Special - Prelude

"Wait, what?" Nicky shouts, standing up quickly and knocking her chair over. She stares at her mother and stepfather, a horrified expression on her face. Her mother Kathy looks down with a slightly ashamed look on her face. Her stepfather Jason just sighs, wiping off his mouth and looking up at the very angry teenager.

"It is a very exclusive school Nicky, with high credentials. With a diploma from that school, you'll be able to get into the College of your choice," Jason tries explaining, but the words 'all girl boarding school' were ringing so loudly in the girl's head, she could barely hear the words. Nicky shakes her head, looking over at her mother who was silently picking at her breakfast. "Nicky, you need to think about your future," Jason says folding his hands in front of him. "And this school will ensure you have a good future."

Nicky glares over at the man, "I knew it!" she accuses pointing a finger at him, "All that crap about wanting to be a family was just a cover so you could get close to my mom! I knew from the very beginning you were going to try and get rid of me as soon as you were able to marry my mom!"

"Niccole Julianne that is enough!" Kathy stands up, "Your father is just trying to give you the best future he can!"

"HE'S NOT MY FATHER!" Nicky screams back at her mother before running out of the dining room, tears streaming down her face.

Jason sighs, looking over at Kathy who silently sits back down. Jason takes her hand, and Kathy looks over at him, giving a sad smile. "She hates me, doesn't she?" Jason quietly asks.

Kathy shakes her head, "No, she just misses her dad still, that's all. I'm sure once we give her a little time, she'll be alright." Kathy takes Nicky and her plates, standing and walking into the kitchen, Jason quietly follows with his own. "She just needs to get used to the idea, that's all. When she gets older, she'll appreciate all of this." Jason silently nods as the two wash the dishes.

While upstairs Nicky is thrown across her bed, crying and clutching a framed picture of her father. It has already been three years since the accident, but it felt like just yesterday that they had buried the man. Nicky was very close to her father and she despised Jason for trying to take his place, even though her mother didn't think he was, but if he wasn't, then why did he try to throw out all of the pictures of Nicky's father? No, Nicky had never trusted Jason.

Nicky sniffles a bit as she rolls onto her side, looking at the picture of her and her father. It was taken the weekend before her father died and was the most recent photo they had of him. Nicky hugs the picture, and looks over when her mom knocks on the door, opening it slowly. "Hey," Kathy smiles at Nicky, "can I come in?"

Nicky looks back at her picture, he back to the door, "Do whatever you want. You will anyway."

Kathy sighs, walking into the room and over to the bed. She sits down, putting a hand on Nicky's back, "Honey?" Nicky moves away from Kathy, "Sweetie, I know you're angry right now, but one day you will thank us for this." When Nicky stays quiet, Kathy continues, "And you never know, you might really like it at this school. It'll be just like going away to college. You'll get to sleep in a dorm, be independent and you won't have to deal with your parents looking over your shoulder. Doesn't that sound like fun?"

Nicky sits up and looks over at her mom, "You can paint this any way you want, but the truth is you and Jason just want to get rid of me!" She stands and goes into her bathroom, slamming the door and locking it behind her.

"Sweetie!" Kathy walks over and knocks on the door, "Baby come on out, we need to talk about this." Nicky slides down, sitting on the floor of the bathroom in front of the door. She clutches the picture of her father, silently crying again. Kathy sighs and pulls Nicky's desk chair over to the bathroom door, sitting. "Nicky, I know it seems like everything is suddenly changing. Your father passing away three years ago, me getting remarried, us moving… and now this." Kathy sighs.

Kathy leans her ear against the door and hears Nicky crying on the other side. "Nicky… This is a good school and you going really is for the best. You'll like it there, I promise." Nicky silently listens to her mother talking, "We'll still be able to stay in touch. We can talk on the phone every weekend and write each other letters. Your fa… I mean, Jason and I will send you money every week. You'll be able to buy things and go shopping with your friends…" Kathy grows quiet again, "I'll even buy you that really pretty nightgown and robe set you've been hinting about." Nicky rolls her eyes. So, she's even going to bribe me? I don't care. It doesn't matter what she says. I'm not going!