Page 102 of Waiting for Friday Night

His sister grabbed his hand. “Quinton, don’t go there.”

He snatched his hand back. “Why not? They didn’t listen then and they’re not listening now. They just ignore issues until they become bigger. I won’t let you do that with Shania.”

His mom pointed at him. “We did listen to you. There wasn’t much we could do back then.”

He tilted his head to the side. If she was going there then he would, too. “Oh really? Is that the other side of the story you don’t want to tell me?”

His dad scowled. “What story?”

“The story Khris told me to come and ask you about,” Quinton said. He’d forgotten all about Khris’s parting shot at the luncheon with everything else that happened. He wasn’t even going to bring it up to his parents, but today with them being so clueless again, Khris’s words popped back up. Khris said they knew why he’d treated Quinton the way he had. Had they known and let him suffer? Dismissing his pain like they pushed aside his words now?

“He said to ask you the other side of the story and then I’ll be ready to talk to him. So, what is it? What was the reason you couldn’t do anything back then that was so big you can justify buying Shania a car today?”

His mom threw up her hands. “I’m not listening to this.” She turned to go into the kitchen.

“Don’t walk away from this, Mom.”

His dad didn’t follow. “Just tell the boy,” Willie said in a tired voice.

Laura spun toward her husband. “What are you talking about?”

“You might as well tell him. Khris is going to keep on pushing. Better hear it from us than him.”

Quinton frowned. The fight from earlier pushed away by the shock of his dad’s words. “Wait, he’s telling the truth?”

Dawn’s hold on his hand tightened. “Mom, Dad, what’s going on?”

“Some things are better left unsaid,” his mom said.

“It’s too late for that now,” Quinton countered. “If you know the reason why he’s been bothering me then you might as well tell me. Otherwise, do you really think he’s going to quit? He never quit back then, and he won’t quit now. So, tell me the truth.”

His parents exchanged glances. His dad looked away first. His mom’s eyes became sad, and she looked at Quinton. “Khris is your half-brother.”

When Halle got the text from Quinton asking if he could come talk with her later, she’d considered asking him to wait until the next day. She hadn’t reacted to his parents’ gift in the best way. She didn’t feel like having another debate with him about how they messed up but meant well. But she didn’t want to push him off. If they were going to co-parent and be in a relationship, then they would be best served talking out their situation rather than ignoring the issues.

He texted when he arrived and asked her to meet him outside. She was surprised, but went out after checking on Shania, who was asleep in bed. She hadn’t been interested in talking to Halle since she was still mad about having to give the car back.

Halle went outside onto the porch. Quinton was already out there; he sat on the stoop and leaned against the stair rail. His head and shoulders drooped. She’d never seen him slouching. He was always confident, his back always straight and ready to tackle whatever came his way.

She quickly sat next to him on the top step. “What’s wrong?”

He lifted his head. He didn’t look at her but stared out over her front yard, not appearing to focus on anything out there. “My dad.”

She raised her brows and waited. When he didn’t say any more, she leaned forward to try to catch his eye. “What about your dad?”

“My dad is...not my dad?” His pitch rose at the end of the sentence, making it into a question and confusing her.

“What do you mean?”

He looked at her, hurt, confusion and shock on his face. He looked lost. Lost and vulnerable. Something she’d never thought she’d see when it came to Quinton, who was always steady. Always so self-assured.

“He’s not my dad. I was talking to my parents about the car. They weren’t listening. They never listen, they just do what they want or ignore things and hope they get better. I told them that. How they didn’t listen to me about Khris bullying me. That they ignored it until it was too late, and my leg was broken and my football career nearly ended. Then I remembered something Khris said the day of the luncheon.” The words came out of him in a rush. He took a breath, scowled and spoke again in a ragged voice. “Ask your parents to tell you the truth then come talk to me. That’s what he said. I thought he was bullshitting because that’s what he always does. I didn’t think any more about it and wasn’t going to ask them anything. But today, Khris’s words came back. I asked them what’s the real story and that’s what they told me.”

“That your dad isn’t your dad?” The shock she felt mirrored his stunned expression.

He shook his head. “He’s not my father. Khris’s dad is my biological father.”

Halle gasped. She reached out and placed her hand on his arm. Tension radiated through his body. “What? How?”

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