Page 85 of Torn
I cross my arms in front of me and stare her down. “Fine. Next time your parents go on tour, they can find someone else to watch you. You think I want to waste my time sitting here while you run around and act like a brat? I have a life.”
“I’m not a brat.”
“You’re acting like one.”
“Then just go home. I don’t need you here. You were ignoring me anyway.”
“Fine. I’m outta here.” I storm out through the back door and cross the yard to my truck parked in the driveway. Fuck this shit. If I wanted to deal with this, I’d have a kid of my own. I throw my truck in reverse and turn to see her running down the walkway toward me.
“Uncle Tor…”
Sonofabitch.
I stop the truck and roll down the window. “Get back in the house, Kenzi. It’s late.”
She clasps her hands on my car door, tears running down her face, smearing her eyeliner. She hasn’t figured out yet that waterproof makeup is best for getting through life.
“Please don’t leave.”
“You told me to leave. So I’m going. I’ll call one of your uncles to come stay with you and they can figure it out with your parents.”
“They all treat me like a baby. I didn’t mean it, Tor. Please don’t go.”
“I can take you to your grandparents, then. You can stay with them till your dad is back.”
She reaches into the truck and grabs my shoulder. “Please don’t do that. I want to stay here with you.”
I know she hates having to stay with her grandparents because they smother her with too much attention and try to give her tons of gifts. Kenzi’s never liked to be spoiled or lavished with expensive gifts by her wealthy family.
“You can’t just leave and not let me know where you are, Kenz. And you have to be home by your curfew. The rules don’t change just because your parents are away.”
She nods, swiping at her tears with her fingertips. “Okay. I promise. Just don’t leave me. I didn’t even want to go to the movie but you were on the phone with Sydni for hours. So when Chloe asked me to go… I left.”
The phone marathon with Sydni started earlier today. I’d hung up on her three times but she kept calling back, trying to justify the photos of her I saw on the internet. With two guys. One of them a drummer from another band who left a status on social media about his sticks being played with recently in a sexual way by a female rocker and he’s auctioning them off to donate to charity. I’ve felt sick to my stomach all day with that vision stuck in my head.
Sydni’s explanation that it was something fun that would benefit something good wasn’t making me feel any better. And now I have a jealous thirteen-year-old to pacify.
“Is that what this is about? You’re upset because I was on the phone with her and not paying attention to you?”
She lowers her eyes and fidgets with my door lock. “Kinda. I thought we were going to watch a movie together and make sundaes. Then she called and that was it. You forgot about me.”
I turn the truck off and climb out, slamming the door behind me. “Look, I’m not a mind reader. If you’re upset about something, you have to tell me. You can’t run off. I’ve been a mental case worrying about you.”
“I’m sorry.”
“C’mon. We can still watch a movie and make some wicked sundaes. I’m starving.”
“Can we pile pillows and blankets all over the floor and camp out in front of the TV like my dad used to do with me when I was little? I don’t even want to watch the movie in the theater room. I want to hang out in the living room by the fireplace.”
I’m sure my back will be screaming in the morning if I lie on the floor all night, but I’m willing to risk it.
“Yeah. Actually, that sounds perfect, Angel.”
She grabs my hand as we walk back into the house together. “Good. I just want to be five again for a while.”
I don’t blame her. I want to be a little kid again, too, and forget about all the shit that’s happening in my life.
TOR