Page 9 of Finding Molly Parsons

It had been a couple of hours at most since Faith met Carmen and Mateo, but without sounding like a cliché, it really felt like they’d known each other for a lot longer. Both Carmen and Mateo gave off older sibling vibes. And Faith could do with a bit of that in her life right now.

Straightening her dress, Faith stepped out of the bathroom. Mateo was catwalking like a pro as Carmen stood at the end of the hall taking photos. “There you are chica. Come on, it’s time to get this show on the road. I’ve laid out a couple of outfits for you to model.”

Faith’s face glowed with embarrassment. “Hey, you don’t have to do anything you’re not comfortable with,” Carmen reassured. It wasn’t that she was uncomfortable as such. How could she explain how she was feeling? Maybe overwhelmed was a better word than uncomfortable. Mateo was so full of life, his enthusiasm was infectious, but how would he react when he learned Faith really had no experience with clothes or modeling. Even letting go and just having fun was a foreign concept.

“No… I’m… I’m not uncomfortable,” Faith stuttered. Mateo walked over to the small music pod blasting out Madonna’s Vogue. After pressing pause, he tapped the couch, beckoning Faith to sit down.

“Sorry, honey, I tend to get carried away. Come on, let’s chat.”

Faith sat down, flattening out the skirt section of her dress. Carmen watched her and gave an understanding smile. Carmen knew Faith was nervous and probably struggling with all the feelings bubbling under the surface.

“I…” Faith began, “I… don’t know how to do all this.”

“What chica?” Mateo asked.

“I don’t know… this,” Faith pointed to the red carpet.

“Oh Faith, no one does. Mateo is just crazy and thinks everyone knows how to strut down a cheap ass carpet, pretending to be a model,” Carmen laughed.

Faith smiled. How did she explain the life she had led until now? “I told you my parents aren’t very nice people.” Carmen and Mateo nodded silently. “My dad is the kind of man who believes a woman’s place is to serve her husband. A daughter’s place is to remain silent and do as she’s told until married off.” Shuffling in her seat, Faith readied herself. “My father believes all women are sinners. He believes that anyone different from him and his beliefs are sinners. Homosexuals especially. So you can imagine what would happen if he found out about me.” Faith didn’t need Carmen or Mateo to answer. “From a young age I learned not to cross him. The few times I did, I was struck, usually across the face. My mother suffered worse if she stepped out of line. I was homeschooled. My father didn’t want me socializing with other children. Even the children from our church. Except one, that is. Alice. She’s my best friend, probably my only friend. My father and her father grew up together, so he tolerated my friendship with Alice. She was the one who helped me escape.”

That sliver of anxiety was making its presence known again. Screwing her eyes shut, Faith willed her body to calm down. “I could go to the library once a week for half an hour unsupervised. That’s how I learned about things outside of my very limited world.”

Carmen’s hand on her shoulder grounded Faith, allowing her to continue. “My dad planned to marry me off to one of the pastor’s sons after I turned eighteen. I already knew I was different. Even from a young age, I had no interest in boys. Foolishly, I asked my dad about homosexuals once. Let’s just say the experience was harrowing. That’s when I knew I had to leave as soon as I was old enough.

“Although I could learn some things at the library, it wasn’t much. I have no understanding of the world. Today was the first time I’d tried pizza, rode on a bus and met two other people like me. I don’t know the clothes I might like or how social media works. I’m an eighteen-year-old with no life experience.”

“That’s alright, Faith. You’ll learn.” Carmen spoke so softly it made Faith’s chest tighten. “How did you learn about your aunt?”

“By accident. The first time was when I walked in on my parents arguing and my mother let the name slip. I’ve never seen my father get so mad. He nearly beat her to death. The second time was when Alice’s parents were whispering. They didn’t know I was listening. Obviously, Alice’s father knew Molly, having grown up with my dad.”

“Couldn’t you have asked him about her?”

“No. Alice’s parents were great to me. They’re the reason I could afford my bus tickets. Mr. Carter may have grown up with my dad, but he doesn’t share his beliefs. I wonder why my father is still friends with him. Normally he shuns anyone with opposing views to his own.”

“Probably because they share a past,” Mateo remarked.

“Possibly. Anyway, Mr. and Mrs. Carter knew how my father treated me and mom, but they couldn’t really help. Not without us suffering more. They did, however, set money aside for me, like they did for Alice. On my sixteenth birthday, they tried to give it to me. I tried to refuse, but they insisted. Alice said she would keep the money in her room. There was no way I could take it home. Asking Mr. Carter about Molly would have put him in a terrible position. I couldn’t do that, not after everything they did for me.”

“They could’ve got you out of there,” Carmen shot. Faith could see anger simmering in her eyes.

“No, Hermana, they couldn’t. You know situations like that are impossible,” Mateo chided softly.

Carmen huffed, clearly not happy. Faith smiled at her. “Mateo’s right. There would have been hell to pay for them and for us if they’d tried to intervene. They gave me a way out in the end. For that I’m grateful.”

“I suppose,” Carmen mumbled.

“When I started to plan my escape, I thought about this Molly woman. Although I’d heard her name, I didn’t know who she was, or why my father hated her so much. On one of my library visits, I did some digging. I found out she was my dad’s sister. I say that in the past tense because as far as my father is concerned, Molly Parsons is dead to him. There were a couple of local news articles about her, until she was seventeen, and then it was like she vanished.”

“She ran away too?”

“No, my father cast her out. A local woman, Mrs. Baker, saw me researching Molly. Mrs. Baker has lived in Loretto all her life. I think she’s around eighty now. Anyway, she came into the library and saw me looking at the news clippings. She sat next to me. It was the first time I’d ever spoken to her. My father forbade me or my mother from talking to her. Now I know why. Mrs. Baker told me about Molly.

“According to her, my father caught Molly with a girl from church. By that time, he was nineteen and Molly was seventeen. Both their parents, my grandparents, had passed away, leaving Dad to raise Molly.”

“So he caught her and threw her out?”

“Not right away. Mrs. Baker said he tried to get her to repent. If I know my father, he would have tried to beat the gay out of her.”

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