"Oh look who finally made it home! How was the party?" Jude asked me from the doorway as i tried to sneak back into the house at 6 am.
"Jude! Zip it!" I whisper screamt. "How did you know that i left anyway!"
"Twin Telepathy?" He joked.
"Nice try! But really! How the hell did you come to know! And does anybody else know?" I was worried.
"Yes honey. We all do. Infact, dad is waiting in the kitchen for you as we speak. Busted!" He laughed.
Oh God! I was dead meat. But, what i did wasn't that wrong either.
I walked down the stairs to see my step-father sitting at the breakfast bar reading the morning paper with a steaming cup of coffee on his side.
"Look who finally walked in! Where the hell did you go in the middle of the night? No note, no text or calls. Your own phone was switched off. We were worried sick! How could you do that Sophia! You cannot behave in such an irresponsible manner!"
My insides were bubbling with anger.
"I just went to a party! It was no big deal. Why are you yelling at me like that!" I retaliated.
"Sophia, you went without telling anybody. Just imagine how worried we were when we saw your empty bed and had no clue where you were. And for that, you are grounded for a month."
"You cannot ground me!" I argued.
"And why is that?" His tone was cold.
"Because you aren't my real dad. You have no right to ground me." Saying that, i didnt wait to see his response, as i swiftly turned around and walked into my room.
Jumping into the warm shower, I tried everything in my might to block the slight glimpse of hurt i saw in his eyes before i took off.
He wasn't really my dad. He was also somehow responsible for what happened to my mother all those years ago. I still cant believe she forgave him and married him. I really didnt plan on forgiving him anytime soon.
Getting done with my heavenly shower, I decided to dress casual as i picked out some simple shorts and a loose fitted long sleeved tee. Walking down the stairs to get my daily dose of caffeine, i heard alot of noises coming from the basement.
I peeked my head below to see that Jude and Jamie had hooked on the home theatre system to the wii and were playing an intense game of basketball.
"Hey Jamie! When did you get here?" I asked, happy to see my big brother.
"Hey star," he said, using the nickname he gave me a long time ago. Just a few years after we met each other as kids. "Just 10 minutes ago. Its so much more quiet here!"
Just then Jude gave an excited scream as Jamie let out an exasperated groan.
"Star! I was so close to actually beating him this time!" He whined.
"No you weren't. I was going to beat you one way or another. Thanks for distracting him though." Jude spoke between laughs.
"Hey! That isn't fair. Jamie deserves a re-match. That was totally my fault." I admitted.
"Yeah! What she says, Jamie deserves a re!" He chimed in.
"Whatever dude. You still ain't winning!" Saying that, he walked upstairs.
"Lemonade anybody? It is getting crazy hot here." He asked us.
Just as we were about to scream our orders, the door opened and 'dad' walked in.
"Hey Uncle Lucas. How are you?" Jamie greeted him.
"Hey Jimmy Jam! Just went grocery shopping. I was just about to stock these up and go meet Nate." He spoke casually.
"Still no idea about your next book?" He smirked.
"No. clue." He answered. The tips of his cheeks turning red as he put some food into the fridge.
By now we had all got our lemonade glasses and Jude had hopped onto the countertop while Jamie took one of the stools. I, however, still firmly stood by the door to avoid all eye-contact.
"So when is Aunt Brooke coming back?" Jamie further questioned.
"Baby, your Aunt Brooke is going to take a while to come back. Paris apparently has fashion week going on and they are going an extended feature on Clothes Over Bro's. So Brooke has to be there to feature it. After that, she is flying to Milan for some work on her Summer line. So i honestly have no idea when she will be back."
That was it. I somehow didnt feel like staying there any longer. Something in me just made me restless and jerky. So i quickly put away my glass and left the house.
Why was i doing this? Why was i so mad at everything? A tornado of thoughts broke into my head for every little thing and that got me so annoyed. I found myself standing in the middle of the river court. Just thinking and wondering. I felt lost, and I didnt even know why. My insides felt empty and they had for a very long time.
Outside, everything was perfect. But on the inside i was lonely. My smiles were fake and i felt unloved.
I sat there for what seemed like minutes, but was hours. I just stared at the river. Trying to find its purpose. Maybe finding its purpose would somehow help me find mine.
Maybe Ashton could help me. He was my boyfriend again after all. He loved me. Right?