Chapter 4: Terrible Attitudes
"I'm pretty sure the whole church has told you by now, Dad." I grumbled as I searched the refrigerator for a soda.
"Yes, well, I want to hear it from you. You seemed very upset when you left." he explained cautiously. He must realize this is a delicate subject.
"Dad, I don't want to talk about it." I started for the stairs hoping he would drop it before I blew up. No such luck.
"Stella Solaria, you get back here right now. You don't just walk away from me." He stated firmly. "Now with this whole Sky situation…"
"There IS no situation Dad. He cheated on me with the prettier person. End of story." I fumed. I was getting heated and I should have stopped talking right there, but my mouth had other ideas. "What? Must seem like déjà vu for you, huh Dad." There it was. Me and my big mouth.
My Father visibly blanched. My mother was always a sensitive subject for him, even after all the hurt she caused us. He quickly gained his composure and looked at me evenly.
"Your aunt called yesterday. Wanted us to visit her. I told her we would. Today." He avoided confronting the comment on his ex-wife. I had hurt him. I feel like such a jerk. Then I re-thought about what he just said.
"Wait, today? I mean, what time?" There is no way I could possibly miss Brandon's "date" later.
"Does it matter? You're going regardless….but if you must know, we leave at noon. We'll probably stay the night as well. You know how she loves family time."
No, No, No, No, No! I love my Dad's sister dearly, but I can't just cancel on Brandon like this.
"Dad, I can't. I have….other plans later on." I tried to explain. Not that he cared at this point. I have royally pissed him off for the day. And it wasn't even 9 o'clock yet.
"Well cancel them. Your visiting your aunt. After all she's done for you and you ungratefully pass up the chance to see her." He bristles, obviously offended. "You should be ashamed."
He goes around me to the front step and stops. "Since I missed the first church service, I'll be going to the second one. You can join if and when you calm your attitude." With that, he walked up the stairs and slammed his door shut.
I sighed and went to my own room. What am I going to do now? I have to tell Brandon. Ugh, my life just sucks. I grab my cell phone, about to call Brandon's phone, when I hesitate. When he had to leave earlier, it sounded like an emergency. If I call now, I'll probably interrupt him. I'll just leave a voicemail.
I dial the number from my arm. It rings 3 times before he picks up. Oops.
"Hello?" He says, a little winded.
"Um, hi Brandon. It's….Stella."
"Oh! Hey gorgeous. I didn't expect you to call so soon."
Gorgeous. He called… me….gorgeous. No one's ever called me that. I've heard Pretty, Hot, and even Sexy before, but never gorgeous.
"I'm sorry to interrupt…again…but I wanted to let you know that I can't make it to our… get-together today."
"Oh." He sounded disappointed. God, I hate my Dad right now.
"I'm so sorry. I have to visit my aunt right outside of town. We'll be spending the night there, too. I tried to explain to my Dad that I had to go somewhere but he wouldn't hear any of it. He never does. I'm sor-"
"Stella, Stella. It's okay. Take a breath." He lightly chuckled.
"Your not mad?" I asked.
"Of course not. Family's important to me too. I understand. We can go out another time."
I blew out a relieved breath. "So you still want to go out with me? I thought I would have you running to the hills by now."
"Well, you are a handful, but I think I can manage." He teased. Then he sobered up a bit. "Listen, I'm sorry about just leaving all suddenly like that."
"Oh, you're fine. What was so urgent?" I hope he doesn't think I'm being too nosy.
"Ah," he hesitated, "I'm actually at the hospital right now…"
"Oh my god, are you okay?" I ask anxiously. How could he get hurt that fast?
"No, it wasn't me who got hurt. I'm fine. My older brother has asthma and had an episode. He's fine now though." He explained calmly.
"Well I'm glad, but I didn't know you had an older brother." Where are all these secret siblings coming from?
"Yeah. I guess Layla doesn't like talking about her new side of the family." He said ruefully. "My brother is back from college visiting the new 'fam', but he seemed to get worked up after some argument. Sorry, you probably don't want to hear about my family drama."
"No, no. I kind of understand family drama. Trust me. So did your Mom marry Layla's Dad or something?"
"Uh, no…my mother's dead." He said flatly.
"Oh gosh. I'm sorry. Gosh I should really stay out of your business." Or maybe just stick my foot in my mouth.
"You didn't know. But, yeah. It's been about 5 years since then. Some people aren't very happy to see my Dad move on." By the sound of his voice, I'm guessing he's one of those people.
I didn't really know how to respond to that, so we just had a moment of silence. It wasn't awkward really, we just had nothing to say. He was the first to think of something though.
"So, how about we go out this Friday? We can catch a movie or something. Unless that sounds like too much of a date for you…" He trailed off, uncertain.
I have to stop acting like this. What is one date going to do? It's not like we're getting married. And I really like him.
"Yeah. I definitely would like that. How about 7?"
"Maybe 7:30, but I'll check. So…it's a date?" He asks hopefully.
"Yeah. It's a date." I giggled.
"Cool. I'll talk to you later, gorgeous." he said softly.
I blushed, so glad he couldn't see me right now. "Ok."
My aunt's house isn't very big. It was actually more like a shack. Still, it was very comfortable and familiar to be in. I loved it.
"Oh, sweetheart! I haven't seen you in so long! You've grown so much!" My aunt gushes as she pulls me into a tight hug. I smile genuinely at her.
"Hey, Aunt Faragonda." For as long as I remember, my aunt has been in my life. No matter what. I feel a little guilty for not wanting to come, but there is something about Brandon made me want to be around him a lot.
"Well come on in. I made some food for you all." She said. "Gerald, close the door before you let all the flies in." My Dad did as she told him and kissed her on the cheek.
"Calm down woman and feed me." He teased. He loved teasing his sister. It just seemed like a sibling thing that people do.
She playfully glared at him. "Don't start with me little boy." Then she turned to me with a smile. "So, Stella let's go in the kitchen and talk." Without further a due, she proceeded to the kitchen with my father and I in tow.
Once we were seated, my aunt asked, "So, did you dumb that god awful boyfriend yet?" I knew she was teasing, but I tensed anyway. My dad quickly told her, " They had a slight… falling-out."
"No we didn't," I snapped. "He cheated so were through." Why am I being such a bitch?
The silence was kind of suffocating after my small outburst. Aunt Faragonda tried to make small talk, but only got short, one-worded answers from me. She didn't deserve that, but I hate talking about Sky.
Suddenly, the kitchen door opened to reveal my 20-year-old cousin. She still looked exactly the same and still had that sort of snooty air about her.
"Mitzi, darling, come say hello!" my aunt said. "I forgot to tell you all that she is back from college for summer break."
Great. It's not like I hate Mitzi, she's my flesh and blood, but she annoys the crap out of me. Always treating me like I'm a little girl, even now. I'm 17 going one 18 next month for crying out loud. She looks at me and smirks.
"Well how goes it Stelly?" she coos. What the hell? I'm not a baby.
"Hello Mitzi. How's college?" I ask, attempting to start a conversation.
She gives my dad a hug and sits next to me. "You know. The usual. Oh, wait. You don't know." she giggled. I refrained from rolling my eyes. "Well, it's pretty cool. Glad we got this break though. Baltor is so irritating sometimes." I know the feeling.
Baltor is Mitzi's on-again-off-again boyfriend. Their romance started in 9th grade and is still going on. Kind of like Sky and I were.
"Well, I'm glad you are adjusting well." My dad inputted. I was getting sleepy. Glancing at my watch, I realized that it was almost 10 p.m. I wanted to talk to Brandon again before I went to bed. I don't know why. I just do.
"So how's the boyfriend?" Mitzi asked. My aunt and dad looked at me warily. Don't be rude. Don't be rude.
"We're not together anymore." I said. Please don't ask why. But this is Mitzi, so of course she's going to ask.
"Well why not? You seemed all lovey dovey the last time I was here. What happened?" She leaned forward as if she was about to get an interesting scoop. I looked into her eyes for a second. Something told me she already knew.
I pushed my chair back from the table. "I'm going to turn in for the night."
"Already. You didn't even finish your food." Is it this girl's mission to get me to slap her?
"I'm tired. Goodnight." I turn and race down the hall to the guest room. I actually was a little sleepy. I change into my pajamas, when I get a text.
Hope u r having a good time. Just wanted to say goodnite. Can't wait until Friday. ~B
I smiled goofily. He wanted to say goodnight to me too. How could one simple text make me so happy?
There was a knock on the door, proceeded by my dad poking his head in the room. "Hey, look, you need to apologize. I know you're upset about… you-know-who, but you won't disrespect your Aunt. Or me." He semi-lectured.
"Okay. I'll do it know." I stated. It's only reasonable. Sky isn't an important factor to me anymore. Brandon is.
He looked a little surprised. I don't blame him. My mood swings have always been a problem. "Um…. Alright then." He ushered me out of the room.
After apologizing to my aunt (not Mitzi) I went back to my room and grabbed my phone to text Brandon back.
Thanks. It's okay I guess. I can't wait to see you either. Goodnite ~S
I think for a second and add handsome after goodnight. I'm feeling a little bold. His answer was almost immediate.
Okay gorgeous ;) ~B
I fall asleep that night with a wide grin on my face and the word gorgeous bouncing around in my head.
A/N: Thanks for all the reviews! Okay so some of you probably don't like Stella's attitude toward other people. It's just these defensive walls she puts up that make her seem mean. Don't worry, Brandon is surely going to break them down ;-) I'm updating this today because I won't be able to update again until Monday. Big wedding up north. Sorry. Enjoy this Chapter and I hope it will satisfy you until next week! Review!