FicWad

Caution in each step I took, I made my way across the living room and sat down beside Anna on the couch. I looked at her sideways; she sat as still as a mouse in a corner. Dad started speaking again;
“Well, as you girls know, things have been a little difficult around here lately,” he said, scratching the top if his balding head.
I tried not to laugh; a little difficult? That was the understatement of the century. Our dad was a doctor who's annual revenue was somewhere in the six digit range. Our mother was a receptionist at a walk-in clinic. So it didn't make much sense why money was always so tight; there was never food in the kitchen, and we were lucky to have electricity, water and cable all at the same time. It might have had lots to do with the fact that our father was never home.
“There are some truths you girls may not have realized,” he continued, “And it's time that your mother and I start being honest with you,”
I felt myself start trembling, and Anna nudged my leg reassuringly.
“Where is Mum, anyway?” Anna asked.
“That is unimportant as of right now,” he waved her question away, “Now. Money has been tight, and I know you girls are at a loss as to why. The truth is, I've been laid off.”
He waited a moment to let his words sink it. Panic started to pound in my chest. I took a deep breath, and looked sideways at Anna. She was expressionless.
“What does this mean?” I asked in a small, shaking voice.
“It means that we are entirely dependent on your mother's income. Well...you girls will be, anyway,” He took a deep breath and shifted positions; he now stood up straight with his arms crossed in a business-like manner, and he said, “I've decided to leave your mother.”
“WHAT?!” Anna cried; she had sprung up from the couch, her knees bent and her fists clenched, as if she were ready to strike our father. I grabbed her arm and tried to yank her back to the couch, but she shook me off.
“Anna, I know it's difficult to hear, but your mother and I have not been happy for a long time, and there is little chance that I can find another doctoring position in this area. I need to move out of this town, I need a new beginning.”
“Then we're coming with you!” Anna cried.
“No, it's best that you girls stay here with your mother, your friends and your schools.”
“DAD-” Anna began with a yell, but I stood up and placed my hand on her shoulder. She looked up at me, and I gave a tiny nod so that she knew I had to speak. She fell silent.
“Dad,” my voice wavered, “You cannot leave us alone with her. Please, Dad, please don't.”
“She's your mother, you girls need her at this point in your lives, I-”
“No,” I cut in more sharply, “Dad, you don't understand. If you would come home more often, you'd know that we never have food, our water and electricity is constantly being cut off, and Mum is drinking away her paycheck.”
“Why, that is perfect nonsense,” he scoffed, leaning back on his heels, “There is plenty of food in that fridge, and all of our utilities are in service.”
“You bought groceries?” Anna asked.
“Of course I did. I'd given Lexi ten dollars the day before so she could buy some, I was not pleased to come home to empty cupboards!” he glared at me.
“Dad, ten dollars is not a lot for grocery money. We ate at Patrick's last night.”
Dad uncrossed his arms and put his hands in his pocked. He gave me a stern look.
“What did you tell his mother?”
“Calm down, what the hell would I have said? Patrick invited us over for dinner, simple as that.”
“I don't want lies being spread around town that you two aren't being properly fed.”
“They're not lies.” Anna mumbled, crossing her arms.
“Anna Laura Carrier, I will not tolerate this kind of-”
“DAD! It's true!” I cried, on the brink of hysterics.
“Don't you start with me, Lexi Flora!” his hands were out of his pocket, and he looked just about ready to hit me. I decided to back down. It was bad enough from Mum, I didn't need it from Dad.
“Both of you, sit down.” Dad snapped.
We obeyed, collapsing onto the couch in defeat, listening to the creak of the old cushions beneath us.
“Now,” he said, trying to make his tone more pleasant and professional, “My things are already gone, as they have been for several weeks, I'm sure you've noticed.”
“I thought you went on a business trip.” Anna shot at him accusingly, but her remark was ignored.
“I am simply here to say goodbye and good luck to you girls. Once the divorce has been filed and we have a court date, something will be arranged for visitations, and...”
He rambled on, but I stopped listening. I looked down at my hands, clasped together tightly in my lap. They were white as sheets and trembling. Anna's hand came into my field of view, and she placed it gently over top of my shaking hands. I glanced up at her, and she smiled.
“...so please stand up so we can say our proper goodbyes, yes?” Dad finally finished talking.
Anna and I stood up and crossed the room to where our father stood, hugging him like robots. I felt no warmth in his embrace; it was formal and proper.
“Mum knows about this?” Anna asked suddenly.
“Of course.” Dad answered.
“Is she coming home tonight?”
“I would assume so.”
She turned to me with a skeptical look. I returned it with a half-hearted smile, and together we turned around to watch our father leave.
“I love you both.” he said as he shrugged his shoulders into his coat.
“We love you too.” we answered mechanically.
He placed his hat on his head, and with a smile and a nod of his head, he was gone. When we heard the door slam in the hallway, Anna turned to me and said with a sigh,
“Now what do we do?”


Patrick was absent from school the next day, as well. When lunch hour rolled around, I wasn't sure if I should walk aimlessly around the building in search for Lisa, or if I should stand awkwardly beside my locker, pretending I was busy. I decided on the later, and I soon found myself leaning against the cool metal with my arms crossed, pretending to be interested in the neon yellow jelly bracelets surrounding my wrists. I shook my arm ever so slightly and watched the cheap plastic dance around my wrist.
“Lexi?”
I looked up; Lisa was standing there. Her hair had purple streaks in it today. I stood up straighter and smiled, trying desperately to ignore my embarrassment. Why did she always have to catch me when I was doing weird things?
“Hi, Lisa.”
“So you're ready to meet mah peeps?” she winked.
I giggled at her attempted joke, and we started walking down the hall.
“You know, I'd never seen you around until...until last week.” I awkwardly began a conversation.
“Oh, yeah, I know. We usually hang out 'round back of the school at lunch.”
We passed through some exit doors and continued in silence around the corner of the building. I listened as gravel crunched under our feet, in perfect, rhythmic ambiance.
“Here we are!” Lisa had stopped walking.
I looked up; five or six kids were leaning against the cracked brick wall of the school, smiling at us.
“Guys, this is Lexi,” Lisa said, grabbing my hand and dragging me over to them, “Lexi, this is everyone!”
Lisa began pointing people out and naming them; Matt, a red-headed boy with a sprinkle of freckles across his cheeks; Chaz, a girl I recognized as one of the British exchange students who had arrived in January, shorter than I was, with pretty brown hair; Mickey, a short boy with blond hair and a devilish smirk; Emily, a girl with long blond hair and a kind smile; Cassi, who wore glasses similar to mine and had dyed-red hair; Kinn, a girl with curly brown hair and shy eyes.
“You're in my Science class,” Chaz commented, and I nodded.
“Hey!” Matt, who had been silent up until this point, said, “You're Anna's sister, aren't you?”
It took a moment for the words to register in my head, and then I tried to remember where I had seen his face before. I finally remembered him as a boy who had been at our house last year for Anna's birthday.
“Yeah!” I grinned.
“Anna is awesome.”
“She's definitely my best friend.”
“Oh, I thought you were best friends with Patrick?” Chaz slid her way into the conversation.
“Um...” I turned suspiciously to Lisa, who waved her hand dismissively.
“They know all about that.”
“Even the-?”
“ALL ABOUT THAT.” she cut me off, her voice frantically loud.
I was immediately under the impression that these people did not know 'all about that', but I kept my mouth shut. There was something peculiar about Lisa, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

The rest of lunch hour was spent feeling at ease among this group of misplaced kids. None of them were losers, but none of them quite fit in to West Central High School. When the lunch bell rang, I had completely forgotten that my mother was going to be waiting for Anna and I when we returned from school, a meeting I was certainly dreading.