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The present
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An undeserved second chance Dawn confessions
It was the wee hours of the morning, the time when sleep was sweetest. Becca had to get up in a few hours and prepare to go to the school where she taught, so she was making the most of the remaining time, which was why when someone knocked on her door at that time of the morning, she ignored the sound, sure that she must be dreaming or something. She had slept late, owing to Emma’s fussing, not that Becca could blame her. The child was teething, and Becca had tried all sorts of things to relieve her, all to no avail. The knock came again, and this time, Becca groaned, squinting in the dark, but still not getting up from her bed. It was when the knock came the third time that she sat bolt upright on her bed, eyes wide open in the dark. Who could be knocking on her door so early in the morning? Dan was going to be at the hospital all night long, and even for a better part of the morning, but even if he was the one at the door, he would not knock. He would just let himself in with a key
An undeserved second chance Five years on...
FIVE YEARS LATER It was sweltering hot today and even bathed in the cool air that the air conditioner in his car blasted, Ryan could still almost ‘feel’ the heat emanating from the sidewalk and the asphalt on the surface of the road. He was patiently waiting for Taylor to make her way over to the car so they could go home, or perhaps because of how hot it was, go get some ice cream first before heading home. Ice cream … He shuddered a little and then shrugged the horrid feeling that came over him away. For some reason, the words ice cream never failed to remind him about that horrible, horrible day five years ago. He supposed that the reason was that he had been planning to take Taylor and Tyler out for ice cream that day because of how hot it was. Five years later, he still wasn’t over Tyler’s death. He doubted that he would ever be over it, and that was okay. He had loved Tyler and still loved him, even though he was long gone. He soon saw Taylor, her dark hair, which he had bound
An undeserved second chance Contemplation
“I don’t get why I have to go to a stupid summer camp!” Emma exclaimed angrily, folding her arms over her small chest and frowning at her adorable face, a face which was the smaller, female version of Ryan's. She stamped one leg on the floor to further show just how angry she was and how stupid she thought camp was, but when she saw that her mother wasn’t giving her the time of the day, she dropped her hands and adopted a pleading look.“But none of my friends are going to be there, mom. Why do I have to go? I'm not going to like it at all!”“You don't know that, Emma. A lot of kids wish to go, but can't because their parents can't afford to send them there. I should know because my grandma and grandpa had to save up so I could go. What do you mean none of your friends are going to be there, anyway?”“I asked all of them!”“Stop yelling, Emma. Alex is going too, and he is your best friend.” Becca said.“He’s not my best friend anymore. Yesterday, he went to the park with Dan and did n
An undeserved second chance Letting go
Alex and Emma bantered light-heartedly for a while, as they were wont to do, with Emma bringing up reasons why she thought that summer camp would be awful, and Alex countering them one after the other. In the end, she grudgingly accepted that it was going to be okay – just okay, though. At that moment, there was a slight knock on the door, and in came Dan, looking like a million bucks, but he no longer set Becca’s heart racing like he once did. He sent a smoldering gaze Becca’s way, which she pretended she did not see and which didn’t last long, because it was shortened by Emma and Alex who ran over to Dan and planted themselves on each of his legs, leaving him no choice but to look down at them.“Hey, little Tigers.” He acknowledged them, ruffling their hair and trying his best to answer the numerous questions which they shot at him one after the other in quick succession. He patiently answered the questions one by one, after which he bribed them each with candies, which he always se
An undeserved second chance Out of sight
“What do you mean you don’t want to go to summer camp anymore? It’s starting next week and it’s all you’ve been raving about for so many days now.” Ryan asked his daughter, eyebrows raised.“I know. I just don’t want to go anymore.” Taylor repeated, stubbornly, looking like she was on the verge of tears.“Awww, come on, honey. What is the matter?” He asked her, wiping his hands and coming over to stand beside her on the high stool on which she sat in the kitchen.“Annie and I fought, and all our friends supported her. All of them are not talking to me.” Taylor confided in him, a tear or two slipping out of the corner of her eye. Ryan placed his hand on her shoulder, and she hugged him around the waist and had a good cry, while he just stood there and held her. When she was done, she wiped her eyes and smiled at him a little shakily.“So you don’t want to go because of them?” Ryan asked.“Yes, they’re my friends, or they used to be, but now, they’re not talking to me anymore, and I eve
An undeserved second chance An unlikely encounter
The summer camp was bustling with activity. Kids of different ages moved up and down, getting their luggage and doing stuff, while Taylor stood alone in the corner, the handle of her luggage firmly gripped in her hands as she surveyed her surroundings. There was not a single familiar face there, although she was sure that her former best friend was somewhere in the camp. The sudden urge to cry and go meet someone in charge to tell them that she wanted to go back home came over her, but she resisted the urge. She was a big girl, after all, and she was going to make a lot of friends here. Raising her head, she joined the throng of milling kids and set about doing what she had to do.That first day, she didn’t make any friends, but at least some of the girls in her room talked with her. Two days later, she spied her former best friend with a group of some of their friends from school and some other new kids during lunch. Totally feeling alone and friendless, especially as the girl she us
An undeserved second chance Summoning courage
For some time now, Becca had become increasingly troubled about the fact that she was keeping the knowledge of Ryan’s child away from him. She didn’t know the reason why she felt this way, considering the fact that in the beginning, she didn’t give a rat’s ass about whether he deserved to know about his child or not. Maybe it was because Emma was away, for the first time in her almost seven years on earth and Becca had all the time on her hands and little to do with it, that she felt this way. Maybe it was the increasingly uncomfortable feeling that she had about lying to her friends, who were practically now her and Emma’s family all these years. Maybe it was because Emma was growing very rapidly, and Becca did not want to continue spinning lies upon lies. After all, it stood to reason that the child would want to see her father’s pictures and stuff like that sooner or later. What was Becca going to tell her when she asked for stuff like that? After all, this was the digital age, an
An undeserved second chance Confession time
At first, Becca thought that Dan didn’t hear her clearly, because he was still looking at her with the same vulnerable expression that had been on his face when she delivered her news. So she repeated herself in a shaky voice, looking at him to make sure he heard her this time around. “Huh?” He said at last after a minute had passed. The expression on his face now gave way to a very confused look. He smiled a little, as though he was not sure if she was toying with him or not, the look of confusion increasing when he saw how deadly serious she was.“Emma’s father is not dead. We’re just divorced. I told you he was dead because…” Becca began.“Emma’s father…”“Yes, my ex-husband.”“He’s not dead…” Dan asked.“No, he’s not. I only said that becau…”“The one that was supposed to have died in a ghastly motor accident?” Dan asked again. He wasn’t letting her finish her sentences, and the confused look had finally left his face. A look that Becca had never thought she would see Dan direct
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