The Blessing and Curse of Damien Richmond

Chapter 8: I've Heard It's Very Interesting

The dinner Audrey was hosting was the perfect distraction from what happened on Monday. All week I had been thinking about what Radhika had meant and who could Shawn be asking out. I asked Shawn for his name and he said it will be a surprise. I don't even understand what he could possibly mean by that. Radhika has been giggling and trying to shove me into Shawn and vice versa. It was kinda hard for her though considering the fact that I am much bigger than her but that didn't deter her. She would just kick me so I would fall onto Shawn. I don't know if Kavin felt bad for me but was terrified of his sister or he just didn't care because he would stand to the side and do nothing.

I tucked the rest of my shirt in and opened one button at the top. It wasn't much, just a navy blue button-down with some type of dress pants or something. The last time I wore something this fancy was at my mom's funeral.

Looking in the mirror, I gave myself a once over. My eyes pooled with tears as I tried to stop thinking about her. One fell and my body turned away from the mirror before any more could spill.

I've always hated the fact that I look so much like her. Well, I guess not always, it started when she passed away. I hate it when people say I remind them of her when I want to forget and move on. I have moved on so why do people keep bringing her up?

"Damien! We gotta go now or we'll be late!" My dad yelled from downstairs.

"I'm coming!" I replied, grabbing my phone. 

I ran down the stairs and crashed into my dad. Thankfully neither of us fell but he gave me a weird look. I quickly apologized and tried to walk past him but he grabbed my shoulders. 

"You okay Damien?" He asked me, looking straight into my eyes. 

I wanted to say yes but it felt like a lie. "I'm fine," I answered. 

His eyebrow raised slightly before relaxing. "I think I know what's bothering you."

"And what would that be?"

He brought his head down and sighed before looking back up. "Audrey is not and will never be a replacement for your mom. Do you understand that?"

When I tried to open my mouth, it felt like I was underwater. The lump in my throat made me feel weak. Swallowing it, I began to speak with hoarseness in my voice, "I know. I moved on from her death."

"Not 'her', Mom," my dad said. I felt his grip on my shoulders relax. 

I was confused. "Huh?"

"You said her instead Mom."

"And?" I felt frustration bubbling inside of me.

"Just please tell me if me dating Audrey makes you uncomfortable. Okay?" He dropped his hands from my shoulders and I nodded. 

It does make me slightly uncomfortable but I can't do that to my dad. He has been there for me, he's my rock. I can't put my wants before his. 

"And I'm going to have you see Dr. Iwe again. I think you were doing well when you were talking to her. Not that you went down or anything but still," he said. 

I smiled genuinely at him. Dr. Iwe is really nice and fun to talk to. You could gossip with her about anything and she would tell you stuff about her life. She also has this huge bowl of candy in the her room that has every type of candy possible. She has these Korean candies that are wrapped in this green wrapper and are my favorite.  

"Okay, Dad."

He smiled back at me and dragged me to the laundry room to grab my shoes. 

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