Every Little Piece - By Kate Ashton Page 0,4

over when I’m done.” I nodded toward the living room.

“Sure thing, man. Catch you there.”

They left in Jamie’s car. I headed back to talk with my parents. In the dining room, I breathed in the familiar apple-scented candle Mom always burned. I noticed the small things first. The way Mom played with the fringes of the antique lace tablecloth, the way Dad’s fingers tapped on the top of the oak chairs, the haphazard pile of papers scattered across the table. Mom was a neat freak and never left random piles of paper unattended to.

Then I saw their faces. A sick feeling spiraled in my gut. Dad’s face was pale and he kept smoothing his eyebrows. Nervous body language 101. Mom avoided my gaze, alternating between tugging at her short brown hair and playing with that damn fringe. All I could think was that she was trying to hide from me.

“Seth, why don’t you take a seat.” Dad’s blue eyes were a reflection of mine. Mom always told me I’d steal some girl’s heart just like Dad had hers. But tonight his eyes were glassy, missing that luster of life they always held.

My heart rate skyrocketed. I wished they’d just spit it out. I pulled out the chair and it scraped against the wood floor. Mom didn’t even shudder at the noise, or reprimand me, so something must be terribly wrong. Maybe my grandparents couldn’t make it in for graduation tomorrow. Or maybe the small party for family tomorrow night had to be cancelled.

“Can this wait until tomorrow? I’m kinda busy,” I asked, anxious to be away from this strange tension. My family wasn’t perfect. We rarely spent time together, and Dad drank a little too often. It wasn’t like he was a raging drunk who hauled off and beat his family, but tonight wasn’t the time for family bonding.

Mom lifted her head. Dark circles shadowed her eyes. The smudged eyeliner created a dramatic effect. I stopped asking if this could wait ’till tomorrow. And I waited. I was breathing faster and trying to act like I wasn’t bothered by their appearance.

Dad sighed. “I guess there’s no beating around the bush. Your mom and I have been having problems for a while.”

He continued talking but I blocked him out. This couldn’t be happening. Was he talking divorce? How many times had I joked about the number of parents who divorced the day after their kids graduated? I didn’t even get to wait until the day after. I focused again.

Mom spoke for the first time and she sounded tired. “This might not be permanent. We’re not getting a divorce right now.”

A part of me relaxed. Okay, my life didn’t just become a statistic.

Dad nodded. “Right. But I’ll be moving out tonight. I’ll be at your graduation and your party. Your mom and I just need a break.”

I stiffened. What did they want from me? My condolences? My sympathy? “Is that all? I gotta go.”

Mom pressed her lips together like she wanted to say something but didn’t.

“If you have any questions or need to talk about it, we’re here.” The crease in Dad’s forehead appeared. Something that was usually only reserved for stress over work.

I drummed the table then stood up. “I pretty much got it.” I thumbed toward the door. “But you know, it’s the night before graduation and all. Gotta live it up.” My sarcasm stung the air. I didn’t want to hurt Mom but I hadn’t been prepared for this.

“Okay, we’ll talk tomorrow,” Dad said.

I headed toward the door. “Yeah, tomorrow.”

The breeze stung my face. The mini-van blurred in front of me, and I stormed toward it. I slammed the door closed, letting the silence drown out the echo of my parents’ voices. Why tonight? My first instinct was to call Haley and tell her what happened, but she was with the girls and I didn’t want to interrupt. I hit my fist against the dashboard.

For some reason I didn’t want to tell anyone. I didn’t want any pity or sympathetic stares. I’d keep this to myself. Even though my family was falling apart and everything that was solid was now sinking mud, I didn’t need to burden others. Maybe after graduation I’d tell Haley. She’d eventually figure it out when she came over and my dad wasn’t home. I didn’t want to lie about it.

I just wanted to pretend for this one night that nothing was wrong.

Brin and Kama gossiped on my bed. I couldn’t imagine life without them—the