Chapter8-Come Back
Spencer's pov.
"She ran away from home and we found her. It'd been sixteen years since we last saw her. We took her in and gave her a place to stay; she wanted to stay with us. Then her adoptive parents put up those missing papers. I guess that's why she left. Maybe she missed her parents." Spencer said to her mom, picking at a loose thread on her jeans.
"Why didn't you turn her in to the police?" Spencer's mom asked.
"She didn't want that. She was afraid of going home."
"Were her parents mean to her or something?"
Spencer nodded silently. She could remember Lily talking about her parents never caring about her. She could remember all of the things Lily said. It brought back a wave of feelings she was afraid of showing.
"There isn't much you can do, Spencer. You can't adopt her while her parents are still with her."
"What can we do?" She asked, looking at her mother.
"Try to meet with Lily's parents. Try to talk this over."
"What if her parents won't listen or something? What if I can't even find them?"
Spencer's mom smiled. "We'll involve the police."
"The police?" Spencer asked, surprised. What did the police have in this?
"Yes. We can tell them that you suspect bad living conditions and want to help her. They'll step in."
Spencer smiled a very small smile. "We need to find her. Soon."
"I'm on it." Her mother said, patting her knee.
Unknown.
"She's asleep." I said, sitting down at the table in the kitchen. The mug in front of me was filled with a brown liquid: coffee. It smelled old and unsatisfying. I pushed it aside.
"Do you think we really should hurt her like you planned? Hasn't she been hurt enough?" He asked, staring at his mug.
I narrowed my eyes at him. "She hurt us. It's time we return the favor."
"But, sweetheart, we never told her we adopted her. She knows. How do you think she feels?"
I glared at him, force of habit because of the nickname, but ignored it. "She deserves to feel bad. She ran away from us."
"But that doesn't mean-"
"It does. I'm not letting her think she can do whatever she wants. It doesn't work that way." I said, getting to my feet. I walked to the sink and stared out the window. "I only wanted a daughter that would trust us and she doesn't."
"You think hurting her would make her think differently?" He asked, confused and a little surprised.
I shook my head. " I just want her to love us."
"She will, honey. It'll just take some time." He said, walking up behind me. He wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed my neck.
"I can't wait. If-what if she runs off again?"
"You know what to do. You're a smart girl."
I sighed and pulled away from him, walking back into the living room.
Lily cried in her sleep, hiding her face with the blanket.
I sat down on the edge of the coffee table and brushed her hair back from her face. She was so peaceful, so adorable when she slept. She had always been like that.
She looked a lot like her real parents, Aria and Jason. She was almost identical to Aria when she was sixteen, when she was pregnant with Lily.
Lily opened her eyes slowly, still groggy with sleep. She looked up at me and held my gaze, fear in her eyes. She was strong when she wanted to be. But she would always be vulnerable, even if she didn't know it.
"Lily, I think we should talk." I said, getting to my feet.
"About what?" She asked, sitting up. She pulled the blanket away, her eyes on me the whole time.
"I'm sorry I yelled at you when you got back. You left for a reason and acting like I did wouldn't make you want to stay again."
"Mom." She said softly, staring down at her hands.
I shook my head and sat down beside her. "Let me finish. I was afraid you wouldn't love me if I told you about your real parents. I didn't want you to treat me differently. Though I'm sure things have changed now that you know."
"I only feel differently about all this because you kept it from me. How long did you want me to think you were my real parents?"
"Only until you were eighteen. I figured then you wouldn't be as... upset."
"Upset? You lied to me! I'm not upset, I'm pissed off!" Lily yelled, crying.
"Lily, I didn't mean to hurt you." I said, trying to take her hand and calm her down.
She yanked herself away from me and got to her feet. "Every time I start to get close to someone, every time I love someone, they lie to me. I can't stand it!" She ran from the room.
I looked away and tried not to cry. She was right and I wished she wasn't. I hated that we had done this to her.
A door slammed down the hall. Lily wouldn't come out the rest of the night. I knew that much.
