Chapter 1: Ashleigh
NOTE: This story takes place six months after The Fallout
Winter Break of Senior Year
The captain’s voice crackles over the intercom announcing our descent. “We will be landing at our destination shortly. Please ensure your seat belts are securely fastened and trays stowed. Thank you for flying with Qatar Airways. Flight attendants, please prepare for arrival.”
I shift in my single suite seat, feeling the excitement building as we prepare for landing. My ears pop as I feel the subtle change in altitude. I glance around to the man across from me. His expression is a mix of exhaustion and relief. I look out the window, the city of Atlanta grows larger and more defined and soon I’m able to spot familiar landmarks.
The flight attendant glides down the aisle, checking to make sure everyone is in compliance with pre-landing procedures. I grip the armrest, my heart beating faster as the plane descends further.
The wheels of the plane hum as they extend, signaling the final approach. I steal another glance out of the window and the ground crawls closer. With a gentle thud, the Boeing 777 touches the runway. We’ve spent twenty-one hours on this flight from Thailand, so people clap as the wheels of our airplane finally touch down on US soil.
I disembark from the plane and a surge of anticipation courses through me. I follow the stream of passengers navigating through the bustling corridors, each step bringing me closer to my arrival gate.
“ASH!”
I hear my name being called out. As I come down the escalator, I spot my mother holding a hot pink poster board with ‘Welcome Home’ written in glitter. Grandma Walker stands to Mom’s left holding three balloons and Aiden is standing to her right. I excitedly wave as I anxiously come down. The stairs flatten out and I roll my suitcase off the escalator and over to my family.
“Mom!” I go to hug my mother, she puts the sign down and I immediately notice how hugely pregnant she is. When I left a few months ago she was just starting to show and now she looks as if she’s about to pop. Being away made it easier not to acknowledge how much the family dynamic has changed but now with my mother standing before me, my heart sinks and I feel my resentment for my mother start to build again.
“Ladybug, I missed you so much,” she hugs me tight and kisses my forehead, but I pull away.
“I missed you too,” I tell her begrudgingly then hug my grandmother, “Grandma!”
“Hey Baby,” she brings me in close for a hug and kiss. “Look at you,” she runs her hands through my new short-cut hair. “It looks good on you.”
“Thanks, Grandma.”
Taking care of thick waist-length hair while living on a cruise ship proved to be challenging so after the first two weeks, I decided to cut it short and keep it in a ponytail for easier maintenance.
I turn my attention to my brother. I haven’t laid eyes on Aiden in five months since he left for college about three weeks before I left for my semester at sea. He’s wearing an orange Miami Football hoodie, dark green basketball shorts and Crocs. He’s gotten slightly taller and has put on more muscle for sure.
“Sup Dorkus?” Aiden brings me in for a hug, “It’s good to see you.”
I surprisingly melt into my big brother’s embrace, “Hey yourself Butthead.”
The last few weeks Aiden and I spent together were tough, we were at each other’s throats more than normal. During our parents’ divorce, he sided with Mom and her new boyfriend, Vivek, and I stood firmly with Daddy. I know Daddy wasn’t always the best husband, but I don’t think that was an excuse for Mom to cheat.
I miss the relationship Aiden and I once had. He was my best friend and I hope to get that back now that he has graduated, and I’ll soon be leaving for college. Mom has been a great mother and for that reason, I have tried to put my feelings aside over the last few months and haven’t cut her off, but standing here looking at her pregnant belly, I can tell that will be a challenge.
We pull into the driveway of my father’s home. It’s a large traditional red brick colonial style. Our house is three stories, and though I never asked, if I had to guess I’d say it was close to 5000 square feet which is typical for our upper-middle-class neighborhood. The front lawn is well-manicured, and the backyard backs up to the Westbrook Country Club golf course, the place where my father spends the majority of his Sundays.
I step out the car and notice we have new neighbors across the street. A tall boy is dribbling a basketball in the driveway. He glances at me for a moment, then bounces the ball a few more times before taking a shot.
“I should have dinner ready at 6:30, I’m making your favorite,” Mom says.
I open the door to step out of the car, “Oh, well I figured I’d have dinner with Daddy tonight.”
“Oh ok,” she replies sadly, “Well, you’ll come tomorrow night?”
“Well, uh,” I hesitate. “We’ll see. I kind of want to relax for the next few days. I’m pretty jetlagged.”
Disappointment fills her face, “Ok, well you’re free to just come over and hangout. I’m on maternity leave now so I’m free all day.”
“Ok, I’ll keep that in mind.” I tuck my five-pound Yorkie into my arm and step out of the car, “Thanks for taking care of Callie.”
“Of course, Sweetie,” she pops the trunk, “Aiden, help your sister with her luggage.”
I give Mom and Grandma a wave, grab Callie’s crate then walk up to the garage to enter the code.
“Dang Ash, you ain’t have to do Ma dirty,” Aiden admonishes.
“What are you talking about?”
“She wants to spend time with you, she hasn’t seen you in four months,” he scolds.
“Well, I don’t want to go to her house and have to spend time with her boyfriend.”
The garage door slowly opens.
“Vivek isn’t the bad guy,”
“The hell he isn’t. He broke up our family,” I rebuttal.
“Our sperm donor broke up the family long before Vivek came into the picture.”
I let out a frustrated huff. I resent him calling Daddy that. He acts like Daddy knocked Mom up and left her to fend for herself. Our father has always been around and gave us a great life, a life that most people can only dream of. He let us choose any car we wanted for our sixteenth birthday. We have credit cards with no limits. He sent us to the top private school in the area. And we live in a gorgeous neighborhood with a country club that has every amenity that you can think of. That is not the definition of a deadbeat dad.
Aiden sits my suitcase inside the house. “You really can’t see that Ma was going to leave? She had already put Dad out of the house.”
“Well, I guess we’ll never know now, will we.”
Aiden’s brows peak, “Where’s my Jeep?” he questions, “Did he sell it?”
Daddy’s Maserati, his golf cart, and my Polestar 2 are the only vehicles parked in the three-car garage.
“No, he put it in storage a few days after you left for Miami.”
“Oh,” he gives a satisfied nod.
“All you have to do is ask for the keys and he’ll give it back.”
“Not going to happen. I’ll get my own car,” he insists.
“Suit yourself,” I shrug.
“Anyway, I understand you don’t like V, but at least spend time with Ma. Tell her you want to go out to lunch or something. She has always supported us no matter what bullshit we put her through, so don’t leave her hanging.”
"I’ve never put her through any bullshit, unlike you constantly breaking house rules, and let’s not forget how you got in trouble with the police. I’ve always been the good one,” I state. “So, I don’t owe anybody anything.”
“Aiight. Whateva.” With that Aiden trots back out to the car and I close the garage door behind him.
The house is quiet as I walk through it and looks rather messy. It’s just over a week before Christmas, yet the house hasn’t been decorated. Normally Mom would have this place looking like a winter wonderland by the first weekend in December. Multiple Christmas trees, garland, lights, signs. She’d have her Christmas Village on display in the study, complete with the smoking Santa Express train running around the town. And of course, you can’t forget her favorite nutcracker collection as the focal point of the formal dining room.
I stand at the bottom of the spiral staircase. Damn, I should have asked Aiden to bring my stuff up for me. I drag my suitcase up the stairs to my room. It’s going to feel so good to sleep in my own bed tonight. I open my door to find a dozen peach Ranunculus sitting on my desk. I open the card:
Welcome Home Princess
Love, Dad
I take my phone out of my back pocket to text my father.
Ashleigh: Hey Daddy, I’m home. Thank you for the flowers, they’re beautiful.
Daddy: Hey Princess, glad you got in safely. I should be home around 7.
Ashleigh: OK, I’ll order takeout. See you when you get home.
I’m exhausted and I plop face down on my bed, my feet hanging off the edge. Callie runs up the doggie stairs at the foot of my bed and cuddles into my side. I just need to relax for a few minutes before I start to unpack.
