Have Some Hope

Chapter 11

The others had gone home a couple of hours ago, so I decided to sit in my room scrolling through Tumblr. But that wish was short lived as my dads burst into my room.
"We're going shopping!" Simon exclaims. I laugh. I didn't peg Simon to be the one who liked to go shopping but okay. I get off my couch and walk with them to the car.
Simon drives to the mall, Andy constantly reminding him that speed limits are a thing. We park in front of a humongous mall. I stare up at it in awe.
Simon grabs my hand and pulls me inside. We go to a few different stores, Simon always having me try on a couple of things.
After a few hours of shopping, Andy gets bored and pulls us over to a small taco place. We order a bunch of tacos and wait at the table for them to be ready.
"So, we saw you and Flo. Do you like him?" Andy asks. I look away. My father would be so mad if I liked anyone. He would hit me and I would be in so much trouble.
I start shaking violently and my airway clogs up. Andy moves over to my side of the table and hugs me. I freeze up at first and then lean into him.
"I'm sorry Hope. I shouldn't have asked," he says after I calm down. I stare at him in confusion.
"You're not mad?" I ask quietly. He shakes his head no. A lady from the front calls our number and Simon walks over to get the food.
"I don't know exactly what your father did, but I can promise you that me and Simon will never do that," he says. I hug him tighter. After a minute he goes back over to their side of the table.
"Where's Simon?" He asks. I shrug. I look around and see him at the front counter with a girl leaning over it. He looks really uncomfortable.
I point over to where Simon is and Andy gets up. I follow him up to the front counter and stand beside him.
"Oh c'mon. We can leave here and have some fun," she says trying, key word trying, to be seductive. I laugh at her failed attempt. She looks over and glares at me.
"Who do you think you are?" She asks rudely. I shrink back at her tone. Simon goes over to me and wrap his hand around my shoulders.
"This is my daughter. Now we would like to get our food," he says. The lady pushes the food over and I take it. We walk back to the table and sit down.
Andy keeps glaring over at the lady as she works. I wave my hand in front of his face and he spins and glares at me. I gasp and put my hands over my face.
"Hope! Im so sorry. That wasn't meant to be directed towards you," he apologizes. I uncover my face and peer over at him. His head is down and he looks sad.
I reach over and pat his hand tentatively. He looks up at me and smiles. We finish eating our tacos and we go to walk out. Andy hands me and Simon the bags of clothes.
"Okay when I say run, we run," he whispers. I nod confused. Simon smiles. Andy grabs our tray of trash and waits until he has a clear shot of the lady. He throws the trash at her.
" Run! " he yells. We bolt out of the restaurant as the lady yells at us. The people inside are laughing at our display of payback. We run back to the car and put our stuff in the back.
"That was fun! Thank you!" I exclaim. They nod and we get in the car. We pass by our house and I stare at Simon in confusion.
"Where are we going?" I ask. Andy looks back at me and smiles.
"It's a surprise," he replies. I nod and look out the window. He stops in front of a house. It's smaller than theirs but bigger than most.
Andy knocks on the front door and an older lady opens it. She engulfs Andy in a hug.
"How's my favorite son-in-law?" She exclaims. Simon facepalms and I laugh. The lady pulls away from the hug when she hears me. She looks over at me apprehensively.
"Who is she?" She asks walking up to me. I walk backwards and away from her. She stops walking.
"That is Hope. You're granddaughter," Simon says. She looks me over and nods. She puts her arms out for a hug and I walk towards her. I hug her gently and she squeezes the life out of me.
She pulls back and pinches my cheeks slightly. Andy laughs from somewhere behind me. She goes over to Simon and scowls.
"Ew. My son," she says and walks inside. Simon walks in defeated and Andy pats him on the hand. I walk in after them and shut the door behind me.
They sit down at the table and play poker for a while. I go on my phone but a couple of times I help my dads out with the game. After the fourth time Simon decides to finally ask his question.
"How do you know how to play poker?" I look away ashamed. I look back to see them all patiently waiting for an answer.
"I had to help my father play when he got drunk. I learned it when I was seven," I explain. They nod and continue the game. After a while it gets dark and starts raining.
"Is it okay if we stay here tonight?" Simon asks his mom. His mom nods and shows me to an extra guest room. I lay down on the bed exhausted.
I fall asleep thinking about Flo and school tomorrow.