZZ!! You've got to be fucking kidding me. Who the hell would be calling me this early in the morning? My vision is foggy and I rub my eyes until my sight is clear. The room is silent with the exception of the annoying buzzing, and my eyes fall on my cell phone. The screen is glowing bright and I make out my mom's name. I jumped from my bed and lunged towards it. Instinctually my thumb tapped the accept button on my screen.

"Hello?" I spoke slowly, my voice sounding hazy from just waking up.

"Karleigh?" My mother's melodic voice rang through the earpiece and my heart swelled. I didn't reply. I wasn't sure what exactly to say.

She let out a long, devastating sigh before talking again.

"I was just calling... to check on you. I know you're angry at me still for shipping you off with your aunt, but it was for the best. Believe me, I understand that you're hurting right now. He was my husband, and I lost him too..." Her voice cracked on the last few words and my heart ached.

Long, awkward silence...

"Is that all?" I ask her in a dismissing tone. Honestly, I didn't have the heart to sit here and mourn with my mother who was thousands of miles away.

Sniffles come through the phone and I know she's crying. Everything in me screamed to be empathetic for my mother, but I can't. Anger consumes my heart and I just don't have the sympathy to comfort her. That's not me.

Mom gulps loudly through the phone, and I wait for her to respond.

"Yeah Karleigh. That's all." Before I had a chance to say anything else, the line disconnected. No 'goodbyes' and no 'I love yous', just an empty phone line.

My hand slid down from my ear and I held my phone in front of my face, staring blankly at the screen. I'm not sure what I was looking for as I stared at that screen. Hope, maybe? Hope that maybe my mother hadn't just seriously hung up on me. Tears swell in my eyes and I swipe them away quickly.

An earpiercing scream escapes my mouth and I throw my cell phone across the room. It hits the adjacent wall with a loud bang, but I don't give a damn. My hands ball into fists and I scream again! I hate her, I swear. The door to my room creaks open slowly and Aunt Jocelyn steps inside. I turn away from her in shame as she takes in the scene in front of her. Her eyes fall on my phone that now lies on the floor across from the bed. Tears pour down my face, and I'm very aware of them as Aunt Jocelyn stares at me. Heartbreak is clear on her face as she internally decides whether or not she should comfort me. "Just go." I croak. She gives me a slight nod before walking out of the room. Again, I climb out of my bed and walk towards my closet. Hastily I grab a t-shirt to pull over my head, and decide to leave on my sweatpants, then I slide on some flip flops. I walk out of my room, and straight past Aunt Jocelyn and out the front door, slamming it behind me. I sprint towards the mustang and get inside, knowing exactly where I was going. I sped through the back roads in search of the cemetery that I'd seen on my first drive through Dallas, before I got pulled over.

Frustration builds inside of me when I can't find the cemetery that I had come across not too long ago. This is stupid I know, because my dad isn't even buried in this state, but I couldn't care less. Finally numerous gray, dull tombstones come into view and I pull over, there isn't really a parking lot so I just park my car in some grass. I rush to get out of the car, and head towards the cemetery. Tombstones stretch in all directions and I feel overwhelmed with pity. So many deaths, so many people dead and gone, forever and although my dad isn't buried here in particular, I know he is amongst them. I stumble to my knees and begin to sob uncontrollably, my chest aching. My arms draped over a random grave stone to support my weak body.

"Dad..." I try to talk through my fountain of tears. My voice is coated with sobs. "Daddy, I'm so sorry! I don't mean to let you down..." Talking is too hard, my heart is burning and my eyes are dangerously blurry with tears.

"Please come back." I begged, burying my face in my palms. "P-please..." My voice was hoarse and I hoped my dad could hear me. But I knew he wasn't coming back, he couldn't. The pocket of my jeans started vibrating and I knew it was my phone. Slowly I cleared all of my tears from my eyes and reached for my phone. I had a new picture message from Harry, so I opened it. Much to my surprise, it was a picture of me from last night, and I was staring into the octopus tank. He must've taken it when I wasn't paying attention.

Harry's words rang in my ears, when I mentioned my dad last night. My dad used to take me to the aquarium and I would stare into the octopus tank the exact same way. I continued to stare at the picture for a while before finally lifting myself up off of the ground and slipping my phone back into my pocket. The grave I had been crying on was labeled "Robert Garner" and the poor man had no flowers, balloons, or gifts by his tombstone. Pity welled inside of me and I grabbed a bright yellow flower from a nearby grave, and placed it beside Robert's stone.

Rugged breaths came from my mouth as I recovered from my moment of weakness. I made my way back to the car, as I was walking a splash of water hit my forehead. My feet froze and I tilted my head back looking directly up into the darkening sky. Another drop of water hit my cheek, then my arm and I knew what was coming but I couldn't find the strength to move. Without a seconds notice, the sky released the rain. I continued to stare up through the heavy drops of water, even though they were invading my eyes. Minutes passed and my clothes were drenched, I couldn't bring myself to care.

I climbed into my car, my soaked clothes dripping on the seats. Who fucking cares. Goosebumps rose on my skin as I turned the air conditioner on, a shiver erupted through my body and I immediately turned the air off to replace it with the heater. I placed my hands on the wheel, and stared out the windshield, the car never moving. As a matter of fact, the car was still in park. Rain was heavy out my front window and I couldn't see anything. With the exception of the rain and my gasping breaths, the car was silent. My hands gripped the steering wheel and I rested my forehead against the wheel. Sobs overtook my body once again and small gasps left my lips. I fumbled with the windshield wipers switch until I had a decently clear view of the road. Eventually I got my breathing under control and I ignored the occasional stray tears that would run down my cheeks.

The drive was so calming that I almost hadn't realized I was infront of Aunt Jocelyn's house. I walked inside of the house with my clothes still darkened from the rain that they absorbed. Aunt Jocelyn's eyes fell on me when I entered the house. Neither of us said a word as she took I my soaked appearance. I just kept walking straight to my room, and Aunt Jocelyn didn't object, she knew I needed to be alone.

Too lazy to take a shower, I peeled off my wet sticky clothes in exchange for new dry ones. With slow movements, I got into my bed and curled up into a ball, pressing my knees to my chest. A slight throb was forming in my head from all of my crying, so I didn't resist when my eyes became heavy and I slipped off to sleep.

****************************************************

"Karleigh..." A familiar voice whispered. My eyes stayed closed as I mumbled a bunch of gibberish. "Karleigh." The voice repeated. I hazily leaned forward and opened my eyes. At first all I could make out was a silhouette, so I rubbed my eyes once more. A tall man with a familiar smile that I haven't seen in ages stood before me. My heart broke into a sprint and tears sprung to my eyes as I jumped to my feet to approach him. "Daddy!" I called out to him as I walked closer. His smile was engraved in my mind and I knew it was him. I broke into a jog, eager to reach him but it seemed like my efforts were useless, the distance between us growing further with every step I took. Finally, I slowed into a tired walk and I stared desperately at him. My father took one step towards me and was by my side, I was confused. Lifting his hand, he brushed his thumb against my cheek and I reflexively leaned into his palm. "Stay strong Karls." My dad spoke to me in a hushed tone. My eyes were starting to flood and I blinked rapidly to contain my tears, forcing a smile for my dad. "I miss you Daddy..." I choked out, struggling to hold my tears in. I've missed him so much, it hurts. He nodded at me slowly and opened his mouth to speak but quickly closed it again. "What?" I whispered desperate for him to speak, desperate to hear his voice that I haven't heard in so long. He opened his mouth once more but no sound came out and panic filled my insides. Suddenly my dad began to fade, I extended my hand towards him but my hands fell right through him. "Daddy!" Panic obvious in my tone.

Then he was gone.