“It’s not nothing. Tell me.”
“I need to leave, Dad,” I whispered. “I’m moving away. It’s time.”
He didn’t respond right away. Something in his coffee cup seemed to mesmerize him. Finally his voice cracked, and he said, “I don’t think I can do this without you.”
“You can and you will.”
He shook his head. “This last month was really tough while you were gone. They walked all over me.”
“But you all survived. The triplets are older and more self-sufficient now. They can drive and cook and do their own homework. You just need to be firm with them.”
There was a long silence, and then my father sighed and asked morosely, “When are you leaving?”
“Not until after the final taping in December. Probably January or February.”
“Where will you go?”
“South.”
Neither of us spoke after that. I saw tears in my father’s eyes. He’d relied on me for far too long. It was time he stepped up to the plate. He was their father. And despite spending the last sixteen years playing their mom, I wasn’t. I was young and had dreams of my own. For the first time in my life, I wasn’t afraid to follow them.
33
Kyle: Self Discovery
Isteppedoff the plane at LAX, relief taking hold of my tired body. Although my experience on the island overall had been incredible, the last days had put a sour taste in my mouth. I just couldn’t shake the anger and disappointment over what Kenzie had done. Just looking at her on the plane upset me. It almost felt like she’d cheated on me, and trusting her again seemed impossible. For that reason I’d decided to just end our friendship. Obviously it hadn’t meant anything to her in the first place.
My mom and Grace met me at the airport in baggage claim.
“You’re so tan,” my sister fussed. “And skinny. You look like you’ve been drifting in the ocean in a rowboat for a month.”
“Wow, thank you.”
“That means you got far,” mom said, her eyes twinkling as she winked at me.
“Maybe, maybe not,” I grinned as I hugged my welcoming committee.
“And you know it’s going to drive me absolutely insane not knowing.”
“Oh, I know. That’ll be half the fun.”
“How long are you planning on staying?”
“I don’t know. Originally I was going to fly back to Europe as soon as I got home, but it appears Jake has not been as lonely as I thought he would be.” I arched my eyebrows knowingly.
“No, you got that right,” mom agreed.
“He’s in love,” Grace said, making kissy-faces.
“How do you know that?”
“I asked, and he told me.” She shrugged, like it was no big deal. “I’ve got a direct line, you know.”
“Oh, right. I forgot. The two of you are like this,” I said entwining my fingers.
“We are,” she shot back defensively. “Jake even Snapchats me sometimes, so there.”
I held my hands up, conceding defeat. It was no secret Grace adored Jake, and all he had to do was throw her a bone once in a while in the form of a text, Snapchat, or a gift, and that was enough to secure his place in her heart. She was always a little starry-eyed around him, probably because he hadn’t lived at home since she was eight, and Grace knew him more as a rock star than as a brother. I’d heard her with her friends acting like the supreme authority on all things Jake when, in reality, she didn’t know the first thing about him. In fact, I found her expertise rather ironic, given their rocky past. There had been a time when the two of them couldn’t be in the same room together without her throwing a screaming fit.
