Page 77 of Right Place, Right Time (Second Chances)
“I’m not asking for your approval,” I tell them both firmly. “I’m doing this.”
My mother stops walking and turns to look at me. To the people of the court, her cold eyes, the sharp lines of her face, and her beige power suit may be intimidating…but me? I’m just over it. I’m over it all.
“Well, if you think we’re paying for you to just throw away your future, you’ve got another thing coming.”
“That’s right,” my father agrees with her.
“I don’t expect that at all. I’ve saved quite a bit working the past few years in California. I have enough to get myself settled in a new place. I’ll take out loans for college,” I say, shrugging my shoulders.
My father laughs as if this is all just a joke, as if my plans for my future are funny. Pretty soon my mother is joining him.
“You’ll never last a day in the real world,” my mother says. “You’ll come crawling back in no time, Katherine. Mark my words. You have no idea what it’s like to have real expenses. Everything has always been handed to you. You’ll miss the luxuries, and you’ll be back, just begging to return to Stanford. The pennies you saved from your ‘job’ won’t get you far,” she says, using air quotes around the wordjob.
“I have more than $50,000 saved from my ‘job.’” I tell her.
They both sober up and, suddenly, my situation isn’t so funny anymore.
“This has to do with thatcriminal, doesn’t it?” my mother asks scathingly, and it takes everything I have to keep my cool. I hate that she feels the need to bring Jay into this and that she calls him a criminal. She doesn’t know a thing about him.
“This has nothing to do withJay. It has to do with me and what I want to do with the rest of my life. It’s about my passion.”
“You’re making a mistake,” my father says.
“Maybe I am. But it’s my mistake to make.” I shake my head. I’m not really sure why I came here this morning. I guess it was a last ditch effort to see if they cared about me beyond appearances. It’s obvious they don’t. “That’s all I came to say. I’ll be out of the apartment in California before the end of the month.” I give them each one last look, wondering if they’ll say anything…anything at all. I’m met with silence, so I turn and walk out of the room.
I hear the click of my mother’s heels as she follows behind me. “And just where do you think you’ll go?”
“Don’t worry about me,” I call over my shoulder. “I’ll be just fine.” Like I’ll tell her where I’m going so she can have some goon watch me like she obviously did in California. No way.
“Katherine, don’t you walk away from me when I’m speaking to you.”
I stop and turn to face her. “What? What else do you have to say? Do you want to continue to demean my choices? You want to talk badly about the man I’m in love with? Because, yes, I’m in love with him,” I tell her shocked face. “I’m finished, Mother. I’ve tried to talk to you and help you to understandme, but you won’t listen. Now I’m leaving.”
“If you walk out that door, don’t bother coming back.”
I feel the threat of tears behind my eyes at her declaration. I always knew what my parents were like, and I’d honestly expected this reaction…this possibility, but it still hurts that the only family I have would rather disown me than accept that I want something different for my life than what they want for me.
“Goodbye, Mother.”
I leave my mother staring wide-eyed at my retreating form as I head for the front door. I don’t hear her footsteps following, nor those of my father. When I reach the front door, Cedric is there to open it for me.
“Good luck, Bambi,” he says quietly, and I tear up at the endearment I haven’t heard since before I left for college.
Breaking all the “house rules,” I lean in and give Cedric a hug, wrapping my arms tightly around his slender frame. He’s shocked at the affection, but only for a moment before he places his arms around me. After a tender moment, I release him and step back.
“Where I’m going, Cedric, I don’t need luck. But thank you, Cedric. Thank you for everything.” He winks at me, and I smile. I’ll miss him.
I step out into the humid, summer air and take a deep, cleansing breath.
Today is the first day of the rest of my life.
