Chapter 4

Chapter 4

                A thick memory fog clouded my head as my peepholes slightly opened to the world. A sprang of pain struck my head. I winced and recoiled to my my bed. I sighed and buried my face in my pillow.

                “Kim came by; she wanted to know why you didn't come to school today. I told her you weren't feeling well.” Wren’s voice echoed loudly in my head.

                I winced again, before propping myself on my elbows. I squinted at him leaning against my door, and cocked my head back. “Why am I in my bed? Why does my head hurt?” I reached to rub the back of my head.

                “You fainted.”

                “Why?” I groaned and flopped back into my bed. I heard a soft shuffle of the floor, a couple minutes later, the edge of my bed dipped.

                “Those things, over there, made you pass out.”

                “What things?” I asked, staring at his well shaped chin. Wren had these sharp features. Like an artist sculpted them each carefully. He was flawless. Half the time, I envied his girlfriend. But never bothered to tell Kim.

                “Happy birthday, Charity.” He said flatly.  He switched the topic pretty fast. I turned my head to the left and looking in his grey eyes, but he broke the contact.

                “Thanks, Wren.” I muttered and sat up fully in my bed. “Can you pass me the things, please?”

                “No,” Wren said plainly and got up. He folded his arms over his chest and walked out, not once glancing back at me.

I huffed out a sigh and swung my legs off my bed and strode over to my dresser. I pulled the red album off the surface, and dig my nails deep into its crimson flesh. I shuddered with anger, as I recalled last night’s events. A surge of electric anger ripped through my body. I dropped the book and stomped down the hall and into the living room.  

They killed my mother. I was adopted.

                My parents looked up from their newspapers as I walked into the room. “Happy birthday, honey!” My mother smiled. No not my mother, some strange woman that picked my off the street and claimed me as hers. “We have a big day planned for you.” She continued, not seeing my grave expression, or choosing to ignore it.

                “How could you?” I snapped. I didn’t want to beat through the bushes. I wanted to get this over with; I want to know the truth. I watched with red eyes as my parents neutral faces turned into confused ones. “Why didn’t you tell me I was adopted?”

                My father straigtened his back and exchanged a look with my mother. 

               "Why?" I demanded, glaring at both of them.

              "Charity, what are you talking about?" He asked. There was no facade of confusion on his face anymore. Fear and panic flashed in his eyes.

              "Don't start that crap with me. Why didn't you tell me you weren't my real parents?" I closed my eyes. God, I hope this was just some big mistake...that I was there daughter, and this person was just some lone. I opened my eyes slowly and stared back and forth from my mother.

               My father got up and started towards me. I backed up, but continued to shoot bullets in his chest. I stepped back further, I didn't wanted to be touched by any of them. The same tongue that sweet talked me, and softly calmed me when I was little, were the same ones that burnt me with their torching fibs. 

                "Don't touch me." I growled. "Tell me who my real parents are!"

                 Rita got up and walked over to Phil. She placed her hands on his shoulder and sighed, "We should just tell her,Phil." She insisted. Her grey eyes met mine, but I looked away.

                 "How'd you find out?"

                 "The red album, that you have in your room, told me. When you were supposed to tell me yourself!"

                 "Chairty," Phil huffed--I had no real reason to call them mom or dad anymore--"we didn't know who sent it, we went to the police, and told them."

                  "We didn't want to lose you." Rita sobbed in her hands and looked away from me.

                  "And we won't lose you 'cuz no one is taking you from us."

                  "I'd rather them take me then be here with you liars." I spat, and Rita flinched. She looked up from her hands, her agony strickened eyes widened with shock.

                    I could tell that anchored her right in the chest, just like the guilt did to me. But I shouldn't feel guilty. They should be the guilty ones. All my seventeen years of living I've been lied to, stolen from my real parents.

                    "Charity..." Rita started but I interuptted her. 

                    "Save it, my whole life was a lie. That's all I need to know to get out of this place."  I turned on my heels and grabbed my bag from underneath the staircase. I dumped out all my books, the onl memories they'll ever have of me, and rushed to the kitchen. I dumped the jar of granola bars in my bag and started for the living room again. 

                    "What are you doing?" Phil yelled scrambling to me, trying to pull out the picture out of my hand.

                    I yanked away from him and rose the picture over my head. "You don't deserve any of these!" I let go the picture and the shatter of glass thrilled my body. I grazed my hands of the table above me, knocking all the pictures of us together down. Rita gasped, and let out louder cries. Phil screamed out for me to stop, but I paid no attention to them.

                   When every picture but one shattered and walked out of the living room. I only left that one picture to toture them, for them to know how much it hurt to be lied to. I hitched my bag on my shoulder and started towards the door. 

                   "Chairty!" Wren's voice startled me. "Where are you going?"

                   "To find my real parents." I looked over my shoulder. I couldn't stay here anymore. I need to leave before Wren or someone else stops me from leaving. I rushed down the street, avoiding all the neighbors curious stares. I could hear Wren's footsteps trudging behind me.

                   "Charity think about what you are doing!" He called after me.

                  I shook my head, why did I even bother. Wren always knew when to ruins someone's plans. The sad things in that after four years, he still doesn't know me that well. I'm a very headstrong woman, I don't change my mind very easily. And I sure as Hell won't change my mind into coming back to Rita and Phil.

                 I pushed my legs harder and sprinted into a thick patch of trees. I looked over my shoulder, Wren's footsteps cut short. I smirked to myself, what a lame. 

                 After a while of running I stopped, my chest and shoulders ached. I turned around scooping my area. The flutter of birds over head, the only sound I heard. I continued to follow the stone path the city and placed a few years ago and followed it to the lake. I swung my legs over the dock and pulled my legs up to my chest.

                 I rested my head on my knees and finally let everything out. The tear feverishly ran down my face, my shoulder shook violently. Rita had always told me tears cleansed you of you sin and sorrow, but I still felt the same way nothing changed, but my hate towards them. My heart clenched in my chest, she lied to me once again. Nothing but lies come from their mouths! 

                I groaned frustratingly and wiped my stained cheeks. 

               "Are you crying?" Someone asked behind me.

               I sprinted off the floor and turned to them. "I'm not crying." I straightened up and looked at the tall blond man. He looked so firmilar. Like we met before. I bit my tongue, praying I would say nothing. I didn't want to make a fool of myself. "I'm sorry, but don't you work at the high school, in the city?" I asked. Darn! There goes my mouth again.

              "That depends is the school Whitmore High?"

               I nodded, "I had you for social studies."

              "Oh," He stretched out his oh. "You're that cute red head, named Chairty."

              "That's me." I blushed at the mention of me being "cute" no guy had ever said that to me before. 

              "Hard not to remember such a pretty face."He coaxed and eased closer to me. 

              I tensed and shuffled away a bit. Nothing good every happens in the woods. I really don't know this dude--he could be a molester for all I know.

             "So, why are you in the woods in the first place?"

             "I needed to think." I stated sitting back down by the dock. The blonde teacher followed in suit.

             "Think about what? School work? Boy issues?"

             "I just found out I was adopted, on my birthday." I sighed and dug into the soil beneath me, 

            "That must suck doesn't it?" I nodded. "Well, are you going to look for your parents?" I nodded again and stared out onto the lake. "Well then I have something to confess.,,"

             "What? You aren't really a teacher?" I snorted and covered my nose. The teacher chuckled, but shook his head. 

             "Your father has been looking for you, for three years. He had apporached Mr. and Mrs. Smalls when you were five and twelve, but the refused to give you up. So he sent me here to spy on them. Try to see if the have something we could use against them in court, but they were clean. To me you looked happy,so I told him to leave you alone. He did for a while, No he wants you back."

              I looked up at him, "You knew my father?"

              "Well, not know know him, but I know him. We weren't really friends." He cleared up. "Do you want to see him?"

               "I can, right now?"

               "Yup. C'mon." He turned on his heels and started out the woods. I grabbed my bookbag and dashed over to catch up with him.