Uncle Charlie called the next morning before, during and after breakfast. I was able to return his call after the first morning group. Today the sun sending streaks of light through the clouds. My eyelids were heavy, my upper back, shoulders, and neck were stiff tense.
"Good morning, Uncle Charlie," I greeted sighing after stretching.
"Good morning… Are you okay?"
"I'm okay. The bed is giving my neck cramps… I'm sorry about yesterday… I know it cost you money to get here yesterday."
"It's alright."
"It's not. Yesterday was a really bad for me… I should've visited you… I honestly feel like an ass." I glanced up at the nurse sitting at the large crescent moon desk for all the staff, she gave me a look while she listened in on the conversation. "Only curse word, I promise. I'm sorry."
"It's okay, Vivianna… What… was wrong yesterday?" He asked, and he sounded uncomfortable but he was trying and I appreciated that more than anything.
"I… was thinking about you. And the house… what I did. I'm sorry… about attempting in your house… I'm sorry I didn't say something."
"Vivianna… I'm not mad at you. I was but I'm worried about you… I know your grandparents and I know growing up with them and my brother… I know that it's very hard to cope with it all now. I know that it's hard for you to adjust to this environment. I'm not the greatest with… feelings or talking about them. I hope you're not mad at me for signing you in… I didn't know what else to do."
I was mad at him yesterday for this but today… today is different. I think it's my impending menstrual cycle but I was thinking more. Thinking about his feelings, thinking about Bella's, thinking about how my decision put them in a situation… I understood but I was unsuccessful. I was putting myself in their shoes, a small crazy fifteen-year-old girl moving into their house, she was quiet and she was trying to be as polite and sociable as she could. And then she tried to kill herself. I would've done the same, my chest clenched as I imagined how they felt, Bella had been the one to scream when she seen me and that hurt a lot.
I had been very shocked that they allowed me to stay in bed, they checked on me, and they didn't insult me. They gave me respect. They deserved respect and more apologies, as well as change. I had to deal with this, I had to cope with this. I was graduating this upcoming school year and going to be turning sixteen before I graduate. Either Charlie would want to send me away to college or encourage me to stay home, I have to start dealing with this.
Caiden would want me too. If anyone from my past would want to snap back to reality, I know Caiden would want me to start dealing. I had no obligation to Nana or PopPop.
"I'm not… thank you, I needed to come here… I promise to be honest with you and I promise to accept and respect any decision you have."
"Okay," He replies, a bit unsure and then he sighed. A pause of silence, "I want you to continue therapy. The whole thing. School and no boys. Those are my main conditions, do you understand?"
"Yes."
"Do you… still want to go to Harvard?"
"Yes."
"Okay, well. All your transcripts were sent and Forks High is well… you have all of your credits. Forks High believes you could graduate before winter break and I also have spoken with Monica."
"Oh."
"It was surprising actually… she looked like… she was a mess actually. We talked a lot about you… do you want to be informed?"
I glanced over at the nurse, she gave me those nurse eyes. The supportive kind silent nurse eyes, the look if you observe hard enough. If you care enough too, I'm a freak I know.
I looked back down at my lap, "Yeah."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Spill the dets."
"Dets?"
I snorted, "Its slang for go ahead, I want to be informed."
"Okay." He coughed or grunted or both at the same time. "Okay, it's about Harvard and the requirements."
"Uh oh."
"She wants to finance your tuition. She wants you to… go. She… she looked like she hadn't been sleeping. Crying before she knocked on my door."
"She came to your house?"
"Yeah. Why?"
That's new… different.
"Huh."
"What?"
"That's… different."
"I thought so too…"
"Did she say anything about dinners or my coming out ceremony?"
"… Um, no. She wants to have lunch with you once every two weeks. She was even talking with Bella. She got her to call off her wedding with Edward."
I gasped, "Whoa! Wait. Wedding? They were getting married?"
"Were."
"Oh my… God. I can't believe this."
"Why?"
"Okay so, Nana has been trying to marry me off for a year now. I was raised to know how to be wife but educated. She said it would've been a disgrace for young women to not marry before the age of 17."
"Are you serious?"
"I'm so serious… wait, did they break up?"
"No… unfortunately. But… Bella decided to go college. I don't know how Monica did it, but… She got Bella an interview with the headmaster at Seattle University, for the cell biology in the Fall. Monica is 'ascertained' that you would agree to also go to Harvard and she has already step up an interview for you with the Harvard headmaster within the next month."
"Oh my…"
"That's where the uh oh goes in, huh, kid?"
"Yeah."
"I should've known but… do you… want to study Law at Harvard?"
I knew that maybe this was going to bite me in the ass but… I don't know, there was a good feeling in there too. I mean, I should say no and tell Charlie to get Bella far away from Nana but… she got Bella an interview… Nana and PopPop were… so… There's definitely a hidden plan but… she changed Bella's mind to slow down and focus on school instead of marriage. Nana and PopPop are 1800 century England.
I… sat there for a second thinking about it, it was quick and I really didn't want to miss out on the opportunity. Yale is everything, always has been.
"Yes."
"Okay good. Monica bought out off-campus apartments for you and Bella."
"Huh? She bought apartments?"
"Yeah," he said as a sigh. "I think it was mostly out of guilt and obligation to agree on both our ends here."
"It's starting to look that way… a lot."
Charlie heaves a sigh, "… She bought the apartment after she got Bella's interview. She had high hopes already with Bella's high credentials."
"I… have a good and bad feeling about this."
"Same here… I already have an appointment set up with my therapist."
"Really?" I asked, searching for sarcasm in his tone but I was coming up empty.
"Yeah…"
"Did she do anything else?"
"No. Yeah, and then we all went out to lunch."
"Sounds… relaxing after all that chaos."
He sighs, "Yeah, it was, but it was nice. It was very different than my other encounters with Moncia. Luke wasn't so happy to hear about the whole ordeal. Do you want to be informed?"
"Yeah. I'm on the edge of my seat with popcorn."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Alright… This conversation with Moncia happened the following week after the hospital. A week ago, I get a call on my cell from Moncia saying I'm sorry and everything will be worked out before the station phone goes off. Moncia hangs up and I answer the station phone. And guess who it is."
"Luke Benten."
"Correct. He's cursing and yelling about the college's and you girls. Until I heard Moncia in the background yelling at him that he had no power and all this and that, and their divorce."
"Their getting a divorce?" My eyes snap wide-open staring at the floor and the curve of the desk next to me, I closed my mouth from the unconscious drop of my jaw.
"I guess Moncia has been the innocent one here all along, during this whole transaction I guess Moncia found letters from your mom about Luke… I have never heard such drama in my life, I think that's six months' worth of movies for me. I couldn't get a word in, I hung up once. Bad decision, Luke called back and he somehow got louder. I can still hear him screaming in my ear."
"I'm sorry, Uncle Charlie." I apologized.
He sighs, "It's not your fault, kiddo. You're… just a girl, you're not even sixteen yet. You shouldn't have to suffer about your future because of personal vendetta's and/or misery. You know you got me, right, kid?"
He changed the subject pretty quickly. I was kind of glad he did, I had questions but I know if I asked, I might not leave here this week. I want to be ignorant to the insults and the letters. But this divorce… this is so strange I had wished one of them would realize which one was horrible or wanted a change and get a divorce. But those had been childhood wishes, and dreams, I don't know how to feel about this. I don't know… if I can see Nana and PopPop not together.
The little voice in my head denied Charlie actually being here for me but we talk every day, even if I don't call, we always talk. Even if it was just hi, how are you, how was your day, silence maybe or he was getting ready to leave and we'd talk again the next day. He was here for me. There's no doubt about it. His actions were proving it. And I had to show that back to him.
"Yeah, I do."
"Good. I don't know if anyone told you yet."
"Tell me what?" I asked, blinking out of my thoughts not to lose Uncle Charlie.
"Well, they called me and they said that they're looking to send you home within this week. That you're good to go."
"Is that what today was?"
"No. Actually this was a visit to talk about everything we just discussed. They were thinking Wednesday or Thursday."
"Today's Tuesday."
"Yup."
"Holy crap."
"Yup."
"Is there a conclusion?"
"Not yet… Do you want to come home?"
Was I ready to go home? I would love to sleep in a comfortable bed and not have to watch my back not to get jumped like the staff had no knowledge of. Or sometimes they just stand there looking like they were regretting going to school for this job.
Was I ready to go back to Forks? Have lunch with Nana once every two weeks? I don't know. I do have a therapist and I'm guessing they'll have the clinic in Forks on speed dial for my psychiatrist. Just lunch every two weeks. School, no brainer. No boys, that'll be easy. And I'll still have time to spend with Charlie before the summer is over and get my ducks in a row before school starts.
I'm ready. I'm ready. I have to be ready. No more wallowing in self-pity. If I wanted the life I've always dreamed of, then I needed to be ready to face the past, face Nana, face the future. Uncle Charlie was going to be there. Things were changing, and I had to be ready for them if I really wanted to live my dream life. I'm ready.
I hate this place. I'm ready to return to Charlie's two-bedroom house.
"Yeah, I do."