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“No, not exactly, but when no one else was around, he never had anything to do with me. Like I said, he only knew I was alive when Mom forced me on him. That’s why I hated you so much. It took me a long time to realize that it wasn’t you I should be hating. It was my own mother.”
“She’s the one who took me away from the father who loved me and tried to give me yours. Now my father hates me too. Are you satisfied? Why don’t you get out of here and go back to your perfect life?” I turned my face away from her, feeling empty and alone.
She was quiet for so long that I thought she’d left, but then I felt her presence in the room and turned to see her sitting there, deep in thought. “Do you know that you could’ve been hurt really badly?” I guess she felt my eyes on her.
“Yeah, well, who cares?”
“Can I ask you a question?”
“What is it?”
“What do you want out of life? Forget everything else for now; just answer that one thing. Is it to go back to school and finish your degree? I know you failed out last semester.”
I thought she was trying to rub it in, but there was no inflection in her voice. Then again, she’s always been a cool one. She never showed what she was feeling.
“No, I never wanted that. That was always Mom’s deal, just another way for her to force me to be like you. I was never smart, and we both know it.”
“So, what is it that you wanted to do?”
“Why do you care? It’s not like there’s any love lost between us.”
“I’m not sure myself, but I think I just realized that you were as much a victim of your mother as I was.”
She actually looked like she meant it. “So, tell me, what is it that you wanted to be?”
“A hairstylist. It was always my dream, but Helen said it wasn’t good enough.”
“Fine, you’ll go to rehab for six months, then you can go to school to get your license.”
“What? Who’s going to pay for all of that?”
“I am!”
“Why would you do that? Don’t you hate me?”
“Yes, but I think I finally realize that you weren’t to blame as much as your mother was. Take it or leave it; the longer I stay around you, the more I want to pound your face in.”
“Didn’t you already do that?” What the hell? I’m actually laughing with Alyssa. I must be really high. Maybe I died.
“Get some rest. I’ll have you signed out of here and taken to rehab. Once it’s done, you can decide where you want to study. A word of advice, if I were you, I’d get out of this town and start over somewhere else.”
She started to walk away. “Hey, how did you find me? What happened to Pete and those other guys?”
“That’s a story for another time, but I don’t think you should see him again. He’s going to be really pissed.”
She left out the door, and I slumped back against the pillows, trying to make sense of the exchange. What the hell is going on? Why would Alyssa help me? Whatever happens next, I guess I have her to thank for getting me out of whatever Pete and his friends had planned.
ALYSSA
“Where is that Pete bastard?”
“He’s being questioned somewhere.”
“Where? Didn’t you break his legs?”
“Yeah, a little pain might clear his head.”
“How did you recognize those guys?”
