Chapter Ten

“Mom…Dad, I’m home,” I shout, placing my things in the foyer. Kicking off my shoes I head to the living room. “Mom? Dad? Is anyone here?” I walk into the kitchen, again empty. I take the stairs two at a time—maybe they’re upstairs napping.

Empty.

I hear the front door open.

“Mom, Dad, is that you?”

“No, it’s Violet.”

I stop midway down the staircase. “Oh, hey,” I say deadpan. She’s the reason, answer, and savior to the mess I’m in.

“You don’t sound too happy to see me.” She kicks her shoes off, heading into the kitchen. I follow behind her. “How was your flight?”

“Cut the shit, Vi, why haven’t you texted or called me back? I’ve been trying to reach you for weeks now. I knew once the paps caught wind of Caleb and me…that was going to come out. Why didn’t you get back to me?”

Violet stops at the fridge, quickly turning around towards me. “Selena, it happened in the past. They’ll get over it…another story will come along, and they won’t care about yours anymore.”

“My story? It’s your story…you had unprotected sex with someone who wasn’t your boyfriend. You got pregnant, Vi, not me; you had the abortion, not me. You, it was all you. I should have listened to my gut and never gave you my ID.” How dare she? I’d been covering for her since high school, and I thought it would be over once she graduated college, oh how wrong I was. Violet is four years older than me, but most of the time I feel like the big sister.

“Shut the hell up, Sel! It was the past…it happened in the past—leave it there!” she shouts, slamming her hands on the countertop.

“News flash: it’s the fucking present now. I lost two big auditions and a chance with Caleb if I really wanted it.”

“It’s always about you, money, Caleb, getting into a better college and always trying to be the fucking favorite. News flash: you let Caleb go and lied to everyone about it. Mom is furious you have become a liar. For once she is disappointed in you. For once you aren’t the favorite. It’s good to visit Mom and Dad for Sunday dinner and not have to hear how great you are doing.” Her eyes fill up with tears.

I honestly don’t give two shits for her crocodile tears. “Cry me a fucking river, Vi! If you don’t tell Mom and Dad what you have done I will tell them myself. You are screwing with my income and future.”

“I’m not going to tell Mom and Dad anything. If you tell them, they’ll think you are lying, after all, you lied about Caleb…do you see where I am going with this?”

“I fucking hate you, Violet.”

“You’ll get over that too.” She walks out the kitchen laughing. I place my head on the countertop. I will never clear my name. I guess it doesn’t matter now since the only person who can do it won’t.

Later on in the evening my parents still haven’t arrived home, and I’ve been trying to avoid Violet, but it’s like she wants something to happen. Like she wants to get into it with me again. Beauty and the Beast is the only movie that can put me at ease, so I am thrilled that my parents still have it. Popping it into the DVD player, I make myself comfortable on the couch.

Then here she comes again. This time she stands in front of me, blocking the TV.

“Yes, Violet?” I sigh. I have no more fight in me—she’s won.

“Jackson is coming over with Mom and Dad and I don’t want you to bring the whole abortion thing up while he is here.”

“Like you said, no one will believe me, so why bring it up?” Wait a minute. Jackson is Violet’s fiancé now; he was her boyfriend back when the abortion happened. Maybe he suspected her of cheating on him or something along those lines.

“Right, so keep your mouth shut,” she snaps, walking off. If Violet thinks she can bully me around…she has another thing coming. Karma is a bitch.

***

An hour later our parents arrive home with Jackson in tow. Mom and Dad are excited to see me, but I can tell Mom isn’t happy with me. She wants me to help with dinner so we can talk, but that can’t happen with Violet hovering around us making sure I don’t say anything.

“Selena.” My mother looks over her shoulder at me.

“Yes?” I stop chopping the peppers.

“Because Jackson is here tonight I won’t bring up the whole catastrophe you have found yourself in. But we will talk about it. Especially your lying about Caleb.” Apparently, she wants to talk about it now—leave it to my mother to start dinner off on the wrong foot.

“Mom, I don’t want to talk about it. I am sorry I lied to everyone, but it was bound to happen sooner or later. We were going to break up at some point. I really want to address the other rumor.”

Violet jumps in to add her two cents, “Yes, it does matter that you broke up with a good guy. Mom loved him—we all did.”

“Violet, please just shut the hell up.”

“Hey, watch your language young lady, you are already in enough trouble with me as it is,” my mother comes to her rescue. I toss my hands up in the air. Unbelievable. They will always take up for Violet, it’s so sickening to witness at this point.

“I can’t do this. I can’t be here pretending I like it because I don’t. I don’t want to be under your roof and have you look at me differently. I know I made a mistake. I know, and I am sorry for lying. I just need to go. Happy, Vi, you won; isn’t that what you wanted—to be number one?” I hiss, walking out the kitchen.

“Daddy, unfortunately, I can’t stay here. I thought I could, but I just can’t.”

Thank the heavens I never took my stuff out the foyer. Slipping on my sneakers, I grab my suitcase and jacket and leave without giving anyone a chance to talk to me. I flag down a cab and head for the nearest hotel.

If Violet wants to cross me after everything I have done for her, she must not know me.

I text Anna: I need you in Kansas City, now. Also, I need the address to a Blake McCain. ASAP.

She texts back: Is this a 911? The big bang? Operation whose ass I need to beat!?

I chuckle a bit… I’m clearing my name tomorrow morning. Reach out to Good Morning America. See if they can send someone to Kansas City. Just get someone huge. Oprah, Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric…someone.

She doesn’t respond back, and that means she is doing her job…that’s one thing off my plate now. Maybe I am going to the extreme, but Violet pushed me too far. I just hope once everything is out in the open my parents will understand. To be on the safe side, I’ll call them in the morning to give them a heads up.