nothing had changed in this room since he lived in it. Trophies and a few books filled the shelves. Framed photos of him in little league uniforms stood on one shelf. A guitar sat in its case against the wall, collecting dust. An odd but stunning abstract painting, probably painted by my dad, hung on one wall. Posters of old rock bands were hung on another. On his desk a large framed photograph stood alone. It was a picture of my dad holding me when I was a baby. It was the first photo I’ve ever seen of my dad and I and I couldn’t stop staring at it. Mom didn’t have any of the two of us together at home. I never knew that any existed. I picked it up and held it close to me, scrutinizing it, bit by bit, piece by piece. I studied his face. I saw the resemblance; his reddish hair, his green eyes. He couldn’t have been older than 21 or 22 in the picture, but he appeared older, his eyes tired, dark circles shadowing underneath. A few wrinkles creased around them. His smile was broad and genuine. He held me in his arms, his eyes on me. I looked at my face, innocent and full of wonder, young and impressionable, safe in my dad’s arms.
I heard the door open downstairs. His footsteps were loud and heavy; his voice even louder and very husky. My grandfather spoke a decibel above most people. He had a strong southern accent, more pronounced than my grandmother’s. They talked, but I only captured a glimpse of the conversation.
“Why do you think she’s here now Lilly?”
“Because she just found out about us. You know Hillary didn’t want her to have anything to do with us,” she whispered loudly. She added, “She’s real smart Charlie. She was top in her class. She’s very inquisitive and asked a lot of questions about Pete.”
“What’d you tell her?” he asked.
“That the day she was born was the happiest day in his life,” she replied.
He took a deep breath. “I still don’t understand why she’s here now. Is she in some type of trouble? Does she want money?” he asked.
I rolled my eyes at his remark. I couldn’t believe he would even think these things about me.
“No, Charlie. You’re being ridiculous. Wait till you meet her. She reminds me a lot of you,” she said.
“Humph,” my grandfather responded skeptically. “We’ll just wait and see about that.”
Chapter 4
I woke up early the next morning. The sun’s bright rays shined through the window earlier than I was used to. From the sounds of things, my grandparents had been up for a while. Dishes clanked. I heard them moving around downstairs. The floors creaked. My grandfather’s thunderous footsteps made the house feel like it was shaking. Their voices carried upstairs, allowing me to hear what they were saying. They were discussing me again.
“Do you think we should wake her?” he asked.
“Let her rest. She rode on a bus all the way from Tampa, Charlie. She’s exhausted,” Nana said.
“Well she can’t sleep all day either,” he grumbled.
I slowly got out of bed and put on a t-shirt and shorts, timidly walking downstairs toward the kitchen. Nervously, I walked in the kitchen, apprehensive about my grandfather’s reception of me. He intimidated me and I hadn’t even met him yet. He sat at the breakfast table, drinking coffee. He was enormous, definitely over six feet tall. His hair was full and stark white. His face was clean shaven but covered with wrinkles. Unlike Nana, he looked his age. He had green eyes like mine and the same small rounded nose.
“Good morning,” I said almost tip toeing precariously. I grabbed a cup off of the mug rack and poured myself a cup of coffee. The kitchen smelled good. Instantly, my mouth watered.
“Good morning, Finley,” he said. He continued to drink his coffee and eyed me skeptically. I felt his stare.
“Good morning, Grandfather.” It felt strange and too formal. I didn’t know if I should extend my hand, curtsy or try to hug him. I settled on shaking his hand. It was large and the size of both of mine. His skin was rough, not smooth like Nana’s. He shook my hand firmly, still looking at me. He was appraising me. My hand felt trapped in his firm grip.
“Nice to meet you. Why don’t you sit down?” he ordered more than asked.
I obeyed him and sat down immediately. I sipped on my