Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 88742 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88742 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 444(@200wpm)___ 355(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
“Dad! Please stop,” I’m pleading with him now. I don’t want to have this argument at all, but I definitely don’t want to have this argument in the street. I’m already embarrassed enough.
“Tammy, we’re going home. Now.” My dad turns around, taking my mom with him. Brick looks over at me. I don’t want to leave things like this, but I have to go with my parents.
“I’m so sorry,” I whisper before following my parents back to the house. I turn around one last time to see Brick driving off. This feels like the end of our relationship. After all that my dad said to him, I’m not sure if there is a way for us to come back from this. There was a lot of hate in my dad’s words.
When we get back to the house, my parents haven’t calmed down at all. My mom is still crying, and my dad won’t stop saying what a pervert Brick must be.
“I can’t believe he would do this. I thought he was a good person,” my mom says between sobs. “He’s always been good to us. I never thought he would prey on Tammy like that.”
“I thought so, too. I thought so, too.” My dad keeps shaking his head like he’s made some horrible mistake. “I used to think the tabloids were treating him unfairly. A lot of what was printed seemed like rumors, and nothing was ever verified. I should have been more cautious. I should have protected my family.”
I don’t want to be disrespectful, but everything my parents are saying is crazy. They’re really acting like Brick has traumatized me.
“Guys! I’m fine! Brick didn’t do anything wrong. I know I should have told you, but I was worried about,” I start motioning with my hand, “all of this.”
“No, Tammy. You didn’t know any better. How could you? You think people are all good; you trust. Brick saw that and pounced.”
“That’s not what happened! Not even close! It was a mutual decision to see one another.”
“Oh, baby.” My mom comes over to me and gently places her hands on my shoulders. “You’re too young to understand. What happened isn’t your fault. Your dad is going to take care of everything, and you’ll never have to see that horrible man again.” She pats me before letting go. Then she heads over to the coffee table and grabs a tissue to dab the tears in her eyes.
My parents are acting like this is the biggest tragedy they’ve ever witnessed. They seriously still see me as their baby girl. I’ll always be their daughter – that’s true. But I can’t live my life with the two of them looking at me like I’m still a child.
“Mom. Dad. I am twenty-five,” I kind of mumble this sentence, but I say it with all of my body because that’s how much I need it to be said.
“What was that, honey?”
“I. Am. Twenty-Five.”
“Why are you bringing that up now?” my dad responds like he’s annoyed. “We know how old you are.”
“Do you? Do you guys know that I am an adult? I am twenty-five, for crying out loud! And you guys are over here crying, about to have a heart attack because I’m dating Brick Barrister? He hasn’t done anything to hurt me. He treats me well, and I like him. The only thing we did wrong was lie about our relationship, and I apologize for that. But you two need to calm down. This is a gross overreaction.” For once, I hope they hear what I’m saying. They’ve always been such great parents, but allowing me to grow up has been their one blind spot.
But nothing I’m saying is working. My parents are still up in arms about this whole situation, and Brick was scared away by it all – not that I blame him. At least this way, I’ve gotten my answer about–
A knock at the door interrupts my thoughts. My parents actually stop their hysterics for a second, their rhythm thrown off by whomever is at our door. No one goes to answer it immediately; we’re all frozen.
Whoever it is knocks again, setting me in motion. I open the door ever so slightly to find Brick standing on the doorstep.
“What are you doing here?” I ask in surprise. I never thought he’d come back. He seemed so angry driving off in his car. I thought maybe he had just gone back home.
“I’ve come to set things right,” he whispers to me, his finger stroking my cheek. That simple touch does wonders to calm me down. “Now, can I come in?”
“Yes, of course,” I nod, stepping aside to let Brick into this crazy scene. Once he steps into the house, my parents are back to yelling and crying.
“What are you doing here?” my dad shouts. He looks just about ready to punch Brick. I close the door and stand by the man who has brought so much joy and happiness into my life.