Chapter 33 #2
“Shall we just get this over with?” He looks down towards his mug and seems a little sad. Does he fear this as much as I do? I say nothing more and pick up the small, sealed envelope while he takes his letter from his jacket pocket.
We both take a breath before ripping the seal open and removing the contents, then we’re silent for only a few seconds. The first thing I see is a coloured chart full of figures, it’s all gobbledygook to me, I can’t make head nor tail of it. I glance up to Scott and he’s beaming.
“What? Have you found anything?”
“Read the statement at the bottom of the page.”
I do as he says and find what I’m looking for.
Based upon the statics detailed above, there is an 85.5% chance that the tests from Sibling 1 and the tests from Sibling 2 show a match as half-sibling versus no relation at all.
“Is that a yes? Are we related?” I ask with a crack in my voice. My throat is bothering me. It has been since the day Ash left.
“Excuse me? I thought you were the maths genius here. It’s over eighty-five per cent Calla, I’d say it’s a yes, wouldn’t you?”
I stop scanning the letter and look to Scott’s glowing smile instead. “Holy shit, I’ve got a brother.” A beaming smile forms across my face and my tears brim at my lids once again. I’m so over-emotional about everything these days.
“You’re stuck with me now, you know that, right?”
“Good. I’m over the moon we have some good news for once. I couldn’t lose another person from my life.” I hold out my arms for another hug.
“Fuck, I’m so relieved,” Scott says, pulling away. “Phew,” he almost whistles.
“Me too. We might not have had the best start, but it all worked out.”
“Luckily,” he laughs, but his expression soon turns serious. “Thanks for giving me a chance Calla. You didn’t have to after the way I treated you. Just shows what a good person you are. I’m proud to call you my sister.”
As if I hadn’t cried enough already. “Oh God, stop. You’re starting me off again.”
“I mean it. I don’t know what I would have done without you over the past few months.”
“We don’t have to think about the bad bits anymore. Why don’t we erase the mid-teens and pretend they didn’t happen? Neither of us needs a reminder of such a painful time.”
“But we went to school together, Calla. It’s kind of unavoidable, plus Ash and Angie were there. School is bound to come up and the horrible time I put you through.”
“Only if we talk about it, which we won’t. Let’s concentrate on the good times, I mean, we were friends before it happened.”
“As I said, you’re an amazing person.”
“So, do we have a deal?”
“Yeah, we have a deal.”
We toast to the future with our tea and settle on the sofa. After I take a good sip, I throw my head back to the cushion behind. “I’m so relieved that’s over. I needed some positive news.”
“Yeah, we both did. I’m getting used to having a little sister on my case. I wouldn’t want to lose you now,” Scott smiles.
“Um, hold on a sec. Who said I’m the little sister?”
“Come on then, when’s your birthday?” he asks, straightening in his seat.
“Eighteenth of November, you?”
“I missed your birthday, why didn’t you say? I’ve spoken to you enough times.” He leans over, pushing my leg on his last word.
“Twenty-two isn’t a special age,” and pining away for the man you love isn’t the best way to spend your birthday. If only I’d known then, he was out having his own fun. I shake the thought from my head. “Anyway, you’ve changed the subject. Your birthday; when is it?”
“Twenty-seventh of October. Sorry,” he laughs.
“You didn’t exactly share your birthday with me either,” I tease. “Although now it’s official, I like the idea of a big brother. I could do with a shoulder to lean on now and then.”
“Good, well this big brother feels really shit about missing your birthday, so how about I take you out to lunch to make up for it?”
“Oh, it’s a nice thought, but I’m not hungry—”
“Good. How about we go to Pizza Express?”
“Didn’t you hear me? I can’t stomach anything right now.”
“Brotherly intuition is telling me I have to feed you up.” He seems so determined.
“You’re only my half-brother, remember? I’m not sure our connection is that deep.”
“Trust me.” His words cause a lump to form in my throat, but I swallow it down, replacing it with a smile as I get up to retrieve my coat. “Okay, I suppose I won’t get any peace until I agree.”
During our thirty-minute walk to the restaurant, I talk Scott into spending New Year with me.
Getting to know my half-brother a little better, could be the tonic I need.
Angie has invited me to stay with her for Christmas, and I was thinking of travelling to Greece in the February break to visit my grandparents.
I’m trying to keep my mind occupied and away from Ash, so I’m organising lots of things to look forward to.
Scott quietens for a moment then asks, “Are you still mad with Ash?”
I blow out a long breath. “No, not anymore. It’s something much bigger. He’s broken my heart, Scott. He was the one person in this world I thought would never let me down, and he did, in the worst way possible.”
Scott sighs. “You’re missing one major point. He didn’t do anything. He didn’t ask Dani to throw herself at him, and despite what it seemed, he didn’t plant his face in that girl’s tits either.” Scott is kind of pleading on Ash’s behalf.
“But that’s where Ash and I differ. I wouldn’t let myself get into a compromising situation in the first place.”
We eventually reach the restaurant and grab a table. Our waitress is very attentive, placing our drink and food orders as soon as we’re ready, but as she leaves us, Scott continues where we left off.
“How do you know?”
“How do I know what?”
“You wouldn’t get yourself into a tricky situation. These things happen Calla, and sometimes, they’re beyond our control.” I don’t respond, knowing Scott has a good point. After a beat, he adds, “You know he’s hurting just as much as you are right now.”
“Anyone would think he sent you here to plead his case. I understand he was your friend before I came on the scene; you’ve always been close, but—”
“Now things are different, I know.” He wipes my tears with his thumb from across the table.
“That letter confirms you’re the most important person in my life.
But I’m in the middle here. I can’t stand to see you so low, and my best mate is thousands of miles away from home, feeling exactly the same.
It’s bloody stupid when this is making you both so unhappy. ”
I chew my bottom lip, my focus squarely on the condiments in the middle of the table. I don’t know where to go from here.
“You know he wanted to come and see you, but I stopped him. Instead, we spent the night in a pub, getting pissed. Surely you can see past all this shit. He’s as devastated as you, Calla.”
I stop playing with the cutlery in front of me and focus directly into Scott’s grey eyes. “You’ve seen him? But he said he wouldn’t get back home before the tour started.”
“They had two days off between rehearsals. It was a flying visit to check on his mum and try to make things up with you. I didn’t think it was a good idea. You were still so mad.” There’s a silence, then Scott says, “He can’t understand why you won’t take his calls.”
“Because there’s nothing more to say.” I hold back the tears threatening to spill again.
Scott’s hand lays over mine. “Will you at least think about hearing him out? Please, Calla?”
I roll my eyes. “What’s the point. The damage is done.”
“It’s only done if you say so. Believe me, he’s in a bad way out there.”
I don’t get any pleasure out of knowing Ash is hurting too, in fact, I take a sharp breath inwards to curb the pain in my chest. “Please, let’s just have a nice lunch together. We’re supposed to be celebrating our family ties here.” I force a tight-lipped smile.
Scott raises a brow. “Okay, but I’m going to say one last thing on the subject.”
“Okay.”
“You won’t like it.”
“Then don’t say it.”
“But I have to. I think you need to hear it.”
“Fine. Get it out of your system.”
“Alright, then. I think you’re overreacting. The way you’re treating Ash is way over the top. You need to pull yourself together and take this for what it is. A misunderstanding.”
I fall silent and look at the food placed in front of me.
“Sorry to be so harsh, but you need to face facts. You could solve this issue if you really wanted to.”
I carry on staring at my food until Scott says, “You’ve gone all quiet and odd. I didn’t mean to be nasty; I just want you to realise it’s easy to sit there and pass judgement when you could give Ash the benefit of the doubt.”
I sigh. “Why are you so sure he’s telling the truth?”
“Because Ash is my friend, he wouldn’t lie to me, just as he wouldn’t lie to you.”
“Look, Scott, I appreciate how much you care about him as well as me.”
“I’m just trying to help.”
“I know you are.” I don’t know what else to say. “I can’t help the way I feel.”
“Then there’s nothing more I can do. The only thing I can offer is help if you need me.”
“Thank you,” I say, squeezing his hand briefly from across the table.
I sigh out a breath just as the waitress stops to ask if everything is okay with our food.
Although I haven’t started eating yet, I glance up to say, “Lovely, thank you,” to find her blatantly ogling Scott.
She must realise I catch her because she turns a bright shade of red, smiles and leaves.
I giggle but don’t mention it to Scott who clearly didn’t notice.
“Anyway, enough of me, how about you? Anything major happening?”
Scott swallows his mouthful of salad so hard; I notice his Adam’s apple bob up and down. “Um...” he swallows again. “Actually, I do have some news.”
“Oh?” I say, idly chasing a tomato across my plate.
His head falls to one side against his shoulder. He’s repeatedly chewing on his bottom lip and, is he blushing? He glances up to meet my eyes briefly, then down, so I place my hand over his across the table again. “Is everything okay?”
“You promise not to be mad.”
I’m confused. “Why would I be mad? What’s going on?” My mind runs away with itself. “Oh shit, Ash isn’t here, is he?”
“Err, no. He’s a couple of weeks into a tour, you know that.”
Then why did a little piece of me deflate, despite knowing he was away.
I’ve got to snap out of it. This conversation isn’t about me anymore and I’m sure Scott is sick to death of listening to me moaning.
I’m sure he has something far more important to share.
“What’s up?” I smile so he knows nothing he can say will upset me.
He shifts in his seat. “It’s strange. Now I know for sure that you’re my sister, it makes what I’m about to say, so much harder.”
I rub my hand over his knuckles. “Come on, you can tell me.” Then a thought jumps into my head. “Oh shit, you’re not having an affair with a married woman or something, are you? Because I—”
“It’s Angie.”
“My Angie?” I ask.
“Is there another?”
I smirk. “No, there certainly isn’t. What about her? Is she okay?”
“Fuck…”
I’m worried. “What’s going on, Scott, talk to me.”
The words seem to blurt involuntarily from his mouth. “I slept with her.”