Chasing Secrets

Chapter One

I've never known my dad. And to be honest, I never questioned what happened. Only because I knew the answer- well, my moms answer. She would say, "Adelaide, your father left when you were born. There's nothing else to say.".

But the look in her dark brown eyes would always tell me she had more. More about my father, more about her life, more about me.

I'm Adelaide Maury, daughter of Ruth and David Maury. Based on my mother's looks, I resemble my father more. Blonde wavy hair, tan skin, and a Greek nose. The only trait I inherited from mom was her brown eyes. Which, I'm lucky to have, because her best assets are her eyes.

"Adelaide!"

I hear snapping. I blink my eyes quickly, and focus my attention on the girl who spoke.

"Adelaide! Are you even paying attention?" My friend, Demi, said. "We've been talking about Brock for like fifteen minutes and you're just sitting there like a zombie.".

Meet Demi Pierce. My best friend since first grade. She moved from Baring Rock and had a rough time making new friends. Not only that, she was always getting bullied because of her skin. Demi has the skin condition called vitiligo, and it was the source of her bullying. But one day I decided enough was enough, and sat at her table in class. I told her how pretty she was, and how being different is far better than being like others. That's the day I met my best friend. The confident, beautiful, and competitive Demi.

Demi starts laughing, and my other friend, Roxanne, joins in. I start chuckling along. "I'm sorry, I was just thinking-"

Roxanne blurts in, "About your dad?" Demi hits her. "Ouch! I'm just saying-" she moves her hand to my shoulder, "He left you, and he doesn't deserve the time of day."

And now meet Roxanne Murphy. My best friend since my junior year and her freshman year. My school does these things where we help the incoming freshmen, and it was my first year doing it. And that's where Demi and I met Roxy! She was really popular in her class, but was one of the nice popular ones you know? So when we got paired up in her group, she asked about how upperclassmen treat freshmen. My simple answer was that if you treat us with respect, we'll treat you with respect. Of course, Demi had to butt in and scare all of the freshies. I told them all she was lying, and gave her the stare that says, "You're going to get a whooping later." stare. But surprisingly, Roxanne started laughing at the joke and asked another question asking us if we know any upperclassmen who want some more friends. And of course, I suggested Demi and I, and Roxy followed up on that. And that's where we met our pink haired, mom friend.

"I get it. I really do but-" I pause. Is he worth the time? Is he worth my time? "He may have left me, and he may not want to know me. But he's still my father and I owe him that at least."

We all just sit there, in silence, on the ground of my bedroom. No one speaks. No one breaks the silence. We all just sit, and wait for someone to get the urge to speak.

I see a dark red blush arise on Roxanne's face. She starts to mumble. "And we understand that, but we are just looking out for you." A soft smile appears on Roxanne's face.

"Thank you, Roxy, but I can handle myself." I say and smile back at her. All of a sudden we heard a ringing sound. Demi's phone.

"Oh, let me get that." Demi grabs her phone and walks out of the room. Leaving Roxanne and I alone. We sort of just sit there, not very much talking besides the occasional, "Hey did you see this!" or "Check this out!" and more phrases that don't really mean anything.

Whenever I say or think anything about my dad, my friends don't get it. They have their dads. They know their dads. They are loved by them and cared for by them. I just have my mom. And she's good at trying to be both mom and dad. But she isn't good at being both mom and dad. And so I always ask "What happened to dad?". Because by the way she describes how loving and caring he was, there was no way he just abandoned me. But every time I ask, it's always the same answer, "Adelaide, your father left when you were born. There's nothing else to say.". Which sucks, because there is so much more I need to know.