Page 34 of Return to Us
There’s no getting out of this without looking like an asshole. “Yeah, you’re right. It’ll be great.”
Or a complete fucking nightmare.
Chapter 8
Jessica
“You ready for this?” Winnie asks as we pull up to the Park Inn for my first day.
“I am.”
“You took your meds?”
I nod. “Yes, Mom.”
“Please, you mothered me my entire life, it’s nice to be in the other seat for a change.”
I had no choice but to mother her because ours was working. “Did Mom say anything about this?”
Winnie shrugs. “Who cares what she says?”
Resting my head back, I groan. I knew she would have issues with it. The Parkersons have always been nice to her, but it’s been hard. My mother was once friends with Eveline Parkerson. They were on the PTA together and both helped with charity events, but then my father left, changing our entire financial situation. We were no longer doing . . . well . . . we were poor. Buying new things was no longer something they discussed, and my mom didn’t have time for lunches or charity. She had to work, feed her kids, and Eveline didn’t associate with “our kind.”
“Considering I live with her—I do.”
“You could always come stay with me.”
Yeah, that’s not happening. “The money I’m giving Mom will help her. She wouldn’t take it if I wasn’t living there.”
“Okay, I could use your money too,” Winnie jokes.
“You’re doing just fine.”
Winnie got a full ride to the University of North Carolina. She came out of college with a job and has worked her ass off for everything she has. I’m incredibly proud of the work she does as a director at the youth club because she’s helping these kids in a real way by making sure they have the resources to rise up.
“I’m proud of you, Jess. I just want to say that before you go in there.”
“Proud of what?”
“You’re getting out of the house again. You’re working and going to therapy. Those are all good things because, when you first got here, you sort of closed yourself off. I’m proud of you for taking the steps to live again.”
I grab her hand, squeezing gently. “It’s scary.”
“I’m sure it is, but you’re doing it.”
“Thanks for driving me.”
She smiles. “Thanks for driving me a million times when we were kids. If it weren’t for you, Jess, I wouldn’t have been able to get where I am.”
My sister was an all-state softball player. She was amazingly talented, and it’s what got her the scholarship, along with her straight A’s.
“All right. I guess I should go in.”
I exit the car, my legs feeling a little jellylike, but I stand tall. I spoke with Dr. Warvel last night, and we went over some steps to take if I feel a headache coming on. I have my medication and a plan—it’s all that I can control.
When I push through the doors, Stella is there, talking to someone. She spots me and rushes over. “Jessica! You look amazing. Love your outfit.”
I smooth down my pencil skirt and smile. “Thank you. I’m excited to be here and get started.”
