Hey, Loves. How are 'ya? My spring break is nearly up, and I have movies to rent, so I don't have much time to type this all up. Sorry for any errors. I didn't have much time to edit. Love you guys for sticking with my disheveled writing.

Love,

Caroline Elizabeth

"So our lives have been lies?"

The words, as bitter as they were, cut into our father's skin until the truth was revealed. Metaphorically speaking, Dad was sinking in his own lies in front of us.

"No," came his rigid response, "only the part I wasn't ready to reveal to you," another beat separated his words before a shaky breath, "but I don't really have a choice but to explain now, do I?"

We didn't answer him. The silence was an answer enough, "I was supposed to put the two of you up for adoption. See, your mother," my brother's harsh scoff hushed Dad's voice.

"You mean the woman we called 'mommy' for the last fifteen years? How could you lie to us?" Steven stalked away from the scene, and before I could follow, my father stopped me.

"Please listen."

"If I hadn't found the picture of our real mother, I doubt you'd have ever told us the truth." I explained. His eyes softened from his usual hard gaze.

Dad reached forward, placing the crumpled photo into my hand, "She was beautiful. We were broken up when she learned of the pregnancy. She was so worried of what her parents would think of her, that she asked if I'd run off with her. You know, just until the pregnancy was over.

"She told her parents that she was going on a eight month road trip with Alli. Seven months later, she had Steven and you. She left in a panic after learning that Alli was going to tell her parents before she could return. I was left with two pink tinted babies and a sheet of paper signed by the two of us. Everything was arranged for me to give you away, but I couldn't.

"She called me several times when you were infants. Asking if I was okay, telling me how terrible she felt. How she wanted you two so much. I just couldn't tell her the truth, and I cut all ties with her. I left."

He heaved as a sudden cold sweat over took him. His eyes glossed over in an emotionless pit before he stood and offered me his hand.

"I didn't name you until I was home. I knew I wanted the boy to be Steven, but I had a girl, too. I had a few names picked out, but I held onto one name as tight as I could."

"Clara." I responded before allowing him to pull me to his closet.

"Yes. Do you know why?" He fell to the floor as he searched the bottom of his dark closet.

My head shifted to one side in wonder, and then my shoulders bobbed up in a shrug. He shot a meaningless smirk towards me and then spoke, "Her name- your mother's- is Clare."

"What about Mom- I mean, the one we know." I lowered my voice. This mother was a sour subject, too. She left us nearly a year ago to live with the man she was cheating on Dad with.

"She befriended me after I told her of my past. Two years later, I had two three year olds and a wedding to prepare. I never felt right with her, but she was there. I did love her-"

"But not as much as our real mother." I finished with a dreamy sigh. Truthfully, I'd watched too many sappy romance movies.

"Right." Dad said with a nod of his head. Finally, he stood with a shoebox in his hands.

Inside were more pictures of Clare. Several were of just the two of them, but many had a few other people along side them.

"Is that your school?" I asked, leaning forward to try to read to blurred words.

"Yes. Actually, remember how I told you of my job transfer to my hometown?" Dad asked. I looked back on the last ten minutes and realized that I was taking it too softly. I nodded, though, to ignore the unsettling feeling falling to the bottom of my stomach.

"We're headed there. You'll be attending my old high school in a few months."

I didn't respond to him, but took a few more photos from him instead.

After a few more moments of silence and thumbing through pictures, I shuffled off to find Steven.

"And you're just accepting this?" He asked with an anger I hadn't heard in his voice before.

"Dad needed time, Steven. He told me everything. Maybe it's a good thing we're moving to his hometown. Maybe Mom will still be there." My voice softened into a whisper near the end of my rant.

"Right, and we'll just magically find her, ready to accept her lost children back into her lives. Get a grip, Clara!" His breathing was shallow, his eyes blotched with red. It was a crazed look I knew too well from him. I backed up, worry starting to show among my features.

"I'm going to bed." I said breathlessly. I was out of his room and down the hall before he could respond. My hopes weren't quite shattered yet, but they took a hard beating as sobs echoed from my father's room.

Kay, I wrote this in about 45 minutes. It only took that because i couldn't begin it. I restarted about five times! Gosh, okay. I'm typing super fast 'cause I have to run. Like, NOWW!

Bye, Loves. (again)

Caro((line))