Bending Under Pressure (4 page)

She’s skeptical, I can tell. “I wouldn’t hold your breath,” she tells me gently.

Okay, so Dad may have canceled on me twice before, but he won’t do it again. It pisses me off that she’s automatically doubting him. Shouldn’t he be given a chance? He’s my dad! “He’ll come,” I say firmly.

“Do you want us to save you a plate, just in case?” Walter asks carefully.

“No,” I snap.

“Okay, well, dinner’s ready.”

“I’m not hungry.” I stalk to my room. Really, is there any wonder why I don’t like Walter? It’s one thing for Mom to give her opinion, but Walter needs to stay out of it. I am hungry, but I’ll wait until later to sneak into the kitchen and grab something to eat. In the meantime, I’m going to read.

Five chapters later, my phone buzzes with a text.

Keelan: Hey

I smile and quickly respond.

Me: Hey

Keelan: So, how did you end up here?

Me: My mom remarried and then her husband got a new job nearby. I don’t know why they chose to live here instead of there though

Mom and Walter both have a thirty to forty-five minute drive to work, depending on traffic.

Keelan: Oh, cool. Where are you from? Do you get to see your dad?

Me: He lives two hours away. I don’t seem him as often as I’d like, but he’s coming to have dinner with me tomorrow

Dad is probably lonely. I mean, Mom has Walter. Who does he have? No one because I’m here with them. Once again, I wonder why he didn’t want me to stay. Mom doesn’t need me, but I wasn’t exactly given a choice.

Keelan: That sucks, but it’s good you’ll be able to see him then. Do you think you’ll like it here?

Will I? Jess seems pretty cool. Keelan does too; plus, he’s cute. School doesn’t seem half bad either.

Me: It has potential. :)

I
texted Dad Elsie’s exact address, so he could put it in his GPS and get here with no problem. I’ve been buzzing with excited energy all day. Even now, sitting in a booth, I can’t stop fidgeting.

“What can I get you, dear?” Elsie asks.

“Nothing yet. I’m waiting on someone.” I give her a big smile because I’m just too happy. It’s been so long since I’ve seen my dad, and I get to spend a couple of hours with him tonight. The best part is I didn’t even have to ask him to come! He offered!

I glance at my phone and see it’s seven o’clock. He should be here any minute now. My eyes are trained on the door, waiting for it to open with a ding and Dad to walk through. I wonder what he’s been up to without us there. I wonder if he misses me; of course he does because he wanted to see me today.

“Are you sure you don’t want anything? Not even a drink?” Mrs. Elsie asks when she returns.

I shake my head. “No, he should be here soon.”

My gut is telling me he won’t show. He’s already fifteen minutes late. I pick my phone and call him, but he doesn’t answer. I try texting him, but again, no response. God, he can’t be doing this to me again. Maybe he’s lost and he’s trying to focus on getting here. Maybe he’s had an accident, or maybe he’s running behind because someone else had an accident. He’s going to come. He’s running late, that’s all.

I wait thirty more minutes, not wanting to give up. My throat is burning, my eyes are watery, and when a tear manages to escape, I quickly wipe it away. Where is he? I pick up my phone and try calling him once again.

Finally, he answers.

“I’m sorry, Haley. I got caught up at work and am just now leaving. I won’t be able to make it.”

The door dings as it opens, and I see Keelan walking in. His eyes immediately find mine and he begins to walk my way. Why is he here? “It’s okay. Maybe next time,” I tell Dad. “I should go. Bye.” I hang up, not even feeling a little guilty for not saying I love him. “What are you doing here?” I ask when Keelan sits down across from me.

“Mrs. Elsie called the house and wanted to know why I was standing you up.” My brows wrinkle in confusion. “She thought you were meeting me here. I decided to come check on you since it sounded like your dad didn’t make it. Do you want to come to my house? Mom already fixed you a plate.”

While I don’t really want company, I definitely do not want to go home yet. That would let my mother know she was right. “I would like that.”

M
rs. Elsie was ready to tear me a good one when she called the house. She said Haley was sitting in one of her booths, near tears, waiting on me. I guess since I showed up with her once and since Haley said she was waiting on
him
, Mrs. Elsie assumed it was me. I don’t know what happened with her dad, and I don’t ask. Haley follows me to the house and I lead her into the kitchen where Mom is making a cake.

“Thanks for dinner,” Haley says when Mom hands her a plate of hot food.

“Any time.” Mom smiles at her. She starts asking Haley about school and tennis. Keeping the conversation light and simple. Mom always has a knack for knowing what people need. When Haley finishes, Mom tells her she can stay for cake, if she’d like.

“C’mon, Haley.” I take her hand and lead her up to my room, releasing her hand once we’ve stepped inside. I take a seat on the far side of my bed, leaning against the headboard with my legs stretched out. Haley looks unsure for a moment before slipping off her shoes and sitting next to me with her legs crisscrossed.

She runs her fingers over my comforter before glancing at me. “Nice room.”

“Thanks.”

“Where’s Cam?”

“With Jess. He’ll be home soon.”

I want to suggest that we should kiss because damn, her lips are perfect, and I bet I’d think so even more if I could kiss her. Why does she have to be so pretty? Of course, I won’t now because she obviously hasn’t had a good evening.

“So, can I ask you something about yourself?” she asks, and I lift my gaze from her lips to her eyes.

“Go ahead.”

“During roll call in science, Mr. Roberts said your last name is Moore and Cam’s is Giddings.” She stops and waits for me to explain.

“That wasn’t a question, you know.” I’m rewarded with a smile, a soft laugh, and she even rolls her eyes at me. “We’re not blood-related. We were both adopted. Mom and Dad’s last name is Sanderson. They adopted us when we were six. We were in the same foster home, and were best friends. They initially only planned to adopt only one kid. When they saw how close we were and how protective of one another we were, they adopted us both instead. We were already used to our last names, and I guess they were scared they would confuse us.”

“That was very sweet of them.”

I nod in agreement. “They have always open with us and would answer any questions we had the best they could. Everyone in town knows we were adopted, too.”

“Hey, man,” Cam says as he walks into my room. “Oh, hey, Haley,” he adds when he notices her. He plops down onto the game chair by the TV, and Haley leans back against the headboard.

“What are you doing here? I thought you’d be at Jess’s for a while longer.”

“Her parents sent me home.” He lifts his hands behind his head as he leans back. “They gave me that school night excuse.” Cam focuses his gaze on Haley. “We have a game Friday, and Jess is going. Are you? She was planning on asking if you wanted to go.”

“That sounds fun. I’ll be there. Maybe Jess and I can ride together.”

“I’m sure Jess won’t mind that at all,” Cam assures her. “Keelan can give you her number if you don’t have it already.” He stands and adds on his way out, “See y’all losers later.”

“I should head home. Thanks for inviting me over.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll walk you out.”

We put our shoes on and go downstairs. Haley thanks my parents for dinner before I walk her outside to her car. She presses the unlock button on her key fob, and I open the door for her.

“Thanks again, Keelan.” Haley steps forward, quickly kisses my cheek, and then slides into her car.

I grin, close her door, and watch as she drives away.

“Keelan, check the mail please,” Mom calls from the front porch. Dad must have forgotten.

I pull the mail from the box and flip through it as I walk back to the house. I’m surprised to see an envelope with my name on it. The name on the return address stops me in my tracks.

Natalie Moore.

My biological mother.

How did she even find me? I didn’t think she had that kind of information. I fold it in half and stuff it in my back pocket. What does she want? Thankfully, Mom isn’t nearby when I walk back inside. I toss the mail onto the table in the kitchen and hurry to Cam’s room.

“What’s the deal with you and Haley?” he asks without glancing from his TV. I close his door and he finally looks at me. “What’s wrong?” I pull the letter from my pocket and throw it to where he sits in a desk chair. “Natalie wrote you,” he states. “I’m guessing Mom and Dad don’t know?” I shake my head. “Are you going to open it?”

I fall back onto his bed. “Should I? What do you think she wants?”

“I don’t know, man. It’s been a long time since you’ve seen her. Maybe she wants you back?”

“After all this time? Why? She’s not my parent anymore. Mom and Dad are.”

“So, maybe she wants to get to know you. You won’t know unless you open it.”

“Should I tell them first?” I ask, already filled with dread and worry over how my parents might react.

“I think you should read it first.” Cam holds out the letter.

Sitting up, I grab it and retreat to my room with a mumbled thanks. I sit on my bed, taking a deep breath. My hands tremble as I rip the envelope open. Might as well get this over with, like ripping a Band-Aid off.

Dear Keelan,

I’m not sure if you know who I am by name because I’m not sure what your adopted parents have told you or what you remember. I’m your biological mother. I don’t know where to start really, other than I’m finally in a good place in my life and I would love to meet you.

It took some time, but thanks to you playing football, a private investigator was able to find you. As I said, I would love to meet you and get to know you better. Please write me back or call me at the number below.

Hope to hear from you soon,

Natalie

She hired someone to find me? That’s insane. And she wants to meet me? I don’t know how I feel about it. Am I supposed to want to meet her or not? A soft knock on my door causes me to lift my head. Mom stands in the doorway, watching me curiously.

“I came to say good night. Was everything fine with Haley?”

“I don’t know. She didn’t talk about it, and I wasn’t sure what to ask.”

Mom nods in understanding. “Are you okay?” Her gaze flickers to the letter I’m gripping in my hands.

I shake my head, not sure how I’m supposed to tell her, but knowing I need to right now. Mom walks into my room and sits down on the edge of my bed. She pats my knee, a show of reassurance. I hand her the letter. Mom reads it silently before looking up at me, no clear emotions showing on her face.

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. You’re my mom. You, Dad, and Cam are my family. Not
her
,” I say adamantly.

“Yes, we are your family and nothing will change that, Keelan. Not a single thing could ever come between us. Think about it for a few days before you make a decision about what you want to do. If you want to meet with her, we’ll support you. If you don’t, we’ll support you. You’re my son, and I love you. All I ask is that you keep me updated.”

While I feel better with her words, I am disappointed, too. “You’re not going to help me decide?”

Mom gives me a small smile, shaking her head. “No, honey. This needs to be your choice and yours alone.”

Great. Just great. I like my life the way it is. I like the stability my parents have given me. I like knowing I have one mom, one dad, and one brother. I know exactly how my life should be and now, this woman I can’t claim to know wants to see me? Wants to get to know me? Why? And why don’t I immediately know what I want?

Mom tells me goodnight and leaves. A minute later, Cameron comes in. “So?”