Anchor (Book 1)

Chapter Fifteen

I hung up the clothes in their designated spots and cleaned my room until my mom came up with the phone in her hand, pressing it to her chest.
"It's your father." She informed, "he says you haven't been answering his calls."
Well, of course I haven't answered his calls. He can't expect me to pick up every unknown number I receive calls from. He can't expect me just to know its him calling from a pay phone.
"Hi dad." I sat into the phone after taking it from my mother.
"Hey kiddo."
Chaos sounded in the background. I heard glasses clinking and very loud music.
"Dad, are you in a club?"
I imagined my dad throwing back shot after shot and busting a move on the dance floor. I wanted to erase the vision promptly right after I had pictured it. There was shuffling before he answered. I suppose he was trying to cover the noise as best he could because he replied,
"No honey....." he trailed, "a club?" He scoffed at the very idea.
I exhaled deeply. I knew he was lying. I exhale a lot around Kane because I don't believe a word he says. Also around JJ because he showers me with compliments I don't believe.
Anyways my dad gave in eventually.
"Alright sweetheart, you caught me. But, I haven't had one drink." He reassured, followed by a belch.
The burp didn't need to happen for me to know he was fibbing about that too. He'd always go on these extravagant business trips and swear to us there'd be no drinking, but that wasn't possible for him. He needed alcohol like a human needed water and that was part of the reason he was never around. Whenever he'd get drunk when he was home, which was pretty frequent enough, mom would have him take a walk. He usually wouldn't return from these walks until mid afternoon the next day. Nobody knew of his whereabouts during that time, but I assumed he went somewhere secluded where he could focus on sobering up.

So, there in the club, where I'm sure he was surrounded by millions of temptations, I had not a doubt in my mind that my dad had more than just the nice idea to chat with me.
"So, how's my girl been doing?" He slurred, breaching the little silence between us.
"Good,"
There was no point in explaining things to him when he was in this intoxicated state. He mumbled something that was hard to make out, so I asked him to repeat it.
"Would you-" a belch escaped his mouth again. "Would you.... Like to come to New York with me? I'm shooting something there next week. I thought I'd be a good bonding experience for the two of us."
"New York?"
"Mmmhmmmm...."
"Dad, why don't we talk about this later, okay?"
I hung up the phone abruptly. The offer was probably a drunken mistake, but at the same time, there may have been some authenticity behind it. Still, I don't know how I felt about going to New York and I didn't even know for how long. I mean, I have my responsibilities at the daycare that would upset Kane if I missed. Plus, I had JJ and I'm still managing being fresh out of a friendship with my best friends turned attackers. I'm like a broken toy. I need to be fixed before I could be fit to travel.

I returned the phone to my mother who was on the couch watching some daytime soap opera. Apparently, I interrupted the best part; "the part where it's supposed to get good" she told me and shooed me away. I rolled my eyes and left her alone with Jean, Mary and some psycho I heard was named Ben who was wielding a knife in the next scene.

I headed into the kitchen and noticed through the window Austin's car was not in the driveway. I questioned my mother about it, but all she did was mumble something about Lindsey. Then, she gasped really loudly as dramatic music came from the TV. Lindsey was my brothers not so ex girlfriend from Boston. It was always on and off again with those two and let me say, I liked them so much better when they were off. It sounded harsh, but I didn't think Lindsey was right for my brother and she had similar feelings about me. Except, I was his sister and I couldn't be removed. She hated that fact and me, too. She absolutely adored Melissa because who didn't, but she thought I was bad for Austin because she believed me to be too needy. The irony is sweet.

Anyways, I thought that once we moved, Lindsey would be gone forever. Not a chance. As soon as she found out about it, she transferred colleges just like that. Now, she was a ten minute drive away. I honestly thought Austin would never visit her, that he was finally over her, but I was wrong. That dirty blonde headed, spray tanned nightmare hooked him in too deep. I decided I would break up this little reunion of theirs for Austin's sake. He'd hate me for a while, but soon he'd understand. My hand stopped short when I started to reach for the phone to let Austin know I was coming, but I decided that it would be much more entertaining if I made a surprise visit to the campus. I knew that's where Lindsey would be. Her parents sort of disowned her when she stole their credit card for a year for her own selfish reasons. They didn't abandon her legally, but she wouldn't make it to the front door. I thought Lindsey got what she deserved, but Austin was distraught and all so I comforted him. I'm surprised Lindsey still attended the university, but she was awful smart so I guess I'm really not shocked. Besides, it provided a place for her to live and eat. She'd be stupid to leave there.

The campus was kind of a long walk, so I asked my mom to take her car. As I drove, I rehearsed what I might say to Lindsey when I saw her. Nothing I conjured up would make for a low blow, so I left it alone and decided I would speak on the fly.

The campus looked infested with zombies. It was Sunday so I guessed everyone who moped around was hung over. They all looked at me suspiciously when I walked through the quad, but they were too tired to do anything. I went up to the desk and made some phony excuse.
"I'm looking for Lindsey Jackson's room. There's been a family emergency and I need to talk to her right away."
I took some tips away from the soap opera and made it as dramatic as possible. I even made myself cry a little to sell the urgency of the matter. The man at the desk looked confused for a bit. He asked again for my name and I gave him something ridiculous that would be too hard to look up and make sure actually existed. He fiddled with his pen and warned that if he got fired because of me, he'd get me arrested or something, but he let me up nevertheless.

This college has a theme for each floor. Floor one was the lobby, so it held a mama's kitchen vibe; one that screams, "welcome to our campus." Floor four, Lindsey's floor, was ocean themed. I headed down the blue carpeted corridor looking for room four twenty four. The wall to the right of me was adorned with various seashells throughout and the wall to the left looked to be spray painted baby blue. It was a few shades lighter than the blue below me. Also on the walls were little painted anchors. They were spread about both walls and you had to have a keen eye to see them all. It reminded me once again of Melissa and the confusing circumstances surrounded her disappearance. It instilled in me once again the drive to get to the bottom of of it. I found her room in no time.

The TV could be heard through the door so I knew someone was home. I knocked lightly and prepared to make my entrance. The door swung open and Austin appeared standing behind it. He stared blankly for a second and then as the light bulbs connected, his facial expression changed dramatically.
"Natalie, what do you think you're doing here?!" He boomed.
I stayed loyal to my sarcastic approach and answered, "I could be asking you the same question."
He rolled his eyes and walked out of the door frame facing me in the hallway.
"Go home." He ordered. "You shouldn't be on a here. Does mom even know?"
I shook my head and informed him that I wasn't going anywhere unless he accompanied me. He begged me to stop giving him grief, but I wouldn't let up.
"If you just got to know her..." He started.
I interjected immediately, "What if you just got to know her? Austin, she acts so fake around you! Geez! You can be so blind. "
And just like that, Austin and I were distanced from each other. He wandered back into the dorm and left me outside, alone and confused. I trudged back home and made the decision to fly out and visit my dad. Austin and I needed our time apart and I was silently hoping that in the time I was gone, Lindsey would show her true colors to the rest of the world.