Blank Skies

44

Rebecca

Andre lays on his side as he faces me, "How is it you look so cute all the time?" I smile up at the ceiling and hold the sheet over my chest, "Shut up." He chuckles and the bed shakes, "I mean it babe." His fingers graze over the top of my arm, "Mhm." I turn my head to face him, "You know this doesn't change what happened?"

He sighs and lays flat on his back, "I love you baby, but it hurts me to think about tearing you away from your family." I say watching as he runs his hands down his face, "They're important to you and that means something." The room is silent and we lay there together listening to each other breathe, "I'm not tearing you away from that." He flips on his stomach and faces away from me.

I turn my head and look back up at the ceiling. Suddenly it feels as if there's so much space between us than ever before. I want to hug him and love him, but I don't want to live in a fantasy.

The thin sheet is covering my naked body as I sit up on the bed. I slide off the side and slip my panties back on. I walk over to the couch at the end of the bed and slide one of Andre's shirts on and then a pair of shorts.

I grab the hair tie off the dresser and pull my hair back into a pony tail. My feet move along the floor and I stop in front of the door. I open it slowly and pull it closed behind me. A ringing noise makes me jump. The noise is coming from the kitchen and Andre's phone is ringing.

It's his mom.

"Hello?" I say into the speaker and there's a small silence, "Oh hey Becca, is Andre with you?" I nod and walk back to the bedroom. I open the door, "He's right here." I say and he looks up at me. I hold out his phone and he sits up in the bed. His eyes trained on the phone in my hand, "Mom? What's up?" His voice is soft and his fingers wrap around my wrist as I begin to leave.

I don't try to shake him off because his touch is something I crave. "I'm not talking to you about this." I look down at my feet. Man I need to repaint my toes. "What I do doesn't concern you." He snaps and I stand still, "No mom you don't get to tell me what it is I can and can't do anymore." Yeah he just did me without permission.

His fingers unwrap from my wrist and he jumps out of the bed and slips on his shorts from the other night, "You aren't coming over!" He says loudly stating his point. I look up and notice his anger written on his face. "No!" He says moving the phone away from his ear for a moment to his mouth, "Where ever you are turn around and go home." He says sternly and suddenly I want to sit down and go home.

"You can't be serious?!" He yells and there's a knock at the door. I walk past him while he continues to argue, "Becca!" I turn around in the living room and the knocking changes to a beating, "Don't open that door." He's pissed beyond belief and it's really hot. "What?" I ask noticing that he now has on a shirt.

The door swings open and there she stands in all her furious glory, "Leave." He says to his mom as she walks in with other family members. He puts his phone on the counter and she drops her purse on the couch, "Excuse me?" I sink in my skin and he crosses his arms over his chest, "Andre we need to talk as a family." I take this as my cue to leave.

"No." I move quickly around him and all I want in these fleeting seconds is to be smothered with a pillow. "Nothing concerning my love life will be apart of a family discussion." He hisses in a very serious tone, "Young lady get back here." His mom says and I can't help but stop in my tracks, "If you have an issue I'd like to be notified by you and no one else."

I'm in hell.

"Cut the shit mom." Andre says and her eyes are still boring into my back, I can feel the heat. "This isn't a high school gossip party." He says standing up for me. "Now get out because this isn't your house and you sure as hell weren't invited inside." I'm flooded with emotion and I walk back into my room. I crack the door and sit down on the floor in front of my bed.

I close my eyes and bring my legs up to my chest as he gets yelled at my various family members. He doesn't even hesitate to take my side and defend my honor. I don't think I've ever seen Andre so mad before. Things between he and his family are worse than they've ever been.

"You aren't allowed to have a say in this anymore!" I flinch as he yells and somebody yells back, "Shes not right for you!" A mans voice breaks my heart, "Excuse me?" He says angrily and in a somewhat calm voice. I bring my knees up to my chest, "Andre I need you to calm down." An older woman's voice rings through the room.

"None of this is worth fighting family for because we know what's best for you." I sigh and rest my forehead on my arms, "I'm your mother I know what's best for you." Andre laughs and I close my eyes, "Are you kidding me?" There is so much tension I feel as if I'm choking on it, "The only thing you guys talked about for years was me having a girlfriend and being happy! Now I have that and you guys are pissed?!"

His voice beings to reach its higher pitch, "That woman makes me unbelievably happy and it scares me that you guys think it's okay to drive her away." He spits and I focus on my breathing, "We aren't bothering anybody." The place gets quiet.

"I'm going to marry her and if you don't like it then let me know because that's less RSVP cards I have to send out." He says angrily. The door opens and closes again, "What's going on?" His grandma's voice pipes in, she must've just got here. This is the worst I've felt since I lived with my mother.

"Victoria Anne you better not be doing what I think you're doing." Her voice is stern as she places her purse on the counter, I recognize the thud. "I'm talking to my son." Victoria says and I hear grandma laugh, "Don't you fucking lie to me." I open my eyes, "Now you mean to tell me I'm not hearing him yelling about getting married to Becca?"

"Yes, but-" Victoria starts, "And you want him to be with someone else?" I hear a low groan, "Now I'm gonna say a couple things." She says, "Andre can be with whoever the hell he wants to Victoria. What you did to Becca was evil do you hear me?"

She pauses and I raise my head up, "You did it on purpose?" Andre asks in a quiet hurt voice, "I played along with you two, but I've had enough." Victoria says and I rub my arm, "You deserve better and I won't stand around and accept the fact that you want to marry her."

Suddenly I'm happy I'm not in the room anymore, "She'll never be enough for you Andre. Just wait until she runs off again in the middle of the night and you're left all alone again." I deserve that I guess, "But you married the drug dealer who fucked around with everybody that's why I have so many siblings? And the fact that he was in jail more than he was in my life and I got out into Grams' care in second grade? You have no say in the decisions I make with my life."

Andre's voice is so calm it's actually scary, "I'm going to ask you one more time to leave." He's standing his ground even though he's hurt. I can hear it in his voice. I wait in the floor of my bedroom as footsteps cover the ground and the door slams closed.

Crap.