Chapter 10:
Austin's POV:
After staying a couple nights in the hospital for observation, they strap on sling to my arm and release me from the hospital. My mother comes and picks me up, without my father. I haven't seen him at all, he hasn't come to visit. But I'm not disappointed anymore, because I know how he is. I guess you just get so used to being disappointed that it just ends up not mattering anymore.
"Are you happy to be coming home?" My mother asks from behind the wheel.
"Yeah, I miss my own bed, and your pancakes." I say.
"I'll make some for you for dinner, okay?" She says with a smile.
"That would be great." I say, mirroring her smile.
"So have you talked to Ally?" She asks, causing my smile to fade fast. I shake my head. I walked by Ally's room a couple times; Trish was in there every time. I really wanted to go in there and see her, but I figured I should give her space. She walked by my room a couple times and didn't stop, so I figured that's what she wanted.
"No, I haven't." I said.
"I'm sorry honey." She says. And I keep quiet; that's not a subject I want to talk about.
We pull into my driveway and I notice that my father's vehicle is here. My heart sinks a little. I don't know what to expect now. I figured he wouldn't be home, especially since he knew I was coming back today. I turn to my mother and give her a curious look. She just shrugs and shuts off the car. I let her walk in front of me as I walk slowly behind, debating on my escape. But I decide against it and walk in with her.
We walk into the kitchen and he's seated at the bar, holding a coffee cup in his hands, staring into the emptiness, "Hello dear." My mother says.
He looks up at us with a weak smile, "Hello Mimi." He says, and looks to me, "Hello son." He says.
"Hey Dad." I say. And then an awkward silence comes. After a few moments, my mother walks over to the cabinets, "Well, it's almost five, close enough for dinner. I'll start your pancakes." She says with a smile.
"Thanks mom, I'm going to go upstairs for a bit." I say.
"I'll yell up to you when they are ready." She says. I walk over to her and kiss her on the cheek and then walk away. I take one look at my dad and he's back to staring into his cup. I sigh and walk upstairs. No, I'm not disappointed.
Ally's POV:
"Are you ready?" Trish asks.
I take a deep breath, "Ready."
Trish grabs my pink miniature mirror off of my desk and hands it to me. I pick it up slowly and look into it. I finally recognize me. I'm Ally again, my brown hair falling at my shoulders, wavy and all. A gasp quietly and just stare, "Oh, and if you notice how the ends of your hair get slightly lighter, it's called Ombre. I thought you could use a new look, but not something that doesn't make you Ally." Trish says.
Tears start to form in my eyes and I set the mirror down, I stand up and embrace Trish is a big hug, "You're the best, best friend I've ever had! I love you Trish!" I say.
"Jeez Ally, you've really gone soft on me." She says and laughs, but hugs me back tight, "But I love you too."
"I finally feel like me again." I say, combing my fingers through my hair.
"You were always you Ally." She says with a smile.
I walk over to my bed and sit down, picking up the latest teen magazine. On the cover on the right is Austin, talking about his newest hit, 'The Way That You Do'. I sigh and put the magazine down. Trish notices my actions and sits down at the end of the bed, "You two still haven't talked?" She asks.
"Nope," I say, popping the P.
"Well one of you has to talk to the other sometime." She says.
"He's probably with Kira right now or something." I say.
Just then, Trish's eyes pop so far out of her head, I thought they were going to come out. She jumps off the bed and slaps herself in the face (not hard, I might add) "I can't believe I forgot to tell you!" She shouts.
"What!" I say, freaked out.
"They are totally over." She says.
"What? No way… Why?" I ask, suddenly very interested.
"She was being a totally bi-"–"Trish!" I interrupt.
"Okay, she was being a total witch to Austin about you. Like, he was completely freaked out and devastated when you went missing and she was mad that he wasn't spending any time with her. And he could care less what she thought so she did a whole dramatic exit and he hasn't talked to her since." Trish says.
"Wow." I say.
"I know right. It was for the best though." She says.
"I wonder how Austin is doing." I say.
"Why don't you call and ask him?" Trish says.
I shake my head violently, "No, if he wants to talk, he'll talk to me."
"Or maybe he thinks the same thing you are?" She says.
"Then I guess it's hopeless." I say and sigh.
"So tomorrow is the dance, you know." Trish says suddenly.
"Wow really? I totally forgot about it." I say.
"Well, you're totally going!" She says.
Now my eyes bulge out of my head, "No way! Are you kidding me?"
"No, I'm not kidding you."
"I haven't even been at school; I doubt they will let me go anyways." I say.
"Oh its fine, I got it approved." She says.
"But what if everyone stares at me weird and whispers things to each other? It's been all over the news. 'Oh look, it's that girl who got kidnapped by her best friend's uncle'." I say.
"You worry too much. Nobody is going to say anything. They know how close you and Austin are and they are just all happy you're home, believe me." She says.
"I don't have a dress anyways." I say, smiling, thinking I won. But it is Trish we are talking about.
"Oh, but you're mistaken." She says. She walks up to her bag and pulls out the same red dress that I bought the day I got kidnapped. My mouth drops, "You kept it?" I ask.
"Of course I did! Now, will you go?"
Austin's POV:
After eating what seemed like my hundred delicious pancake, my mom starts to clean up. I told her I'd help but she insists I just rest, and I wouldn't be much help with one arm. I stay seated and drink down the rest of my water, when my father speaks up for the first time tonight, "Austin, will you take a ride with me?" he asks.
My mom freezes at her sink and an eerie silence hits the house. I want to say no, I want to say why should I drop everything for you when you couldn't even come visit me at the hospital? But declining an invitation like this from him would be a mistake. It's a no brainer; I have to go, "Sure." I tell him.
My mom continues doing the dishes, and my father gets up and heads out the door. I stand up and look at my mother, who turns her head towards me and just smiles. I nod and walk out behind him. He's already in his car, so I get into the passenger seat. The ride is quiet, but I know exactly where we are going; he's bringing me to his thinking spot. Memories of my childhood flood through me as we drive past all of the beautiful spots that I remember driving by before. I feel like I'm a little kid again, and I can't tell if I like it or not.
We pull into the spot and both get out. I walk beside him to the rock near the water; he didn't have to lead the way because I remember it by heart. We stand in silence and watch the water for a while, and finally, he speaks, "How are you feeling?" He asks, eyeing my sling.
I shrug, "Fine."
"You know how hard this is on me, don't you? Do you understand why I've been like this?" He asks.
"You've always been like this, it's nothing new." I say. It sounded harsh coming from my mouth, but it's so true, I couldn't help it.
"I don't mean to be. I just can't deal with things like you can. I've always been jealous that my own son is stronger than I am. I'm supposed to be the strong one, for you. But look what you did, you saved your best friend from my own brother, and what did I do? Hid." He says.
"What could you do? Nothing." I say.
"I don't know, maybe that's true. But he was my brother, I should have dealt with him, and instead you did it. I'll never forget myself for letting you get hurt like that." He says, "Maybe if I was actually there for you and a good father I could have went with you or something." He says.
"It's in the past; there is no need to dwell on it." I say.
"I just want you to know that I'm sorry, and I'm going to try harder now." He says.
"Okay." I tell him, but I don't know if I believe it.
"I mean it." He says. He walks over and hesitantly gives me a hug. I freeze between his arms; I can't even remember the last time he hugged me. Maybe he really does mean it. I wrap my good arm around him and we stay like that for a moment before he breaks away. I see him quickly wipe away a tear and that's when I know for sure that he's going to try to change; for me.