Dedicated to partytimegirl
My dad never answered my call. He didn't even return my calls. I haven't heard from my mom either. The whole two weeks I was at Skye's, it was radio silence from both of them. That only worried me more.
"You sure you wanna go home?" Skye asked as I threw my wadded up pile of clothes in my bag.
"I have to, Skye. I haven't heard from Mom or Dad the whole time I've been here. Something's wrong. I know it." I threw my bag over my shoulder.
"Okay. Lemme know what happens." She hugged me goodbye.
I reversed my car down the street to my house. Both my parents' cars were in the driveway, which meant they had to be home. I grabbed my bag and braced myself for whatever disaster I was walking into. I took a deep breath before turning the knob. They were both at the kitchen table.
"Dad." I dropped my bag and ran to give him a hug.
For the first time since I was a kid, I actually attacked my dad with hugs. Same with my mom.
"What happened, Dad? I called you dozens of times, but you never answered or returned my calls. Mom wasn't even answering."
"Honey, sit down. We need to talk." I looked at them cautiously and sat down. "What are you doing, Mag?"
"Umm, I just got home Skye's. I was gonna go unpack my stuff."
"No. I mean about the curse, Mag. What are you doing?" He clarified.
"Nothing."
"Nothing?" My mom repeated.
"Well, it shouldn't be that much of a surprise to you. I've been saying I don't want any part of it for months. You both knew about that."
I saw a look flash across my dad's face that I couldn't identify if it was disappointment or heartbreak. Either way, I hated seeing it on his face. Very rarely did I ever see it because I've never really given them a reason for it. I was hurting my father and I knew it.
"Sweetheart, you know you have to. You heard Tombutoo. If you walk into that battle with absolutely nothing, things won't end well. I understand you're gonna be seventeen, and you want to do your own thing. But the closer we get to your birthday, and the less I see you doing anything about it, the harder it is to forget that I might not have much more time with you. I can't bear the thought of losing you. You're my little girl." I watched tears form in his eyes.
Without realizing what I was doing, I ran out the door. I kept running. I kept running until I hit desert. When I finally stopped running, I broke down. Skye had been right this whole time. I was hurting my parents, moreso my dad. I spent so much time trying to ignore the curse. I haven't down anything I was supposed to.
Me not doing what I was supposed to was ruining everything. Dad was right. I was walking into a battle. A battle I was nowhere near ready for. If I keep ignoring it, this won't end well. If I keep ignoring it, they won't have much time with me left. It was like bringing a paper clip to a gun fight.
I thought I was doing more by ignoring it. I thought I was doing more by not putting everyone through two different possible outcomes. I realized I'm doing more harm than good by running away from it. I'm only setting them up for heartbreak. I couldn't put them through that. I couldn't do that to Mom and Dad, my friends and Ryan.
"Tombutoo." I called. "Tombutoo, I need you!"
I kept calling Tombutoo but I got nothing. Normally, he was right in front of me. Why did he have to pick now to listen to me? When I needed him the most?
"Tombutoo!" I screamed.
"Nice to finally get a call from you for once rather than having to track you down."
I smiled a little. I've never been so happy to see him.
"To what do I owe the pleasure of being called? Usually you're yelling at me to get away from you."
"I never thought I'd be so happy to see you." I hugged him as tight as I could.
Hugging Tombutoo was like hugging your best friend after a huge fight and not speaking for days on end. I never thought I'd say that. I'm glad he heard my calls. He was my one chance to fix everything.
"You spoke to your parents, didn't you?"
"Yeah, I did. I should've been listening to you this whole time. I know that now. I'm hurting everyone by dowing what I've been. I thought I was sparing everyone by not putting them through it. I was wrong. I'm only doing more harm than good. I can't do that to them. I can't do that to my parents."
"Are you saying what I think you're saying?"
I thought about what I was about to do next. I couldn't let everyone suffer for my mistakes. Not anymore. I wouldn't let them. I took a deep breath. Suddenly, I found myself saying two words that could fix everything. Two words I never thought I would say.
Help me.Y'all can thank me later in your own ways. My wrist hurts from this.
YOU ARE READING
The Snake Queen
FantasyEverybody knows King Cobras are one of the most dangerous species of snakes. But it's a little interesting when their venom can give you magical powers. Sixteen-year-old Mag Packard was bitten by a special kind of King Cobra when she was seven. For...