That Witch! (19 page)

She gave Cassidy one last look, then stepped through the living room doorway. Her daddy sat in his recliner and her mom at the edge of the sofa closest to him. Laura sat on the end, smirking as Brynn made her appearance. Thank God she had Cassidy behind her. With Cassidy there, she knew she could maintain a certain level of control just to keep from embarrassing herself in front of her girlfriend.

“Yes, Daddy?” Brynn asked, hesitation coloring her shaky voice.

“Have a seat.” He nodded toward the chair on the other side of the room. Cassidy didn’t immediately follow her. Instead, she stood by the door. That is, until Brynn’s dad said, “You might as well come in and have a seat. Apparently, this involves you too.”

Cassidy looked about as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. She wrung her hands as she silently made her way into the room. She took a seat between Laura and Brynn’s mother. “Yes, sir” was all she managed, but she kept her chin up and didn’t avert her eyes. Cassidy wasn’t ashamed.

“Is there something you need to tell us, Brynn?” her father asked.

He kept his expression stoic, and Brynn felt completely lost. She looked over at her mom for some hint as to how she was supposed to answer that question and came up blank. Her mom only sat there staring down at her fidgeting fingers. Of course, Laura gave nothing away either… other than looking pleased with herself.

“I don’t know, Daddy. What is this about?”

He inhaled sharply, sat back in his chair, and crossed his arms over his chest. He didn’t take his steely stare off Brynn, and that icy gaze of his only made her heart pound harder.

“Tell me about your ‘relationship’ with your new friend,” he finally said, giving a slight nod toward Cassidy.

No. No. No. This can’t be happening to me. How could Laura do this to me?

Brynn’s entire body started to shake. Her throat fisted around every short breath she tried to take. She took up the same fidgeting routine her mother had been pulling since the two of them walked into the house. How was she supposed to respond to that? She couldn’t very well tell her daddy she liked girls, could she?

Licking her dry lips, Brynn looked back up at her daddy, then said, “We have a project together in school. We’re sorta friends now.”

“Sort of friends?” her father repeated.

“Yes, sir.” Brynn shrugged. “I used to think she was mean, but she’s really not.”

“I’m going to ask you one question, and I want you to be completely honest with me, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Are you a lesbian?”

Cassidy’s sudden choked coughing broke the momentary silence following the dreaded question. Her blue eyes widened and watered, causing Brynn’s mother to offer her a drink. Cassidy shook her head, mumbled that she was okay, and sank down into the couch, probably wishing it could swallow her alive.

Brynn knew her face had paled. She could feel all the life draining out of her body. That question had been coming. She knew it even before the interrogation began, and instead of sitting there wishing things could’ve been different for her, she immediately looked over at Laura and said, “Get out.” And yet as angry as she was, her voice sounded calm, frighteningly calm.

“Laura,” her mother said, “I think it would be best if you leave now.”

Sorrow filled Laura’s eyes, but Brynn didn’t care. Even as Laura hung her head and cautiously walked out of the room, Brynn didn’t care about her hurt or her pain or her sorrow. Brynn felt betrayed, and that was Laura’s fault. Her former friend had crossed a line she didn’t need to cross, and her mistake left Brynn and Cassidy paying the price.

“Daddy, I….”

Brynn swallowed hard as she stood from the chair. She began pacing a tight circle, like a caged animal with a need to break free. As she walked that short distance—back and forth, back and forth—she thought of an easy way to let her parents down, but there was no easy way to do it.

And when she finally resigned herself to that fact, she looked back up at her dad and said, “Yes, sir. I think I am.”

If anything in the world could’ve crushed her, it would’ve been the look on her parents’ faces. They looked nothing less than disappointed in her and she hated that. She’d never done anything to disappoint them—anger them, yes, but she’d never once let them down. Not until this moment.

“Get out of my house,” her father said in a quiet, even voice. He didn’t sound angry at all, but rather heartbroken.

Her mother didn’t say a word.

“Daddy,” Brynn breathed. Her legs trembled so bad she thought she might collapse right there. Tears burned beneath her eyelids, but somehow they didn’t manage to break free. Her heart beat wildly inside her chest.

She looked to her mother, who only lowered her head; looked at Cassidy, who appeared just as lost as she was; then she finally turned her stare to her father, who couldn’t seem to look her in the eyes.

“Daddy, please.”

“I can’t condone this, Brynn.”

“Condone what? The way I feel?”

“The choice you made.”

“I didn’t make this choice, Daddy!” Brynn’s voice rose to near screaming. She stabbed her finger in the air. The rims of her eyes reddened. “I can’t help the way I feel. What do you want from me?”

“I want you to get out of my house.”

Without a single uttered syllable, Brynn tore out of the front door and down the driveway. Cassidy called after her, chasing behind her, but Brynn didn’t stop. She couldn’t stop, not until she had a safe place to break down, and that place ended up being the middle of the street at the entrance to the cul-de-sac. Her knees hit the asphalt, and tears poured from her eyes.

B
Y
THE
time Cassidy caught up to Brynn, her heart had shattered into a trillion pieces. She was a tough girl. There was very little that could move her, but the sight of Brynn crying helplessly in the middle of the street did it.

She eased down beside Brynn, gently rubbing a hand in small circles across her back. “Shhh. Don’t cry, Brynnie. He just doesn’t know how to handle it. Give him some time.” A car drove by, slowing down to witness the fiasco in the middle of the usually quiet street. Cassidy shot the driver a blood-chilling glare, and the man drove off.

“Please don’t cry. It’ll be okay… I promise.” It was a whole lot to promise, but she didn’t know what else to say to calm the hysterical Brynn down. And with every loud sob that escaped Brynn, Cassidy’s heart broke a little more.

For what seemed like forever, they sat there—Brynn crying her eyes out and Cassidy making every attempt to assuage her wrecked emotions. At this point, she was about ready to heft Brynn over her shoulder and carry her the short distance to her own house. At least her mother and grandmother wouldn’t be half as judgmental as Brynn’s parents had been. As a matter of fact, that was a pretty good idea.

Softly, she said, “Do you want to come to my house?”

“Please,” Brynn somehow managed through her crying. “I don’t have anywhere else to go.”

“Come on, baby girl. Get up.”

Cassidy helped Brynn to her feet and draped one of her slender arms around her shoulders. Acting as a support bracket, she slowly made her way around the corner to her front door. Her mother and grandmother sat outside, drinking something undoubtedly alcoholic and laughing over conversation.

“Dear gods, what happened?” Her mother rose to her feet and sprinted down the paved driveway. As usual, her grandmother followed closely behind.

“Forget what happened, come inside and get washed up,” Nana said, taking Brynn’s hand and leading her into the house.

Cassidy trudged up the drive, looking down at her feet the whole way and ignoring her mother’s piercing stare. Once inside, Brynn disappeared into the kitchen, and Cassidy’s mother walked around so Cassidy had no choice but to look at her.

“Well? What happened to Brynn? Was it that Laura girl again?” Her mother looked angry as all get-out.

“Yeah, it was. It’s complicated, ’kay? Can I just go make sure Brynn’s okay before I start to explain?”

“Fine, but I want answers, and so help me gods if that evil young lady did anything to hurt either of you….”

Cassidy ignored her mother’s commentary and made a beeline for the kitchen, where she found Nana sitting across from Brynn, a handful of tissues in one hand and a glass of water in the other. Brynn was still crying, and for the hundredth time that evening, Cassidy didn’t know what to do about it.

“What happened, child? Are you hurt?” Nana softly inquired as she pushed the glass of water toward Brynn, who just shook her head.

“It was that evil girl, Laura something,” Cassidy’s mom chimed in. She closed the space between the table and herself, and Cassidy followed behind.

“Did she wreck your car too?”

“No, she wrecked her life more like it,” Cassidy said, standing beside Brynn’s chair.

“No one has the power to wreck your life. Not in high school, anyway. Do you want to talk about it?” Nana pressed. Brynn shook her head, and Cassidy took the lead.

“She told Brynn’s parents that she was a… that she’s into girls.”

Nana and Miranda exchanged glances, but they remained silent for a moment. Finally, they spoke at once. “Are you?” Cassidy’s mom asked, while Nana simply said, “So?”

Cassidy realized neither woman made the connection that she herself was tied into the implication. To clear things up—because at this point, why shouldn’t she?—she spoke up. “Yeah, she is. And so am I. I think. I mean, we think. I mean… we like each other, ya know?”

More silence. This time, the quiet dragged on for what felt like an eternity, and Brynn looked up at Cassidy, mascara-streaked eyes wide behind her pink bangs. Stares bounced around the room. No one looked directly at anyone else. It was as if no one knew exactly what to say and no one wanted to make a bad situation worse. It was the hoarse, tear-filled voice of the girl who hadn’t uttered a word since her father told her to get out who finally broke the silence. The words were very simply “I love her.”

Nana’s wise voice gently followed that statement. “Well then, that’s cause for happiness, not tears.”

“Unless Cassidy doesn’t feel the same way,” Cassidy’s mother added.

“No, I do. I totes do love her,” Cassidy admitted without hesitation, and damn if it didn’t feel good to finally say that out loud to the two women in her life who mattered as much as Brynn did. “But I don’t know how to make this okay. Her dad kicked her out of their house.”

Nana looked like someone had smacked her across the face with a religious book. To her credit, however, she simply cleared her throat and said, “That’s just ignorant.”

“Mom, not everyone has been in love with a woman before. Most people aren’t as open-minded as I am, either,” Cassidy’s mom said before turning to Brynn. “You’re more than welcome to stay here as long as you need to, Brynn… but I think it would be appropriate for you girls to maybe sleep on opposite ends of the bed.”

Nana scoffed. “Miranda, please. Do you really think that sex is on their minds after the night they’ve clearly had?”

Cassidy’s mother blinked and sat quietly, clearly attempting to figure out what the rules of engagement were for young lesbians. “They’re teenage girls. Isn’t sex always on their minds?”

Cassidy turned nine hundred shades of crimson. “Mom, we’re right here, you know.”

The banter bouncing back and forth was apparently the one thing Brynn needed to lighten her mood. Her lips curled, and the smile on her face pushed dimples into her rosy cheeks. It filled her eyes with the innocent sparkle Cassidy had grown to adore. It was the most beautiful, genuine smile Cassidy could’ve hoped for under the circumstances.

“Finally, we’ve got this poor girl to smile,” Nana said, not a little too proudly, as if she’d accomplished the feat on her own. “Why don’t you two go get washed up, and I’ll call Brynn’s parents to let them know she’s okay.”

“No!” Brynn yelled. She immediately covered her mouth and quieted her voice. “I mean, please don’t. I don’t think now is a good time.”

“Well, they are your parents, sweetie, and you know them best. Let’s leave well enough alone then and head to bed. Maybe you two can skip school tomorrow and take some time to reflect on everything that’s happened,” Miranda said, rising from the chair she’d taken earlier.

“Oh sure, because that’s all we need is for Brynn’s parents to hate us all for being liberal lesbian supporters who encourage their daughter to skip school.” Nana never faltered in providing a witty comment. It helped, though. Goodness, did it help.

Cassidy kissed both her mom and grandmother goodnight and took Brynn upstairs to her bedroom. She loaned Brynn some pajamas and gave her a fresh towel, spare toothbrush, and all the hair products she could possibly need to feel at home. Twenty minutes later, they both lay freshly showered and tucked into Cassidy’s bed.

“I meant what I said earlier,” Brynn whispered. “About loving you and stuff.”

Cassidy leaned over, pressed a tender kiss to Brynn’s forehead, and said, “I know you did. So did I. Get some rest, Brynnie. Tomorrow’s another day, yeah?”