Page 63 of Be My Summer

“She’s your mother.”

“She is not my mother and she is not the stepmother I’ve grown up knowing. She’s a liar, Summer. A fraud. A fake. Everything is a fucking lie. And, she has run the fuck out with me. Hurting you hurt me. She doesn’t get to stick around after hurting me or you. I won’t tolerate it.”

“You can’t just kick her out of your life.”

“I already have.”

“Saul–”

“My father has filed for divorce.”

I sat up straight, all ears.

“Seriously?”

“Her entire image was a lie, Summer. She’s conniving. The woman my father married would never leave her child. And, she would never not grant her child access to her in the future. She would not remarry and play mother to children knowing she had one in the world wanting to be held like she held us.

“Loved like she loved us. Raised like she raised us. Some things you can’t explain or lie your way out of, Summer. Abandoning a child is one of those. We’re all disappointed in her. My brother has wanted a sister his entire life. Wanted her to try once more for a girl. She refused. It makes perfect sense. He already had a fucking sister. Named Summer. My Summer.”

He paused.

“But what if you hadn’t been MY Summer. What if you would’ve become his Summer? You feel me? What Angela did is– it’s– Summer, understand that we’re all in your corner. All of us. This could’ve been much uglier than it is. Thankfully it isn’t, but that possibility still exists and it disgusts me. She’s dead fucking wrong.”

I nodded, agreeing.

“Joshua–”

Saul looked up at me and exhaled.

“Whenever you’re ready, he wants to meet you.”

“He resembles me.”

Saul lifted his head and then allowed it to fall.

“He does. Do you want to meet him?”

“One day.”

“Fair enough.”

“Did I ruin your father’s dinner?”

“You opened my father’s eyes. He can have twenty more dinners. That doesn’t matter, baby. How are you?”

I shook my head.

“Not good, baby.”

“I feel it.”

“My father is gone,” I wept. “Like, never coming back.”

“Your father died a happy man. You made him so proud, Summer.”

“I know.”

The tears began to flow like a river. Saul stood from the chair he was sitting in.