He huffs, “No, of course not. That’s Dad’s, not mine.”
Prez approaches us, “Heya, sug’, thanks for coming,” he says to Princess then turns to me shaking my hand, “Brother.”
“Brother,” I respond, paying him the same respect.
“Mom?” Princess calls but gets no answer.
Prez cuts straight in, “We need to talk about your momma.”
“What’s wrong with her? What did you do this time?”
PRINCESS
Furious at the messmy dad’s left my mother to deal with, I question him, ready for him to admit that he’s staying here to have her wait on him like he sometimes does. He’ll walk through the door after being gone months, and you’d swear he was a long lost king or something with how my mom treats him.
His hand tangles in his overly long sandy hair as his head drops, his eyes on the floor instead of meeting my irate gaze. He opens his mouth to say something, but then a huge crash comes from my mom’s bedroom.
“I’ve got it, Dad,” Brently jumps, but my dad rushes in front of him.
“No son! Not unless it’s absolutely necessary.”
“It is, talk to Princess so that she can stop this bullshit.”
“Excuse me?” I gape at him. Who the fuck does he think he is, suddenly being a dick to me all the time. I’ve barely walked in the freaking house.
A moan comes next from my mom’s room, and I quickly skirt around the table, beelining for the bedroom door.
“Wait!” My father shouts, but I ignore him, throwing the door open.
“Mom?” It takes a second to see a table knocked over with stuff spilled everywhere. I find her on the floor, crumpled in a small, frail ball, a small amount of throw up beside her.
“Shit! Mom! Are you okay?” Rushing over to her side, I start to help turn her over when I’m stopped by a firm hand. My head shoots up, finding my father’s stern gaze.
“Don’t move her like that,” he orders and I yank my shoulder out of his grip.
“Get off me; I’ll take care of her. I always make sure she’s okay.”
“I know,” my dad croaks as tears start to fall down his cheeks. I’ve only seen him cry one time in my life, and I thought I had hallucinated it all. “I know you do sweetheart, and I’ll owe you for the rest of my life for taking such good care of the woman I love.”
“What are you talking about?” I’m so fucking confused. What is going on?
His shoulders shake as sobs begin to take over. Brently comes in to help Mom to bed, and Dad just bawls, so much to the point that I start crying. It’s so fucking scary to see the man that you’ve always known to be unreadable and hard, crack before your eyes.
“Dad, talk to me please, what the hell’s happening?” I glance at my mom, clearly on a ton of medication looking the weakest I’ve ever seen her. Brently fixes her pillow and softly wipes off her cheek with a baby wipe.
That’s when I notice it…I see a big piece of her hair’s missing, and I know exactly why she’s been so absent. She’s been hiding it from me. With a hoarse cry I turn to my father, my watery eyes overfilling and blurry to where I can only make out his shape. “God no! Please, no, please, please, please tell me she’s okay. I have to be wrong; this can’t be happening.”
“I’m so sorry, sugar.”
“No!” A guttural bark leaves my mouth, shaking my head.
“I’m sorry,” he repeats, and I get so irate inside.
“Fuck. You! Get out of my mom’s house, you piece of shit! Get the fuck out, all of you; she was fine when I was here with her!”
Viking forcibly wraps his huge arms around my body, pulling me up off the floor and carrying me out into the living room while I scream at everyone, blaming them for this tragedy. It’s not an easy feat for him as I kick and scream, weeping that my mother is in that bed dying, and he’s taking me away from her.
“Shhh, Cinderella,” he repeats softly into my hair, tightly cocooning me in his warmth until I’m too sad and worn out to fight any longer. The one person that’s been there for me my whole life, my constant, is lying in that bed, struggling for her life. And no one told me before it was so late.