Reverie Of Redemption

CHAPTER TWO- Aurora HOME SWEET HOME, I GUESS…

What exactly is betrayal? People often say they can taste betrayal, but does it really have a taste? What does it taste like? How did the word even come about in the first place?

No one ever knows what betrayal is like until they experience it. It is not something you prepare for. The whole concept is that you never actually see it coming but it hurts the most when it is done by someone really close to you.

I first experienced betrayal in second grade when Robby Winkle told everyone about my bed-wetting because I refused to share my muffin with him. My mum made the best muffins in all of Australia.

My second betrayal experience was when Zac snitched on me for breaking my mum's most expensive china, after he pinky-swore that he won’t tell.

Everyone has experienced a little betrayal here and there but why do people do it?

Robby did it out of. Well, I don’t know why he did and Zac did it to get on my mum’s good side but they were children and I got over it soon enough. But why do adults do it?

I glared at my brother choosing to ignore the person standing right there, if I ignore the problem hopefully it’ll go away, fingers crossed.

‘Ro if you just try to hear her out..’ Sam pleaded.

‘Hear her out? Hear her out?! Sammy, you are the only person in this family that knows exactly what went down, what I went through and you’re here asking me to hear her out?!’ I turned to her with so much hatred, ‘what are you even doing here?, are you here to finish what you started?’

‘Ro…’ she started but I cut her off, ‘that’s Aurora to you’ turning to Sam I continued, ‘either she leaves or I do, God, I can’t even catch a break at home.’

‘What is all this noise and where is it coming from?’ my mum’s voice came from around the corner which I’m assuming is the kitchen, one would think she lives in the kitchen.

Mrs. Aiko Hollis, AI for short. My mother is a 5 '1 Japanese woman, she met my dad in college when she was an exchange student. Their love story is so sweet and I’m not going to get into that. My mother has worked almost all the jobs known to man, I swear she was a fire-fighter at some point. When I left she was in the middle school academic board, now she’s a real estate agent. My mother, ladies and gentlemen.

‘Is that you Rory girl?’ she asked as she came into view, the frown on my face melted into a wide smile. My mother, my first love.

I ran and hugged her, she was looking as beautiful as ever, too bad I did not get her genes I stocked up on my dad’s genes.

‘mum..’ I whispered, I felt my throat closing as I tried to hold back the tears, ‘I missed you, I missed you so much’

She laughed low as she hugged me back rubbing my back ‘I missed you too my sweet baby, I’m so glad you're back’ she released me and took a step back to properly look at me ‘turn around let me look at you properly Rory girl’

I giggled as I spun around, my mum was always my number one fan. ‘you’re looking really good Rory girl’

‘Thanks mum..’

‘You have no idea how happy I am that you came back, these boys have been driving me crazy. Now you’re back I have an ally’ she said holding my hands and smiling

‘Of course mum, I got you’ I smiled at her, ‘I do hope you’re here to stay because you can not have me from across the globe’

‘Yes mum, I’m here to stay’ I smiled at her and she hugged me tightly, ‘I’m glad…, so what did you say the ruckus was about?” she asked as she released me and looked past me to Sam.

‘Sammy boy, why are you stressing your sister out? She just arrived. Let’s leave Rory girl and her friend to catch up, follow me to the kitchen let’s have something prepared for my baby girl. And bring her bags up you’re not a caveman’ she said as turned to leave.

Sam picked up my bag and stopped beside me, ‘just hear her out squirt’, he whispered.

I rolled my eyes ‘I’ll try’. When we were finally alone, I turned to her

‘Hi Thea…. I’m going to try to hear you out because of my brother but you have five minutes’ I sat down at the nearest chair and looked at her, ‘go on..’ I gestured.

‘Ro..’ she started,

‘Aurora’ I cut her off, ‘it’s Aurora to you don’t forget that’

‘Sorry about that, Aurora I missed you…you.. you were my best friend we had a misunderstanding but..’

‘Misunderstanding? A misunderstanding?!, Thea what we had was more than a misunderstanding, you took complete advantage of the blind trust I had in you, you ripped out my heart with your two hands and left my chest bare… even when I came to you giving you a chance to explain yourself, giving you the benefit of doubt you still left me high and dry without a proper explanation. So don’t tell me you f*****g missed me, you have absolutely no right, now tell me Thea, what the f**k are you doing in my house’ I asked panting, I was getting too agitated to continue with this conversation but I promised Sam I would hear her out.

‘Aurora you never really gave me a chance so we could talk about it, when everything happened you were the one that packed your bags and left without saying goodbye, you ran away Ro, you always do’

‘I ran away?’ At this point my voice got really loud, ‘I ran away?! Is that what you just said? I gave you a chance to explain but all I got was some cryptic bullshit as you went back and did it again, so please tell me what I was supposed to do? Be a sitting duck while you guys destroyed my life, everything I worked for and everything I believed in? Definitely not! Some things have changed, I have changed, I’m not going to let you have such a hold over my life any more. I don’t care about your explanation, just stay away from me and my family. They don’t know the kind of person you are and I would like to keep it that way because my mum loves you like her own daughter’

Thea sighed heavily as she sat down opposite me,

‘I can’t explain everything that happened back then completely but believe me when I say, there’s a lot more to what happened all those years than you know. You have no idea how it has been killing me to tell you all about it but I cannot because it’s not my place to, it was never my place to it’s not my story to tell. But I want you to keep an open mind because when you eventually learn the truth, it was a lot more painful for others too. I just want you to bear that in mind’

She stood up and turned to the exit, ‘and I did miss you, you were my best friend and no one else has been able to fill that role since you left.’ looking at me she sighed once more, ‘tell your mum I could not stay for dinner, I have a lot to do so I’ll just get going. It is really nice to see you again’ she left leaving me extremely confused.

What in the encrypted hell did she mean? She left me more confused than I was when I first saw her, and she didn't still tell me what the hell she was doing in this house. Nobody except Sam knows what happened so I guess everyone is still friends with her, heck she was part of the family.

Great!, more things to think about, not really looking forward to it.

I stood up and made my way to the kitchen, I need to get more food into me because the burger and fries is long gone from my body.

‘Where's dad?’ I asked as I walked into the kitchen and jumped onto the island, ‘I have not seen him around’

‘He will be back by dinner’ my mum replied, ‘why didn’t you tell me you were coming back Rory girl? I would've prepared you a feast’

‘it was supposed to be surprise mum’

‘You know how I hate surprises Rory girl, I don’t like how there’s no feast waiting for my sweet girl on her first day back’.

I rolled my eyes, ‘it’s really all right mum, for real. With the way I have been feeding for the past few years anything you prepare is a feast’

‘Nonsense Rory girl, nothing is too much for you. By the way, I noticed that you had just one bag with you, I thought you were here to stay? Where are the rest of your bags?’

I sighed ‘I would like to know that too mum, the airport lost my luggage and they said there was nothing they could do about it so I decided to just let it go…. though I had like my whole life inside there’

‘No Rory girl, you’re not going to let it go. You should have told me when that happened, hold on I’ll take care of that for you’, she wiped her hand on her race car's apron. ‘Hand me my phone Sammy boy, let me make some calls’

Sam handed her the cell phone, she waved at me and walked out to the patio to make a call.

‘I wonder who she’s talking to’ I said curiously and I craned my neck to see through the kitchen windows. Sam hits me on my head with a ladle

‘there are some things that you’re better off not knowing’

‘like why Thea Maddox was in this house when I walked in?’ I asked as I turned to him, his lips opened and closed twice but nothing came out

‘you have nothing to say now huh? thought so’ I said triumphantly as I jumped off the island and walked towards the patio trying to eavesdrop

‘.……. you’re a darling, thank you very much. Do have a nice day dear’

Damn it, I came late. f**k you Sam.

‘Did I not teach you that it’s not good to eavesdrop? Rory girl?’ my mum asked as she came into view

‘i….I…I was just..’ I stammered, she caught me. ‘Never mind that, your bag will be delivered by dinner. Now come come, let me show you your room’.

I looked at my mother in childlike wonder, as children we always thought that our parents were some kind of superheroes or magicians but that was in childhood. So how on earth is this woman still pulling superhero moves? My dear mother ladies and gentlemen. As we entered the kitchen, I made a face and stuck my tongue out at Sam.

‘loser..’

‘squirt’

‘mummy’s boy’

‘spoilt bra..’

‘that’s enough from you Sammy boy’ my mum warned

‘yeah that’s enough Sammy’

‘you too Rory’ she said throwing me a look

‘so…’ I started as we walked up the stairs, ‘Sam tells me you and dad have been living alone’ what’s that like?’

‘It has been bearable they’ve been coming to visit so I’ve not been completely alone’ she said as she stopped in front of a white door, ‘here we are Rory girl, this is your room’

‘I hope there’s no surprise hiding behind this door because I..’ the sound of the doorbell cut me off

‘That's either your dad or your bag’ she said. She left me and went to check it out.