Red/Wolf (Working Title)

Chapter 6 : Unforgiven Sorrell

Chapter 6 : Sorrell

I was once again surviving through yet another awkward and silent car ride with my dad, to school, by blasting my Ipod and zoning out. I thought I had heard my dad's voice through the music, so I snatched off my ear buds.
"Did you say something?"
"I said, are the kids treating you okay, you know since you have been back?"
"Yeah, it's good!" I said and replaced my ear buds. I heard my father speak again, but once again it sounded muffled. I took it back out. "What?"
"I said, good, that's really good."
"Is that all?" I asked. I really was not ready for a long drawn out conversation with my father. I still was not ready to forgiven him, for divorcing my mother right when she needed him the most. I felt like he was responsible at least partly for her death.
"So how is Darrius?"
I had to let out a chuckle. "We haven't dated in months, dad."
"I like Darrius." He smiled.
"I know you liked Darrius, Dad."
"That's not why you dumped him is it?"
I chucked again. "No, Dad."
"Good, because I would hate for you to miss out on your own happiness because of me."
"Dad, just don't!" I began to flash back to the way we used to be, Fairs with me, Russ, and Mom and then all of it falling apart when Mom was in and out of rehab holding back tears.
"I'm sorry!"
We did not talk the rest of the way to the school. Heavy bass blocked out all my thoughts and I was able to survive without crying.
The Taurus, station wagon came to a stop, I darted out, avoiding any more awkward conversation with my dad.
I headed where I headed to every morning, which was the media lab which was my home away from home. Jerry was already in the control room, printing out his camera angle script for the Knights morning news.
He was a more welcome sight. It had been two day since I had been back at school, and not once had he offered his condolences, or asked me how I was doing.
He really did not say much but he really did not have to say much, he was an artist with a camera. To me he was the perfect cameraman.
"Good morning Jerry!" I greeted walking passed him into the studio. We didn't even exchange glances, he just kept his eyes on the printer spewing out his long document and rose one hand up in a greeting.
The first Knight's Newscast went off without a glitch and I was happy about that. Then I was off to my first period.
While I was navigating the halls, I did find myself looking for the new student I ran into the day before. No such luck. Then, I remembered that his class was clear on the other side of the school. I thought about taking the risk of being late to first period, just to drop in and see how he was handling himself on his second day of school. Not that I didn't already know the answer, judging from lunch yesterday he and his brother had no trouble making friends, they were surrounded by half the school.
Still, I thought, what is the harm and thanking him for getting ice for my head. I planned to tell Mr. Moreau that the production meeting ran late. I turned around and began to walk away from my algebra class. I then bumped into some one, I waited for him to turn around to apologize until I realized it was Darrius.
"Hi!"
"Darrius, I have to get to my class."
Darrius, was a tall built brown haired, football player, the favorite of my dad's out of my two boyfriends. The first was in the fifth grade, so obviously my father having an issue with it because I was too young and me and "DerBear" after my fifteenth birthday, less than a year shy of my 16th, when my father said I could actually date.
Sometimes I thought I dated him just to get a rise out of my dad, but the plan back fired. Turned out my dad was such a big fan of football, he was willing to look past the fact that I was 15.
"Isn't your class in the other direction?"
I rolled my eyes. "No. Now move."
"Are you skipping school again Sorrell."
I grit my teeth. "My dad sent you to keep an eye on me."
"He's worried and so am I."
"Well, that part of my life is over, so neither of us have to worry."
I began to walk in the other direction suddenly making a new friend wasn't as alluring as it was a few moments ago.
"What about us?"
I turned around, hoping that he wasn't serious. "What about us, Darrius?"
"I just thought that we left on bad terms and…"
"Yeah, you called my mother a drunk and you said that I needed to, as you so eloquently put it 'get over it!'."
"I didn't know how to deal with it, okay. You were different."
"I watched my mother die." There was a knot in my throat as I even said it, but forced myself not to cry.
"That I understand, but you just shut me out. I didn't have a choice."
"Yes, you had a choice, and you chose to bail out when I needed you the most."
"I said I was sorry!"
"I'm going to be late for class."
Headed back to class, I was still fighting back tears. I understood now why my father liked Darrius so much, he was so much like him. Darrius left me the way that he left my mom, he served her divorce papers in rehab, which lead to her never recovering for her problems and that was what killed her.
I decided to try and steer clear of Darrius, because he became a harsh reminder of who I used to be and I was on a different path, and I had to leave everything else behind. Even though I knew I would never completely heal, I just had to be okay.