Fate

Chapter Seventy-One

Chapter Seventy-One

She was right in some ways. We had turned out pretty well all things considered with the different things we'd all had to deal with. Liam was a great person and I knew Kaylin was beyond proud of the type of person he was. I knew he'd never leave her.

Her words made me sad thinking of Zayn happy as a child who smiled all the time when he wasn't that now. That must cause Eric some sorrow and it would have caused Evelyn and Jace some as well if they could see it. I hated myself for not remembering that Zayn. I equally hated whatever it was that made him less happy. That made that happy little boy become this troubled teenage boy with slight anger problems.

As for what mom had to say about me I wasn't sure. Making her proud was always at the top of my list and I loved that she thought so highly of me and was proud. I just hoped it was true and she wasn't only saying that to make me feel good. If Kenneth had said what he said it was probably because he liked that I was passive at times like mom and took his abuse and anger without saying much.

Yet I couldn't say any of this to mom. Well, I could but it wouldn't do me any good. She made promises she had a plan to leave him and she had left him more than once. She just always went back to him. I'd go back as well because I'd follow her anywhere. This time things were different. She'd asked me to leave but I was long gone from being angry with her because she was here with me tonight. She was always there for me, she loved me and always would.

I felt the first sense of peace I'd had all night. She would love me no matter what anyone said. No matter how many things Mrs. Hollowell would come up with to say about me. Mom would love me anyway. More importantly, no matter what was revealed and what was not revealed tonight she'd always be my mom. That was something I knew for sure. I couldn't deny her and she couldn't deny me our looks were so similar. As long as I were her child I could be happy.

My true father was irrelevant to the conversation. Her love had made up for everything I'd faced and everything  I hadn't yet. People have been watching but I didn't care as I took her hand and squeezed it for reassurance. We neared the classroom as the time for my conference neared. Mrs. Hollowell was standing outside the classroom and I thought I saw her smirk.

It was clearly threatening and letting me know she planned to destroy me at this conference all in the presence of my mom. She must think I've been asking for it and maybe I had. She may have already talked to Maggie and Carmen which could explain their expressions earlier. She'd likely do the same with Zayn and Liam during theirs.

"Hello Ariel, Mrs. Young," she welcomed with a handshake which mom took.

"Hello, Mrs. Hollowell, is it?"

"Yes please come inside."

She was being more polite than she usually was. Maybe she was always like this with parents l. We walked inside her classroom and I was surprised with how different it looked, empty as compared to how it normally was. Full of students. There were two chairs seated in front of her desk and she gestured for us to take them and I did so nervously.

She shifted through papers on her desk until she came up with a file with my name on it and produced a list of all my grades for the semester with her neat handwritten.

"Do you have many students in this class period?" Mom asked.

"Too many about twenty of them," she said and mom laughed along with her.

Something told me she might not be joking about that. She moved, turning the list of grades around for mom to see. "As you can see Ariel has pretty good grades in the class and usually turns her work in on time so she's doing great academically."