Dear: Who Now?!

Chapter 22

I'm awoken much earlier than I would've liked. Barely opening my eyes, I squint and see the tv is off and a big black screen meets my face. I hear Bear excitedly running across the room. He lets out a sharp bark and Joey immediately shushes him. I hear footsteps getting closer to me so I feign sleep as they pass. Once the footsteps pass, I slightly open my eyes again and catch mom following the other two out of the house and closing the door quietly behind her. I nuzzle deeper into the couch and fall back to sleep. 

When I awake again, I just know it's later than the last time. Grabbing my phone from underneath me, I check the time and see it's almost ten thirty. Sitting up, I stretch and yawn before looking over and seeing Lou's couch is empty. Quietly, I make my way to the bathroom and run right into mom and Joey in the kitchen. "Oh! Good morning sleepy head! Hungry? I'm gonna make waffles in a bit - Joey and I just got up too!" Mom says chirpily. I grumble out a noise and continue into the bathroom. 

When I'm finished and step out, the kitchen is empty and I see my couch is now cleaned up and occupied by the chirpy idiots and the dog - oh and the cat. Glaring, I go to walk by them but mom jumps up and stops me. "Here O! Sit with Joey while I make us breakfast. You two have yet to really speak to each other." With that, she grabs me and pushes me down on the couch next to Joey while she disappears into the kitchen. Tired, I look over at him and he looks back. Neither of us say a word. We face forward as if something's on the tv that we're going back to watching but it's still just a black screen. A few minutes later, I hear mom coming back in here to ask us something. Mad that she forced me to sit next to yet another guy I DON'T KNOW, I do the first logical thing that pops up in my mind - payback! With that thought and not much time to plan, I do the only thing I have time for... I quickly turn towards Joey and kiss him. I hear mom talking, then she enters and I hear her gasp. At that moment, Joey pushes me away. He quickly looks at me, then to mom. Something crashes. I turn and see mom running off and a second later a door slams. Joey looks back at me again before. "What the fuck?!" He mutters quietly before jumping up and running after mom. I smile at his retreating back, proud of myself. Maybe now mom'll learn not to sit me next to strange men that I don't know! 

A second later mom comes flying out of the room, red eyed and tears streaming down her face. She doesn't acknowledge me as she goes flying out the front door and down the stairs. I hear the downstairs front door slam and then I hear tires squealing as she takes off. Joey comes running from his bedroom and over to the window where he watches the scene before him. Slowly, he turns around and looks at me. "WHAT. THE. FUCK - WAS THAT?!" He asks me angrily and full of venom. He starts to walk towards me when the front door opens and scares us both. It's just Lou. He looks at the two of us. "What the hell happened?" He asks curiously. Joey turns to him and spits it all out. "I'll tell you what happened! This - She - she KISSED me and fucking Jade walks in, sees it, and takes the fuck off!" He says pointing at me. They both turn back to me. "What the FUCK?!" Lou says. He closes the door and looks back at me. "That's REALLY fucked up!" "I know RIGHT?!" Joey chimes in. "I mean WHO DOES THAT?!" He asks rhetorically. "Oh this bitch!" He finishes pointing at me. I shrink under their angry gazes and pointing fingers. Joey growls and storms back into his room where he slams the door shut. Lou refuses to look at me and doesn't even bother trying to talk to me. He turns the tv on and turns it up enough to drown me out if I try to talk. 

Twenty minutes later, Joey storms back into the living room with his phone in his hand looking pissed. "She won't even ANSWER my calls OR TEXTS!" He shouts exasperated. Lou and I both look at him as he runs a hand through his hair. Lou goes to say something but is interrupted by a knock on the door. Joey motions for his dad to stay and that he will get the door. Slowly, opening the door, a man steps in and looks right at me. "I'm here for Ophelia."