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Chapter Twenty Six - Troubled Minds


Two weeks later.


"Are you sure?"

I turn and meet the ocean blue eyes I love so much. They're filled with worry and concern for me. Nodding, I take his hand and give it a reassuring squeeze. The mindless chatter of people in the building fades away as I focus on him instead of the boring plain walls. A small yet fleeting smile quirks my lips as I exhale steadily.

"I'll be fine Hunt. I won't let him get to me...not anymore."

He bites his bottom lip before nodding with a sigh. Tugging me closer he presses a firm yet lingering kiss to my left temple. I can literally feel the stress rolling off him in waves. He has nothing to be worried about but I guess he'll never be comfortable with me being anywhere near my father again.

We're currently sitting in the prison where my father is being held until the trial. I wanted to meet him one last time before the hearing. It's something that Hunter understands but at the same time he's afraid my father might do or say something to break us apart again.

But we know better, we're learning and working on sharing. I must admit that it feels nice to be so open about the negative parts of us. There's no fear of judgement or thinking that we might cause the other to worry or stress. In fact, it's helped us split the burden of our troubles...even if they are small.

"Zoe Miller?" A man calls out gruffly and locks eyes with me when I stand. "He's ready for you."

"I'll be here." Hunter whispers and I smile widely at him.

"I know." I reply and we grin like fools for a few seconds before I let go of his hand and follow the man.

I walk down the long hallway right to the end where we take a flight of stairs to the bottom. The walls are lined with countless locked doors and narrow sliding sections where the guards can see inside and speak. The man continues onward into another hallway and finally we arrive into a darker, colder room split in half with metal bars...my father sitting in a chair on one side.

Light green eyes identical to mine now appear dull with blonde hair that has turned greasy and sits limp atop his head. His skin is paler and the freckles across his face stand out more because of it. I hear the man who guided me here step out of the room but I know someone is watching us just in case. I remain standing in silence, not knowing where to start.

"Why are you here?" He grunts as he stares at me...but it's like he's not actually seeing me.

"Why do you hate me?" He stares hard and for a long moment we don't say anything. "I just don't understand the logic behind the extremes you went to all because I picked a career path you didn't approve of."

"I invested so much time and energy on you." He chuckles humorlessly with a shake of his head. I almost flinch when his gaze meets mine again, fiery with hate and anger. "I got you into the best school, gave you whatever you wanted, worked myself to the bone every day to provide you with a comfortable life. And you threw it back into my face by picking photography of all things!"

He's yelling now and I take a step back at the sheer volume. "I told you every single time that I had zero interest in studying law! You'd rather I be miserable for the rest of my life doing something I don't enjoy?!"

"You think I enjoy what I do Zoe?! Money makes the world go round not emotions!" He's red in the face now as he stands and makes his way closer to the bars. "I wanted to start a law firm, the best in the damn state. But I didn't have the means so I put it on the back burner temporarily. I had so many plans for us –"

"For you, not for me! That's your dream, not mine!" I seethe as I clench my fists.

"And this is why your sister, Cynthia, has always been better than you. You've always been selfish!" He snarls as he paces. "You did nothing but soil the family name, gave us nothing but embarrassment and shame!"

"Are you out of your goddamn mind?!" I finally lose it with a yell. "All this because you couldn't fulfill your own dream and instead pushed it onto your child?! If I'm a selfish person who only brought you embarrassment and shame why try to kiss my ass when I'm finally making it in the industry?!"

That shuts him up and he slows to a stop. My blood boils in my veins the longer I stare at this irrational, delusional man that is my father. Who the fuck does all this to their child? How can he be so heartless? I wonder to myself for the hundredth time ever since I was disowned.

"Now that I'm slowly becoming successful and earning money your opinion shifted. But you have always resented me for being different and not doing what you wanted me to. Yes, one child may want to follow in their parent's footsteps but that doesn't mean every child will do the same. Just because you made me doesn't mean you own me. It doesn't mean you can control me." I continue with narrowed eyes. "What right did you have to interfere in my life after treating me like shit for years? What made you think you could contact my boyfriend? How dare you threaten and kidnap him!"

"Hunter is too cocky and arrogant. He thinks he knows what's best for you –"

"Because he does! He knows you don't care about me! Hell, I could die tomorrow and you guys wouldn't bat an eyelid!" I shout as my body trembles with anger. "Did you really think I would believe your little drama on wanting to fix things between us? That you all can flip just like that? You went to all those extremes just for your plan to backfire dad! You're going to jail for being an idiot!"

"Zoe, you'll never understand –"

"Shut up!" I scream as my throat tightens with emotion. "You're not making any sense! I would've given you all my earnings had you asked when things were good between us...every little penny I had so long as I had my family! If only you understood and supported my dream I would've done the same but you ruined it!"

He opens his mouth to protest before closing it again. We stare at each other and I shake my head in disbelief and disgust. He watches me with no emotion as he stands there. I remember when he was a good man and most importantly a good father. Now, those memories do nothing but make me laugh bitterly.

"Why couldn't you just accept it for what it was? Why couldn't you continue being the best dad to me?" Tears spring to my eyes and I curse myself for not holding it in anymore. "You used to always buy me ice-cream after ballet classes and tell me how proud you are. I'd always get the best hugs after school. You'd let me stay up past my bedtime and watch cartoons with me. We'd go on trips together and take a hundred photos, most of them about you and I being goofy. You'd blast embarrassing music as you dropped me off to school with the cheekiest smile. You'd scare all the boys away and tell me that they would just hurt me in the end. But it was you dad...you've hurt me the most."

I look up at him to see his head down with his jaw clenched tightly. A traitorous tear races down his cheek before he quickly swipes it away. He says nothing and I realize that I'll never get anything from him. I always give and he always takes, that's how it has been and how it will always be. I smile sadly before sighing.

"All I wanted...I just...you were supposed to be like me." He trails off as if he doesn't know what to say anymore.

"I am like you." I murmur lowly, feeling so drained by this conversation. "I'm determined like you, passionate like you. My anger is like yours. I like the same foods you do and even the same music. But my dreams and choices are mine. They can never be exactly like yours. And you hated that. You hated me for being different. My own father turned away from me and you took my mother and sister from me too. I'm loyal unlike you and you failed to understand that I would've supported and helped you so long as I received the same gesture."

He looks at me...as if he's really seeing me for the first time. His gaze roams over my features and recognizes how similar they are to his. I wait for him to say something, anything. But I get nothing. He bites his lip and averts his eyes to the concrete floor.

It's then that I realize the conversation is over. If I continue it's going to be us repeating the same things. My father is stubborn and at times like these extremely irrational. It's always been either his way or the highway. Why should I keep knocking on a door that won't open? It's time to learn my lesson and move on.

"Well I hope hurting your child was worth it. Your reasons don't make sense. Maybe I don't fully understand, maybe I never will but...I'm tired. Of us...of being a Miller but not at the same time. Of hoping for my family to just love me while knowing that you won't." I wipe my wet cheeks with the back of my hand as I stand and turn to the door. I knock on it three times to let the guard outside know that I'm done – literally and figuratively. "Take me seriously this time. Do not contact or come near me and my boyfriend again otherwise you'll live to regret it. Bye...dad."

"Goodbye Zoe." He whispers so quietly that if the door opened a second before I certainly wouldn't have heard it.

My heart shatters and the dam breaks as I make my way upstairs, silently crying. I know this is the end. I know that I'm now free but why does it have to hurt so much? Shaking my head, I pass the numerous doors and look in to the one my mom is being kept in.

Her brown eyes meet mine and immediately fill with hatred. She looks like a mess, just like my sister in the next room. Both are so blinded and brainwashed by my father that they haven't realized that what they did is wrong. Helping my dad orchestrate everything just to hurt me and Hunter is the reason they're in here.

I walk away with a silent prayer that they get what's coming for them. Because what's the point of talking to them when the result will be the same? Why waste my time any longer than I have already? A pinch of sadness tugs at my heart as I leave my family behind once and for all.

Hunter's eyes become tender when he sees my weary state and he opens his arms for me to walk into for a hug. His embrace makes me feel safe, comforted and so loved – everything I've ever wanted. I guess I was looking in the wrong places before I met him because he's all I need.

"It was pointless. Confusing. I got nothing...like always." I whisper with a broken, soft sob.

"Let's go home." He whispers with a gentle kiss to my lips and a stroke of my hair. "We'll get your favorite takeout on the way back, put a movie on and fall asleep on the couch. Classic Zoe and Hunter style."

I smile up at him as he rambles on about a movie we've been wanting to watch together. His ocean blue eyes light up and the sun's rays makes them even brighter when we step outside. His cheeky grin makes my heart skip a beat as he makes a joke about an actor before laughing heartily. I appreciate him not pushing me to talk about what happened back there because I'm too mentally exhausted to explain.

His eyes meet mine again and he stops after realizing that I'm not really listening, more like admiring. Smiling softly, he wraps me up in the tightest hug before pressing his lips to my forehead in a firm yet lingering kiss. No words need to be said as we stand there in silence.

He's all I need.




Meh...not quite happy with this chapter. I wanted to convey that Zoe's father is not logical or reasonable. That once he's set on his own agenda he doesn't listen to voices of reason...nor does he explain his reasoning well. It's been years of festering hate and resentment inside of him that whatever he says now is a jumbled mess. And as a result that makes the entire conversation confusing for other people who know that he's wrong. Don't think I depicted that as well as I could have to be honest.



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