Trick Or Cheat?

Trick Or Cheat? Chapter 1

Trick Or Cheat?

Chapter 1

Copyright © 2010 Alyson Wang

I was five when my mother had her first heart attack, eight when she had her second, and eleven when she died. We had just moved to a new fantastic town. But on the third month of my move, my mother had a heart attack on the lawn gardening, and died. My father was devastated, ruined, crushed, and teared like a piece of paper, that wouldn't become flat and whole ever again.

My parents were kind and gentle people nor once had they ever screamed or hit me.

I was called to the hospital at once, I did not know what was happening. Nobody told me what happened. I was just chewing gum innocently, then my father came into view, tears flowing out of his eyes. He had this look on his face saying he didn't need or want help, not wanting to share.

After the funeral, he changed everything in his life, new car, house, and I was being shipped off far far away from him. I was going to live with my aunt, not knowing how long I will stay there, but just hoping not long at all. My aunt was a kind and busy woman, my father would give her an amount of money each month for my clothing and shelter.

And on my sixteenth birthday, celebrating by myself with the monthly money my father had sent. That day was the best day of my life, since my father had mailed me a necklace, with a family photo of us inside the little heart locket. But it was also the most horrible day in my life because that was also the day my father was found dead.

Some say he had an overdose of painkillers, but some say it was a murder. But I didn't care, I didn't want to care. Knowing his death was enough, knowing that I had no parents was far, far enough.

I didn't want to be here, I didn't want to live without my parents. It was way too much for me to handle.

I always thought, why me? Why did I deserve this? What did I do wrong in my life?

I hugged my legs against my chest, imagining it was a warm hug from my parents, closing my eyes tight, using my childhood memory to regain my mother's golden hair, and my father's brown hair. I smiled. This was a family hug.

A soft knock came from the door, I snapped away from my foolish fantasies, fixed my shirt, turning on the desk lamp next to the bed. "Come in" I called, wishing my voice would be stronger, much stronger, I brushed away my wavy brown hair out of my face.

My aunt came in, with her steady gaze, she walked in head held high. "Gracie, somebody's on the phone, demanding to talk to you," she smiled, handing me the phone.

"Thanks," I muttered, pressing the phone against my ear.

"Hello?" I asked raising my voice.

"Grace? Gracie Alford?" a woman asked...Who the heck is this?

"Yeah?" I asked, dragging out the word.

"Gracie! You sound so old now!" the woman said. Okay, I'm officially freaked out.

"Uh..." Okay, who is this?

"Sorry darling, I forgot to introduce myself, I must sound like a, what do you kids call it these days? A, a stalker! That's right!" she laughed.

"Um..." I know... I have bad responses.

"Your father-", she started. My eyes widen, I didn't want this conversation.

"What about my father?" I asked coldly.

"Honey, it's okay, your father called a couple of days before, he, uh, passed away, he told us to take you in if something happened to him," she said.

I gulped, so my father knew something was going to happen to him. The questions spread in my head; did he kill himself, but why? Or did somebody murder him, but why?

"Hello?" She asked, making sure I had not hung up on her.

"That's okay, I'm staying with my aunt Jodie", I said. No way was I staying with an old couple that I didn't even know!

"Well honey, your father didn't give you a choice. He said you're staying with us, and that's that", she replied. Yeah right, the next thing you know, I'm dead.

"Why would I believe you? If my father wanted me to stay with you he would've told me himself!" I said, getting ready to slam the phone shut, not wanting to hear another word about my father.

She sighed, "Please believe me, I have a hand written letter from him. I was your mother's best friend before she passed away."

I froze. Yes, my mother. That was enough, I didn't need this reminder that my mother and father had passed away, and she had mentioned it more than enough times. I clicked the close button, letting the tears spill over my eyes, hugging myself tightly as I lay on my bed. The phone rang millions of times that night, but I never picked up, I didn't want to pick up, I knew it was her, that woman. I didn't deserve this I thought to myself. In the middle of the tenth call, Aunt Jodie knocked on my door. "Come in", I said.

"Aren't you going to pick that up?" she asked walking over to me, reaching for the phone, "No, don't answer it," I said. Keeping an eye on her hand, making sure she was not going to click the 'answer' button. "Who's calling?" she asked me, dropping the phone on my bed. I shrugged.

She kept quiet, she suddenly patted my thigh and said "Let's go down for dinner", we both walked down the stairs quietly.

I set up the table while she carried the food. Chewing on a piece of ravioli, Aunt Jodie burst with a squeak and yelled "I have a date with the most hottest guy ever!"

I smiled, Aunt Jodie was turning 29 this year, but she was a beautiful woman with curly golden hair, not a single wrinkle was on her beautiful face. "What's his name?" I asked.

"Rob," she said, cheeks red as a tomato. I grinned.

"So any cute guys at your school?" she asked. My face fell, no, I wanted to say. There were millions of hot guys at our school, but none of them liked me. I was what you call a 'nobody' my only friends there were Amy and her big brother Adam. They were both blond, Adam and Amy were 'somebody's'. Amy was the first person I talked to when I entered the school, I bumped into her while getting to my class. I still remember the day she reached for my hand and pulled me up and actually introducing herself unlike the other kids who just walked away. First I thought, she must be one of the nerds, but she didn't look like one, she was pretty. Later at lunch I had found out she was a popular kid, I had thought, there goes my first friend. But she sat next to me during all the lunches, I felt like I was the luckiest girl ever. Then came Adam, the stupid stubborn dude. Looking as if he was drunk, he sat down next to Amy and dropped his face on the table making that 'thwap' sound. Out of nowhere, he opens his eyes and meets mine, I froze and quickly looked back to my lunch, he looked at Amy and asked "Who's that dude?" I'm a girl, I wanted to say but kept my mouth shut. After that, we became friends, Amy and Adam would sometimes sit with me and sometimes with the popular group, leaving me as a loner. So they take turns sitting with me, not letting go of their other friends, to make it easier they have asked me to sit with them at the popular table but no way was I sitting there.