Page 14 of Echoes of Us

“See ya, nerd. “

I walk inside and it is eerily quiet. I step into the foyer, looking to my left into the dining room. Mr. Briggs, Mrs. Briggs, and Emmaline are sitting at the table in silence. Both parents look at me, motioning for me to sit next to her. She has her head down staring at the table, refusing to acknowledge my presence. I take a seat next to her and look between both Mr. and Mrs. Briggs, waiting for them to start the interrogation.

Very calmly, Mr. Briggs starts, “I’m not sure what you think this arrangement is and maybe that is our fault for not setting rules or expectations in place when you arrived yesterday.” He looks to Emmaline and back to me. “When we go somewhere as a family, we stay there and leave as a family. You go nowhere without asking Eve or myself first. You do not make your own rules, you live by ours in this house. Is that understood?”

I nod.

“Even though these expectations were not discussed, I believe you are old enough to have known that what you were doing was wrong, therefore you are grounded this week. You go nowhere but home and school, unless we take you. Is this also understood?”

I nod again.

He turns to her, “Emmaline, you do know the rules and even though you did not technically break them, you knew she left and did not inform us immediately. You waiting until an hour after she left is unacceptable. You are grounded for the week, also.”

Her head shoots up from staring at the table, “I am what?!?! You are actually kidding me! This delinquent does something wrong, and I am punished because I didn’t stop her or tell you? That is total bullshit!”

“Enough, Emmaline!” He slams his hands on the table, startling us and Mrs. Briggs. “This conversation is over. Upstairs. Both of you,” he shouts, pointing toward the stairs.

Emmaline shoves her chair back and runs upstairs. I slowly stand without so much as a look toward them and walk upstairs. As I close the door to my room, I pull out my phone to text Sean.

TEAGAN 1:03 PM

Pick me up at 11 tonight.

SEAN 1:05 PM

lol sneakin out? Baaadd girl :P See u then!

I throw my phone on the bed and fall forward. Rolling onto my back, I stare at the ceiling and laugh to myself.

It’s funny they think I care about their rules.

Chapter 14

Emmaline

I hate my parents. I hate this arrangement. And I especially hate that girl. I text Devan to let him know I am grounded for the week since we had plans to see a movie tomorrow night after football practice.

EM 1:06 PM

My dad grounded me for the week because that bitch left church. I told you I would get shit for it…

DEV <3 1:08 PM

I told u to go tell them. If u ever listened to me u would be ok. Sooo no movie?

EM 1:09 PM

No, Devan…no movie.

I toss my phone off to the side and lay back on my bed. I miss the days when Devan was super sweet. Our relationship was perfect up until this summer. I swear that football showcase with college scouts went straight to his head. He received about four verbal offers, and they just keep coming. Things are gradually getting worse as the football team goes undefeated. I feel like everything with him is quid pro quo. Like, if I want his emotional attention, I have to give him something physical in return. Whatever. That is not my priority right now.

I transition my thoughts, replaying the conversation downstairs. It is so unfair for my parents to hold me to the same standard as that girl. I have never given them a reason not to trust me but in the first twenty-four hours of her arrival, they start to question my judgement. Do they expect me to babysit someone my age? It is total bullshit.

There is a knock at my door and Mom’s head pokes in. “Honey, before you take my head off, I am not here to discuss what happened. I just need an old uniform of yours for Teagan tomorrow. I plan to take her tomorrow after school to buy her’s.”

“She won’t fit in mine. She is like, three inches shorter than me,” I snap.

“Which is why I said one of your older ones. Honestly, Emmaline, can you stop this attitude and just try to get to know her? She is staying whether you like it or not,” Mom says exasperatedly. “This really means a lot to your father. He grew up with her mom. They were best friends all throughout elementary and middle school. They lived next door to each other and were inseparable as kids. Her mom… got in with the wrong crowd in high school and they lost touch when she dropped out. He really wants to give Teagan a chance to live the life her mother deserved and would want for her daughter.”

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