I looked into her eyes caringly, but didn’t answer. I went out the door and saw my friends still waiting outside. Behind me, I heard daddy yell my name. “Samantha. If you leave outta here tonight, don’t think about coming back.”
One last tear escaped as I looked back at him and found my strength. I turned away and put my bag in the trunk while Angel kissed her mother on the cheek and then climbed into the passenger seat. She waited while I walked to AJ’s car. When I focused in on his face, his expression was filled with sadness, but I knew that it wasn’t his own misery that I was seeing; he felt my pain. He stepped out of the car and met me halfway down the driveway.
“Do you need to stay at the guesthouse for a while?” He asked.
I wanted to smile at his kind gesture, but I couldn’t. Instead I just nodded before walking back to my car. As I backed out I saw my mother standing on the porch with my Aunt Lisa’s arm around her. I didn’t want to hurt her, but I had to go. Hopefully she understood that.
Chapter Thirteen
AJ and the others pulled off with Angel and me trailing behind, driving most of the way in silence. Everything was happening so fast. My father had never hit me a day in my life and I didn’t expect him to start on the day that I crossed over into adulthood. My cheek felt hot to the touch as I pressed my cool hand to it. Angel watched me as I tussled with my jumble of thoughts and emotions. At this point they were all over the place. She reached for my hand that was to my face and as she held it, I felt a lump forming in my throat as I fought the urge to cry again.
About ten minutes later we pulled up to the gate at the end of AJ’s driveway. I heard Angel gasp when we drove past his house on the way to the guesthouse. She sat with her mouth agape as I had when I first took it all in. AJ stopped and motioned for me to go around him and park in the garage; I assumed that was to keep my car hidden. Deanna approached me once we were inside the house. She stared for a moment trying to think of something encouraging to say, but eventually gave up and leaned in to hug me. “I talked to my mom and I told her that you needed me to keep you company tonight. So Karl and I are gonna stay here too.” I was grateful to have a friend like her during a time like this.
I was a little embarrassed by my father’s behavior, but there was nothing I could do to change things. Deanna piped up and attempted to lighten the mood. “Hey, why don’t you come have a seat on the couch and open your presents?” She asked as she pulled me to the living room.
I wasn’t much in the mood for opening gifts and AJ must’ve sensed it. “Why don’t we wait and do that tomorrow? We’ll get cake and everything and do it the right way.” Today had gone on long enough and all I wanted to do was go to sleep.
Deanna, Karl and Angel stayed up and watched movies late into the night, but I needed to clear my head. I was afraid to talk about everything that was going through my head, fearing that I’d start crying again. AJ didn’t try to force any conversation out of me as he lay beside me in the large bed we’d slept in the last time. I settled in at his side and rested my head on his shoulder. No matter how much I fought it, I was again thinking about what happened. It was still hard to believe that it even happened. Growing up I always believed that a father was supposed to be the one who protected you from men who set out to hurt you. And now, the very person who I’d always thought of as my hero turned out to be the villain.
That revelation hit me like a ton of bricks and I felt the sadness coming on again. Without even knowing that I needed him, AJ pulled me closer to him. I closed my eyes as I felt him kiss me softly on my forehead. Home wasn’t a safe haven to me anymore. This made the thought of never leaving AJ more appealing than ever, but I knew that it wasn’t even a possibility right now. I was almost startled by his voice when he spoke.