"Is there anything else? I mean, she was my real mother and everything right? No more surprises? No more mothers showing up on the doorstep?"
"No, Peyton. She was your real mother. You know that."
"I just want to make sure. I felt like the world was going to end when Mom died. The only comfort I had was knowing that I would never have to go through all the pain again. I thought that that was it. I would learn how to deal with it and then move on. But then Ellie showed up… And now she's dead… And it almost feels like living the whole thing over again," Peyton cried, not even thinking about how bizarre it should have been opening up to her dad like this.
"I know. And I'm so sorry, Honey. I just want to protect you as much as I can. I'm not sure how much I can tell you with still protecting you. Is there anything I can do?"
"Yes. Stop protecting me," she replied, not in a get-off-my-back type of way, just like she was asking for a favor. She wasn't sure how it sounded to her father's ears so she decided to elaborate. "Just for like one day," she continued. "I want to know everything. No more hiding stuff. Was there anything else that she didn't tell me that you know about?"
"Well," he started unsurely. "You really want to know?"
"Yes. What is it?"
"You have a twin brother."
And that was how it all started. That was the reason she was sitting in her bedroom wondering what he was like. She had no idea. The only thing she knew about him was that he was put up for adoption. When they were born, Peyton already had a place to go. A family to live with. He didn't. He was put up for adoption. And now her dad was up in Virginia tracking down the adoption agency that had taken him in.
She wanted to meet him. She wanted to know everything about him. Did he know that they were twins?
He was adopted when he was a baby by a man and woman who couldn't have kids. Just like Peyton. When he was six, his adopted mom died. Kind of like Peyton. It was where the similarities ended.
Revelin. That was his name.
According to her dad who spent all morning talking to the adoption agency, his adopted dad got really depressed after his wife died. Peyton's dad had gotten a little depressed too, but he dealt. Well Revelin's dad got more than a little depressed. He started drinking. He started drinking and couldn't stop. Then he started to hit Revelin. Peyton couldn't believe it. This was her brother.
When she first found out she had a brother, she thought he would be just like her. When she heard that his mom died when he was little, she thought he would be even more like him.
Why not? Same parents. They had been thrown into the same experiences. Until he was six. Maybe if his dad didn't start drinking, then they would be the same. But his dad did drink. That made them different.
Peyton's dad told her that the only reason they took Revelin away from his abusive adopted-father, was that the man simply charged into the adoption agency one day. Entirely drunk. Screaming that he wasn't the one who wanted a kid. His wife wanted a kid and now she was dead and he was stuck with him.
The people at the agency had trouble understanding what the drunk was talking about. They understood when they saw the boy standing in the corner after the man stormed out.
The boy was obviously abused. When they called the police to arrest the man, he wasn't at his home. Nobody could find him. He was still missing.
Revelin had been thirteen by the time that that chaotic day at the agency had occurred. Too many years of abuse. Too many scars the doctors couldn't see. Seven years of being beaten by his adopted-father.
After that, he was sent to live with foster families. Four in those three years. Peyton couldn't imagine living with complete strangers. What if her dad had started drinking after her mom died? Would her life be the same as his?
Revelin was currently living with a loud, busy family. It was where the agency sent kids that nobody wanted while they tried to find them a home. That was at least how her dad translated it.
Now her dad was on the way home with him. He was going to stay with them. They were going to adopt him. He was Peyton's brother. He needed her. He needed them. He needed a family.
Peyton's dad was never home anyway. He said that it was up to her and she made up her mind. At the very least, he would gain a home and she would gain companionship. Neither one of them would be alone anymore. They would have each other.
Peyton couldn't wait to meet him. She still had no idea what he was like. Would he like the same kind of music? Did he draw? Would he look like her? What did he think when he heard that he had a sister? What did he think when he heard that he was being adopted by her father? There were so many questions! Her mind felt like it was going to explode if it didn't get answers!
She lay back on her bed and closed her eyes. She just needed to take a few deep breathes. What must it have been like for him? Would he like it in Tree Hill?
She had almost fallen asleep when she heard a car door slam.