Chapter 15 #2
“I got high and drove my car into a house where people were sleeping.”
“I know. I helped the committee choose you to become a resident.”
“Was it a unanimous vote?”
Terra laughed. “Actually, it was.”
“Was the reunion with your family awkward?” I blurted.
I wasn’t sure what it was about this woman that made my inner thoughts escape from my mouth before I had a chance to consider what I was saying. Luckily, she didn’t seem upset at such an intrusive question.
“My entire family was dead. I made a friend inside who is still my friend to this day. I’m not sure where I’d be in this world if I didn’t have her.
She’s the reason I came to Texas and the person that introduced me to Kale.
I wouldn’t change my life for anything, but I think about my parents every single day.
It’s been decades, but I still wonder what life would be like with them in it. ”
“I haven’t talked to my parents since before I went in.”
“Are they still alive?”
“I think so.”
“Would they be detrimental to your recovery?”
“Not at all.”
“Then what’s the fucking problem?”
“Me.”
Terra raised her eyebrows before she said, “I don’t know the reason behind why you would choose to stay away from your family, but I do know that I can’t imagine going for a week without speaking to any of my kids. You haven’t talked to your parents in years?”
“Right.”
“Do they want to talk to you?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why don’t you ask them?”
“Because I broke their hearts.”
“A broken heart is a normal course of business when you’re a parent, Serana.
A part of you is walking around in the crazy world making their own decisions, half of which you don’t agree with, and sometimes they do or say things that hurt so bad, you’re not sure you’ll survive it.
” Terra laughed softly before she said, “I’ve been lucky because my kids are relatively normal, but I know that Harley’s mom is going through a tough time right now.
No matter how tough it is, though, he’s still her little boy.
She’s gonna love him forever, regardless of how bad he fucked up or broke her heart. ”
“I hope so.”
“You didn’t give your mom that option, did you?”
“My dad told me to stay away from her because she’d been through so much already and didn’t need more grief from me.”
“What did your mom say?”
“The last time I saw her, I was cuffed to a hospital bed and going through withdrawals.”
“Even if she’d looked you dead in the eye and said she never wanted to speak to you again, you should have at least given her a chance to follow through with that, or mended her heart by letting her know how much you loved her and that you were doing your best to make a life after you fucked up.”
“You think so?”
“That’s my mom advice to you, Serana. Someday, when you become a mother yourself, you’ll understand why I feel that way, although I hope you never have to go through the pain of losing a child - whether it’s to the afterlife or the wrong life.”
“I want to be a mom, but I’m not sure . . .”
When my voice trailed off, Terra said, “The only thing that any of us can be sure of is that our time on this earth is limited, so we should make the most out of every single . . . What in the hell is that boy doing?”
“Huh?”
“Do you see him?”
“Who?” I asked as I followed her gaze out into the yard.
“Koda is camouflaged underneath that fir tree out there. He’s done a damn good job because I just now noticed him.
It looks like he’s . . . what is he . . .
oh, he better not!” Terra jumped up, and the swing twisted and jerked so hard, I nearly fell.
I had just managed to catch myself when she yelled, “Koda! Do not . . .”
At the same time, Kale jumped and roared, “What the fuck?”
“Oh, shit!” Koda screamed just as the tree out in the yard started to shake.
He appeared a few seconds later with his face and hair covered in dirt and greenery in his hair.
He looked down at his hand, then snapped his wide-eyed gaze toward Kale.
Kale was standing by his motorcycle, across from Ruf and Ransome, who were talking to Roscoe and Rain’s boyfriend, Lucky.
In a frantic voice, Koda shouted, “I’m sorry, Lettuce! ”
“That little fucker just shot me!”
◆◆◆
“I am not going to the emergency room with a rock up my ass!” Kale growled at his wife, who was standing nose to nose with him.
“It’s not up your ass, but if you don’t let a doctor look at it, my foot is definitely gonna be!” Terra yelled just as loudly. “Let Ros do it. He’s a doctor.”
“I don’t have a vagina!” Kale argued with a scowl.
“You sure are acting like one, though,” Terra chided under her breath. When Kale growled again, she giggled and said, “You really are. It’s a fucking rock, Kale, not a Tomahawk missile.”
“In my ass!”
“Who in the hell gave that boy a slingshot anyway?” Roscoe asked.
Rylee grimaced before she whispered, “Mom did. She’s been teaching him . . . things.”
“Things?”
“Yeah. The same things she taught us when we were kids. I’m sorry, by the way.”
“For what?”
Rylee looked up at the sky before she whispered, “About your windshield.”
“You are the one that broke my windshield?” Roscoe asked in horror.
When Rylee nodded, Ruf giggled and said, “I think she might have been using that same slingshot when she did it.”
“No. Mine’s at home. Mom taught him to make his own.”
“Oh. That’s cool.”
Cool? That’s cool? Ruf’s only reaction at the thought of his child owning and operating a weapon was ‘That’s cool.’ What sort of parallel universe had I been transported to, and how in the hell was I going to get back home?
Roscoe leaned so close to me that his lips were touching my ear before he asked, “Ready for the fetal position yet?”
Without a word, I stuck my thumb in my mouth and stared at him, which caused him to laugh so loudly that Kale and Terra even stopped arguing to look our way.
“What the fuck are you laughing about, boy? Go get your doctor bag and fix me up before I bleed to death.”