Those Three Weeks

1

I don't know how to fight. I don't even know how to position myself to make it look like I know how to fight. But I'll do it to protect my family. I know I'll have to face her today and I will win. I must.

                           X

It's one of those lazy Saturdays, I can feel it.
I don't even have to lift my head to the alarm clock beside my bed to know that I woke up around 10 am.

A few minutes later I made my way to the kitchen hoping to steal something from the fridge before mom came out of the room.

Looks like today was one of the days she wasn't too busy to have a lie-in.
She's like the busiest college lecturer I know.

Well...

She's the only college lecturer I know.

But anyway that's not important, I almost made it to the fridge when I heard "Annaliese......"
I cringed.
Busted.
Wait, by who?

Mom was at the dining table, head in her hands and sitting sheepishly next to her was Eric Bloome, aka my father,  aka the man who decided to go and live somewhere else and avoid us like the plague. His relationship with mom was very Rocky and he was awkward around me as I was a teenager but at least he and my sister were cool. She was a child after all.

Now look, it's not as if I don't like the man. I really love dad, but everything was fine and then a split and then he just vanished. It broke our hearts. But I was hopeful.
He had come all the way hadn't he?

I heard felt a tug on my hand and I looked down at the very large blue eyes of Sarah-Jane, little miss cutie.
She's my little sister and I call her S-J for short because her name is a mouthful I can't afford to be pronouncing all the time.

Mom noticed her and smiled " hi sweetheart, what do you want for breakfast?"
She walked to my location, scooped her into her arms and carried her to the kitchen.
She was avoiding dad, I could tell.

I walked to him hesitantly.
"hey dad"
He smiled
"hello Anna bear"
I cringed
" Why are you here dad?"
No need to beat about the bush, honestly

" he's here to take you guys to live with him for three weeks"