Chapter 5 Back To Where It All Began

• “Are you sure you’re alright?” Rika asked for the millionth time as we drove back to the hotel I was staying at.
• “Yes. I’m fine.” I told them through gritted teeth.
• My knuckles were white against the steering wheel and I was driving a few miles over the speed limit, but this was Ruthwell, the sheriff had only one job here and that was to solve family disputes and the odd cases of stolen lingerie. Nobody would care if I was driving at a hundred miles per hour.
• But then again, with how my welcome back party to my hometown has been going on so far, I wouldn’t be surprised if I get pulled over for speeding and handed a thousand other bills along with them just for breathing Ruthwell air.
• I never should’ve come back. Promise or not, this had been a terrible idea. I knew what I was doing when I decided to leave this godforsaken town for good and I have never regretted that decision in the past seven years that I had been away. But now that I wanted to make amends, make up for leaving my family, everyone was treating me like I was some kind of a goddamned murderer!
• I brought my car to a screeching halt, making dust and dirt fly everywhere as the tires skidded to a stop. My head banged against the leather of the seat at my back and by the groans coming from both Angie and Rika, they had a rough landing too. Good. Serves them right for all the secrecy.
• But when I looked out the wind screen, my eyes widened to find that I had stopped just in front of the wrought iron gates of Citador cathedral.
• Citador was situated midway between Ruthwell and Downtown, where I was currently staying. It wasn't a humongous cathedral like they show in movies, but it was beautiful building with an old world charm to it. It was also the same cathedral where my grandparents got married, followed by my parents and then my brother, a year after I left.
• For that reason, I wanted to get married here as well. In fact, my wedding with Jordan had been planned right here as well, before I eloped. But instead, it was Cathy who ended up getting married to him.
• Which brought me to the most important question of all…
• “How did Cathy end up getting married to Jordan?” I asked into the silence that had followed my rough parking skills.
• Through the rear view mirror, I saw Rika and Angie exchange nervous glances. Finally having enough of this stupid drama, I slammed my hand down on the dashboard, startling them both.
• “Why is no one willing to talk to me?” I screeched. “Tell me what the fuck is going on around here! Everyone is treating me like I’m some kind of a criminal but I don’t see any reason why I would still be treated like that! Jordan’s happily married to Cathy, my parents probably don’t want anything to do with me and everyone here has completely erased me from their lives! To be honest, I don’t give a fuck about any of them, because it seems as if everyone’s problems have been resolved. So I need a proper justification of the humiliation that I just received! Tell me the truth already!”
• “Kyra,” Angie placed a hand on my shoulder, trying to calm me down. “Cathy might be married to Jordan, but she isn’t happy. Her life’s a mess. She just…doesn’t show it openly.”
• “What?” I blinked rapidly to make sure that I heard Angie correctly. “What on Earth are you talking about?”
• “That night, when you escaped from your wedding, a lot happened afterwards that we didn’t have a clue about beforehand.” Rika cut in. “But first, let’s go back to the hotel, shall we? It’s not the best decision to be talking about this in the middle of the road.”
• “And order a shit load of alcohol.” Angie added with a sigh. “You’ll need it. We’ll all need it.”
• I wanted to scream at them and probably throw a few punches, but then I’ll be driving away the only friends I have in Ruthwell. And I didn’t want that. These two had been with me since childhood; we have had each other’s backs through thick and thin. I needed their support. I needed their strength.
• “Fine.” I told them after taking a few deep, calming breaths. And then I thought about my discussion with Gabby a week before I left for Ruthwell.
• ‘You know, one day, you’re going to look back and think, I should’ve at least heard them out, or told them my side of the story.’
• Gabby had been doing stretches on our living room floor, on top of her yoga mat. Her long, colourful hair had been in a tight braid across her back and she was wearing a black sports bra and leggings. She knew she always looked stunning in black.
• ‘So don’t let this one mistake be the end of everything. Don’t let this become the biggest regret of your life.’
• ‘Why do you think I have anything to apologize to them about?’ I’d asked her instead. ‘Why do you think I ran away in the first place? My choices have never had any value to them.’
• ‘Sometimes, all we need is a little communication.’ Gabby had shrugged. ‘Do you think my parents’ had always been this accepting of me? They’d thought, just like so many others out there, that I was going through a phase and it would go away. They had been disappointed when it didn’t. So I had to sit down with them and have a heart to heart conversation with them to get them to finally understand what I was going through and that this wasn’t just a phase. It was who I am.’
• Gabby was right. I needed to have a conversation with my parents. But that wasn’t going to happen until I found out the whole truth, no matter how ugly it sounded.
• Turning the keys, I started the car back up and this time, drove carefully and safely back to my hotel. The fifteen minute ride went by agonizingly slow but I had to grit my teeth and bear with it. Neither Angie nor Rika spoke a single word the entire way, probably knowing what was coming and mentally preparing themselves for it.
• I was doing the same thing too. But honestly, after everything I had endured in my short twenty six years of existence, it took a great deal to surprise me nowadays. But the second I had set foot in Ruthwell, it was one shock after another and it made me wonder how much more of this I could even take before it broke me completely…before I was finally driven off the think edge I seemed to be teetering…
• But this was about my family and the events that changed my life forever. I was sure nothing was going to prepare me for what I was going to learn today.
• When we finally arrived at the hotel, I did as Rika had told me before, ordered a shit load of alcohol, for me and Angie. For Rika I got only a can of beer because of her diabetes…and since she was going to be the designated driver to get Angie back home when this was all over.
• After we had all settled in my suite and the food and drinks had been delivered, I finally turned to my childhood best friends. “Tell me everything. And don’t leave anything out.”
• “Yes.” Angie sighed, knowing she could no longer delay the inevitable. “Let’s get back to where it all began.”