Footprints in the Sand

7. Introductions

In that week that passed I spent most of it sofa surfing between my friends houses until I knew I had to go home. Of course my close friends knew what was going on, and I guessed their parents did to. Each and every one of them was just as shocked as I was about what Dad had spent his time doing, let alone the fact that I had four other siblings. But that Saturday afternoon did come around, and I did have to drive home eventually. I parked in the garage, grabbed my bags from the boot and carted them up to my room. I smiled at Mum as I walked up the stairs, ignored Dad, and shoved everything I'd worn in the past week into my wash bin. I stripped out of what I was in and dressed in a fairly short summery dress. I slipped into my tatty converses and braided my long hair. As always, some stupid strands refused to be in the plat as they were too short. I held them back with hair slides, and applied some subtle make up that I hadn't done anything to my face this morning.

            There was a knock on my door and Mum walked in. She smiled at me and stroked my slightly tanned face, well, slightly less death white than normal for me.

            "You look beautiful, darling." Mum smiled. "Not too expensive, not too plain." She giggled.

            "Why did you and Dad never have any more kids?" I asked as she placed a stray piece of hair behind my ear.

            "Because, honey, Avery was away too much to inflict your childhood on another child."

            "Why did you have me then?"

            "He wanted a reason to keep me forever. That's what he told me anyway." She frowned a little and held me tight. I heard a car come up the drive and I walked over to the window. A blue Vauxhall Corsa came up the drive and parked outside the garage. Three kids and a red-haired woman climbed out of the car. I trundled downstairs as Dad opened the door with a beaming smile.

            "Eliza!" Dad declared, grinning like a deranged ape. I groaned. Dad glared at me. "Show them to the lounge, Flo." Dad said, smiling forcefully at me. I smiled at my little half siblings,

            "Lounge is this way." I said, trying not to sound too aggressive. The three kids and the mother followed me, each taking seats on our soft, squishy cream sofas.

            "So, you're Florence?" The ginger woman, Eliza, asked.

            "Yeah. You're Eliza?" I asked in return,

            "Yes, these are my kids: Sian, Henry, and Lauren." The three kids smiled at me. The oldest, Sian, had a mess of red curls coming to her shoulders; the boy, Henry, looked like a younger version of Dad, only with Eliza's blue eyes; and the little girl, Lauren, had Dad's black curls, but looked like her mother in every other way. Mum came in and sat on the two seater sofa next to me. I saw the pain cross her eyes as she looked upon little Henry. Dad walked in and sat on the single seater, leant forward, his pale eyes sparkling.

"I honestly never thought I'd see the day with all my children coming into one room." Dad smiled at us, his face glowing. This was not like the Avery I knew.

"The truth had to come out one day." Eliza beamed at Dad, it sickened me a little. The doorbell rang. I stood up and glided to the door before Dad had a chance break eye contact with his mistress. I opened the door to a handsome boy with mess of black hair, just beginning to curl at the ends, and Dad's strange eyes.

"Rory?" I asked. The boy, well man, he must have been at least 23 or so.

"Yep. You're Florence, right?" Rory asked. I nodded,