Chapter Five: The Long Awaited Story

"My mother met my father when she was in high school. Her car caught on fire and since her hometown didn't have a fire station, the police had double duty. My father just so happened to be on patrol that night and put the fire out. He even offered to pay to get the car fixed." Candace laughed.

-.-.-.

"Hello, ma'am. Havin' car trouble?" As if on cue, the car burst into flames.

"Oh, it's just a little-ah!"

"It's alright, Miss. The fire's out."

"Oh thank you so much!" He handed her a fifty. She looked at it confused. Shouldn't she be the one paying him?

"Here. Get your car fixed tomorrow. I'll give you a ride home."

She hopped in the front seat of the cruiser. As she was buckling her seat belt, her heart throbbed painfully when she saw his badge.

'Tom...' She sighed.

"When do you get off work?" Tom asked.

'Work? He must think I'm older...Well then...' She smirked.

"Three 'o clock."

"I'll pick you up to go to the shop then."

"You don't have to-"

"It would be my pleasure. Where should I meet you?"

"At the high school... I'm the guidance counselor."

They reached her house moments later. Tom got out of his cruiser and opened the girl's door.

"There you go... Oh my! We haven't introduced ourselves yet! I'm Tom."

"I know..." the girl said pointing to his badge. He chuckled. "I'm Lydia."

"Lydia? Who's out there? Where have you been?"

"Nobody, nowhere, Daddy."

"You live with your parents?"

"Yeah. Well, they live with me, I mean. They've gotten so old, and I just don't want to put them in a Home. None of my older siblings will take them in," Lydia said, even though she was an only child.

"Well, that's very thoughtful of you," Tom remarked, warmly.

"Lydia?"

"I have to go. Good night, Tom."

-.-.-.

"Mom knew it was wrong to lie, but she was so in love with my dad, that she didn't have the heart to tell him she was only seventeen...And, unfortunately, she paid the price."

-.-.-.

"Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Macy, this can't be happening!" Lydia cried from the bathroom.

"What? Is it-?" her friend called back.

"Yes! It's blue!" Macy gasped, horrified.

"Do you know who the father is?"

"No. But, I think it might be that foreign exchange student, Tao."

"Oh my gosh! Didn't he already go back to Russia?"

"Mmhm..."

-.-.-.

"My mom's parents got suspicious, so she came clean and dropped out of school to marry my dad, even though she was certain I belonged to Tao. My grandparents were so mad at her, they refused to talk to me and my dad or Tao. There was too much tension for my dad, so about four months after I was born, my parents divorced, mom went to Russia, and I was found not to belong to Tao when they went to a clinic in Moscow."

-.-.-.

"Who does she belong to, then?" Tao translated for Lydia to the doctor. The doctor replied in Russian.

"He wants to know if you had bedded with anyone else recently before you found out you were pregnant." Lydia slowly nodded. The doctor spoke. "How many other?" Tao asked not only for the sake of translating, but for his own, too.

"One. But we used protection, I don't understand." Lydia began to tear up. 'I knew I should've waited 'til I was married!'

"I think you know what to do..." Tao said, half-heartedly.

-.-.-.

"So, mom remarried dad as soon as she came home. They moved far away from my grandparents and raised me in New York City, where the Broadway stage was my playground. Mom and Tao still remained friends and soon I met his nephew, Max."

"How old were you? When you met Maxy, I mean."

"Three of four... He was always looking out for me. Even after we stopped visiting each other, he'd always try to help me, especially since dad was always on duty and mom was too sad to get out of bed sometimes..." Candace trailed off. "When I was eight, I thought I'd lost my best friend, I thought I'd never find another one ever again. But, you proved me wrong, Sandy." Candace kind of got off the subject and hugged Sandy.

"I don't wanna sound rude or anything, but... did your mom kill herself?"

"No. She might have been depressed, but she loved me and daddy too much to just kill herself. She was hit by a drunk driver. That's why I never drink anything alcoholic."

"Oh... What about your dad?"

"He's still in the police. He works in Brooklyn. Sometimes, he even comes to the plays I'm in."

"Plays?"

"Mmhm. I'm a Broadway actress."

"Oh, wow! That's like, so neat!" Candace blushed.

"Thanks... I'm kinda tired. I think I'll go to my room now. 'Night, Sandy." Candace pretend-yawned. Sandy knew she wasn't tired, but decided to play along, knowing her friend was a bit bummed out after talking about such a bitter-sweet subject.

" 'Night, Candace."

Candace looked back at Sandy, who, seeing the twinkles in her friend's soft brown eyes, knew she'd feel better in the morning. After all, mornings are new beginnings, right?