Page 65 of Dance for Me

Home Sweet Home

Vanessa stood there on the front steps to her childhood home. She wished that she could recall the great memories growing up like most kids had. The family vacations, the mother daughter bonding, the talks with dad about what boy is worthy of her love. Nada, Vanessa didn’t have any of that. However, she did grow up with a roof over her head, her parents made sure she had everything she needed, and they put her through school. She couldn’t resent them that bad.

Being back in Ohio felt like a step down, not because she thought she was too good, but because she left this life for a reason. She wanted so badly to succeed and somehow right now, she felt like a failure. Pathetic, she knew that, feeling like a failure over a guy.

“Here goes nothing.” Vanessa knocked on her parent’s door, the two story house with the overpriced siding. Everything looked the same from the outside as she remembered. She was here a couple Christmas’s ago but that had been the last time she visited. Every visit ended in an argument, so Vanessa stopped coming.

She was taken back by the woman standing there. Her mother was always beautiful, and she grew up wanting to look like her, be her. But today, looking at the woman standing before her, was a woman who was tired and sad.

“Vanessa?” Her mom was just as surprised as she was standing here.

“Hi Mom.”

She could see tears forming in her mother’s eyes and she had to admit, that shocked the shit out of her.

“Oh, my goodness. I-I’m so happy to see you!” She accepted the hug her mom gave her, and she gestured Vanessa inside. “I just can’t believe you’re here. We haven’t seen you in so long. I would have guessed you’d have called first or actually… no, you probably wouldn’t have because you never call.”

And there it was, jab number one.

“Is Dad home?”

“Yes, I’ll go get him. Sit in the living room, Vanessa, and I’ll put on some coffee.”

Vanessa made her way to the living room. The décor had changed a bit, she figured her mom must have gotten bored with the old stuff. Looking around there were no pictures, no family photos of her growing up. Sad really.

“Vanessa…” She turned at the sound of her dad’s voice.

“Hi Daddy.” She didn’t know why, but Daddy just slipped out. She only ever called him that like twice growing up but today it seemed to fit. She started to feel the burning in her eyes, and she approached her father with a hug. He wrapped his fatherly arms around her and kissed the top of her head.

“We missed you, kiddo,” her heart ached. Which was near to impossible because she didn’t have much left to break.

“Missed you, too.” Did she? She never thought she would say that, but she did. A part of her did miss them, even with their overbearing and controlling ways.

Vanessa, her dad, and mom all sat down in the living room while the coffee sat on the coffee table in front of them.

“So…” Her mom began to say. It’s like her dad could read her mother’s mind because he set a gentle hand on her mom’s leg and her dad took over.

“So how is the city life going?”

“It’s good.” Vanessa thought maybe if they came to visit her, they would know. They never visited her except when she first moved there. “I found a new job.”

Her mom’s face lit up and she reached for her cup. “Oh Vanessa, that’s great! Where at? Did your old place take you back?” She found it funny that her mom thought it was great, she wanted her to admit that she wanted her to fail so she could come back home and go back to school to become a doctor.

“Actually, I got a job at a strip club.”

Her mom practically spit out her coffee. She was choking, coughing, Vanessa wasn’t sure which one. “Y-You… you what?”

Vanessa looked over at her father and his face became pale. She was smiling inside because the look on their faces was priceless. Her father still didn’t say anything.

“Yup.” Okay, she should probably tell them that they don’t have to worry about their little girl taking off her clothes in front of random people. “But it’s not what you guys are thinking. I design the clothes for them.”

She watched her mother relax a little. “I-I just don’t understand Vanessa, were there not any other jobs? You had to pick a strip club? That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. Don’t you think that’s absolutely disgusting? Our daughter should not be working at a strip club with…”

“Enough!” Her mother, including Vanessa jumped in their seats. Her father’s chest was heaving in and out and his fists were clenched at his sides. “Don’t you think you should shut your mouth for once, Helen? We finally have our daughter here after years and you’re going to drive her away again.”

Vanessa couldn’t close her mouth. She was sure that hell just froze over.

Her dad looked at her as her mother sat there without another word. “Now, as much as we don’t want to hear that our daughter is working at such a place, I, we are happy for you.” Vanessa’s mom shot him a look of disbelief and Vanessa was right there with her.

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