Fifty Shades After

Chapter 7: Home Sweet Home

I stroll towards Phoebe who's waving at Aunt Mia and she back. She sighs and I'm right next to her. She has the most beautiful smile on her, I wonder what she's thinking. "It's amazing, isn't it?" She says and I squad my knees to her level. "What is?" I ask. "We have such a beautiful, fun, loving family, and we had no idea of it." I nod at her and half smile. "Yeah. We do. Huge, ain't it?"

-"Very!" she giggles. Suddenly, she quiets down. Oh, no. She's thinking. When Phoebe thinks, things get complicated. "Why did Mom keep us from them? She was upset at Dad, why separate us from everyone else?"

My smile disappears. Oh, Phoebe, It's not Mom's fault. How in the world do I explain this to her? But she does stress a good point there- you just don't understand the circumstances she was in Phoebe, you never will. 

I remain quiet, but I know she's waiting for an answer. "Why was Mom angry at Dad? What did he do?

Ding, ding, ding! The million dollar question surges. "It doesn't matter." I sigh. "Remember what you told me the other day? You said you don't know what mean thing he did to mom, but it sounded like I was ready to forgive him. And I did."

-"But that's not the point. I mean..." Phoebe is becoming more exasperated. What should I say? I hold her by the shoulders and look her straight in the eye. "Trust me, little lady. I've been there. I tried searching for answers anywhere I could access them, but it was just not worth it. I sometimes wish I never knew, because it broke my heart. But the past is just that- the past. And we gotta focus on what we got now, and we got ourselves a family." She searches me with her gray shining eyes, trying to understand what I just said.

She turns to Mom and Dad who seem to be having a serious conversation by the railing. He's probably trying to convince her to stay in Seattle. Phoebe weakly smiles. Phew. "I guess." she looks down. I pick her chin up and smile at her widely. "Mom and Dad," I say and she beams at me, chomping down on her lip. "Sounds pretty cool, doesn't it?" She nods frantically at me and hugs my neck tightly. Oh, Phoebe. Gotta love her.

I stand and reach for her hand. Phoebe takes it and I walk the opposite direction from our parents to give them their privacy. We walk through the boardwalk, watching booths with balloons, souvenirs, flashing keychains, glow sticks and snacks. The sun is long gone, and the stars are crystal clear in the sky. I look to my left and see a guitarist playing an acoustic. I recognize the song as soon as he starts singing, it's by Greg Laswell, but I can't recall the name. It's beautiful. He's singing his dedication with such a soft and melancholic tone, I get goose bumps on my arms. Wow, he's good.

"Here." I give Phoebe a five dollar bill and point at the man with my chin. Phoebe nods and releases my hand. She stands in front of the man and smiles at him as he sings passionately. He strums the strings of the instrument like an expert- I want to play the guitar now. Phoebe finally drops the bill inside his open case filled with all sorts of change, and I think a coupon too. The man, still singing, smiles at Phoebe and she makes her way towards me and grips my hand again. The man sings a second the chorus again and I gasp. "Comes and Goes!" Phoebe raises a brow. "The name of the song." I chuckle apologetically.

"Where's Mom and Dad?" She asks me as we continue walking. "Probably still on the berth. We should leave them alone for a while." I get closer to her ear, "I think Dad is trying to convince mom to stay here for a while." I whisper and Phoebe gasps excitedly. "I hope so! It would be fun!"

After a while, Phoebe releases me and hugs herself. "You're cold, aren't you?" I rub one of her bare shoulders. She nods, "A little, yes."

- "Come on. We should get back." I turn and there they are, a few meters back, eating cotton candy, watching us. What the? What are they doing here? We make our way to them and Phoebe hugs Mom. "How long have you been behind us?" I ask them both. "Since Greg Laswell." Mom smirks. And gives her purple cotton candy to Phoebe. "What'd she say?" I whisper at Dad and raises a brow. "I don't understand." Hah. I'm not stupid, old man. "Come on." I roll my eyes at him and he narrows his. "She said for the summer." He mutters and I smirk at him. We're staying in Seattle all summer, this ought to be interesting. Then I remember, I really am going to see more of Sophie, and suddenly I'm filled with utter excitement. This is going to be one hell of a summer.