Sometimes Resisting Is Easier Than Giving In

It wasn’t not even nine a.m. yet and both my parents were screaming. I didn’t know what about this time but they had been for the past ten minutes. We were all in the kitchen, no one talking, and we were eating breakfast before we had to leave for court. When Mom made a comment about something Dad made another one that was rude and I could tell from there that it was going to get worse and came upstairs into my room.
At the rate they were going, we would be last for the court date. At least this is almost over I thought to myself. Maybe I should have taken Alex up on his offer and stayed with him, then again he might have still been upset. I could have just never came home yesterday.
It’s not like my parents would have taken notice. They’d been so absorbed in this divorce they had no time for anything else. They fought over every tiny detail, including wanting the money back on some things that they bought for each other. My point of view is that if they bought things as gifts they have no right to try and get the money back for it. I suppose they were doing that because we, as a family, didn’t have much money so one of them has to beat the other.
The only time that they ever really focused all their attention on me is when I was transferring a message between them. My mom would tell me to go ask my dad something and then I would ask him and report back to her. I was their messenger because they couldn’t even stand to see each other.
I never really quite figured out why they were getting a divorce. All I knew was that they had been fighting since before I was born. In fact they were going to get a divorce before my mother was even pregnant with me and then something happened between them, I was just the result. So I guess I’m an accident that forced them through another eighteen years of gritting their teeth and baring it.
They did well with it too. I didn’t even notice until I was sixteen. I was hanging out with Jack and Alex, they were seventeen and eighteen at the time, and then Jack asked me why my mom was acting weird… she seemed snippy. My first reaction was to say that she was how she always was. When I said that both he and Alex stared at me like I was crazy.
Later on, after they’d left and I had another friend over, she also pointed out that my mom was snippy. She left a while later after getting the homework copied that she needed and I watched my family. My older sister, who has since moved out and wont even consider coming to court to be with me, didn’t seem to really be any different. Then I watched my dad. He was grumpy, more than usual. My mom was actually very snippy. My dad had asked her for something, I forget what, and she snipped at him. They started to get into a fight but my sister yelled at them both and they stopped. I went to my room after that.
Thinking about that made me want to go downstairs and yell at them like my sister did. I thought about it, considered that I didn’t have to see them the rest of the day after court, and decided I would. What was the worst they could do to me?
I stepped lightly down the stairs, their yelling seeming to get louder when all it was doing was getting clearer. I didn’t bother to listen to the words. They were still in the kitchen but I knew they hadn’t stayed in it the whole time because I could hear their voices moving around. There was a space next to the pantry that I stood by and watched for a moment. Maybe my presence would stop them. I really was afraid to yell at them. They didn’t.
“Hey!” I yelled.
They both stopped and turned to look at me.
“In case you don’t remember you have a court date. Fight in there, save some for it. Get this shit over with so I can have some quiet. I’m tired of listening to you two fight!” I yelled.
“This doesn’t concern you.” My dad said.
“Actually it does. You see, you’re my dad and she’s my mom. Until you two get divorced I’m not going to have some quiet. I’m going to have to continue passing messages on and be pushed to choose a side. Get divorced so I wont have to deal with this anymore.”
That stopped them in their tracks. I went out to the front yard and stood by one of the three cars. They came out a moment later. My dad had his keys and my mom had hers. It would be dumb for me to get into my car as well so I just go into the back of my mom’s car. I chose her car because I was madder at my dad at the moment. She seemed pleased by it and smirked at him.
Dad tore out of the driveway and down the street. I guess he was really pissed off. Mom was more careful in the neighborhood because she knew there were kids all over this place, even though it was the morning. Once she hit the streets she drove at the top of the speed limit. I really hated driving with people that were angry.
The courthouse wasn’t far from home. Dad was waiting but when he saw us pull in he started to walk inside. I got out before my mom had even parked the car and went in after him. I didn’t want to have to walk with her and listen to her complain about how dumb he was. She would want me to take her side and then be pissed that I wont take either side, transferring their nasty remarks was bad enough.
Their case started ten minutes after we got inside. I sat towards the back of the courtroom since I was only here because I was forced to be. They were up in the front fighting more controlled now. Even their damn lawyers were fighting. This was so embarrassing. The judge called them to order.
Legal terms and nicer versions of the words that were being used this morning were being thrown back and fourth. I was starting to wish I could leave. I’d had enough of them bickering over who gets the air miles and who has to pay what credit card debt.
If Alex were here it’d be more bearable, if anyone were here it’d be more bearable. Without anyone here to sit with me it seemed like each nasty word thrown was ten times worse. When I had Alex with me it was a lot easier to just close my eyes, rest my head on his shoulder, and think of something else. It helped that he would say things to me and kiss my head when I did that but just having him there made it better.
I was brought out of my train of thought when the judge called a recess. We stood up as she left and then I sat back down. Both my parents started to walk back towards me to take a break. My mom said, “Your father’s an idiot.” as she walked by.
“You’re both idiots.” I said back.
She didn’t like that but kept going. I slumped back into the bench I was sitting on and stared down at my hands. The nail polish was chipping off. I sighed, maybe I could re-do them later at a friend’s house. I could call Courtney. She’d probably do my nails for me since she was going to cosmetology school.
I tapped my foot against the bench in front of me. I suppose I should use this time as a break from the courtroom. The bathroom was my first stop. If my mom had gone here as well there was no chance I’d run into her. I’d wasted enough time sitting there. As I walked past the front entrance I saw her standing on the steps and smoking. Idiot. My dad was probably on the other side of the building doing the same thing. At least that’s one trait I didn’t get from either of them.
No one was in the bathroom. I put my purse on the counter and looked at myself in the mirror. Some of my make up was smudged because I’d started to cry a little. I wasn’t sad, I was angry. I was so mad that my parents were trying to tear each other to shreds that my eyes started to tear up. It happened when I was that mad. I pulled out my eyeliner and leaned over the counter closer to the mirror. With my mouth slightly open as usual I re-applied my eyeliner and then closed the thing up and put it in my purse.
There was no other reason for my to stay in here so I left. There was a drinking fountain to my left and I was thirsty. While I was getting a drink a guy walked behind me, stopped, and came back. I straightened up slowly and then turned around.
“What?” I asked
“Nice ass.”
“Thanks, dick.”
“That was a compliment.” He seemed confused as to why I didn’t appreciate it.
I decided to bother him a little.
“I’m sixteen and you’re disgusting. I could sue you for sexual harassment.”
“Oh…”
Haha! Got him.
“I thought you were like twenty. Sorry.”
“Next time think before you say something.”
If I had told him I was eighteen he would of kept making comments. The threat of a sexual harassment suit should keep him quiet, especially since we’re in a courthouse.
Nothing left to do now… guess I’ll just go back into the courtroom and wait. I sighed, how much longer could I take of this? How much longer until today was over. Then I could do this in a week or so all over again. Hopefully they could work things out quickly since the next time was their last meeting before everything was finalized.
To my surprise I sat down and Alex slid up next to me. He must have come in without me seeing him. He kissed my cheek, and when I looked up at him surprised, my lips.
“Sorry it took so long. I fell back asleep after I woke up.” Alex said quietly.
“When’d you get here?”
“I’ve been sitting here for like five minutes. You’re mom’s out there smoking like a chimney.”
“I know.” I put my purse on the other side of me.
Alex picked up my hand and squeezed it. He wanted me to look up at him. I did. He surprised me with another kiss, this one longer and softer. It wasn’t often that he kissed me like that. It was almost too much for him to stop there but he pulled back. A crooked smile spread across his lips when he read the surprise in my eyes.
“I thought you were mad at me.”
“Nah, not at you.” He was still smiling.
“Then who?”
“Myself.”
I tilted my head to the side, not understanding. He laughed.
“You remind me of Sebastian when you do that.” He said giving my nose a peck.
“At least I’m cute then.”
“Very.” His crooked smile broke though again.
“Why were you mad at yourself?”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll explain someday. For now it’s about you. How’s it been going?”
“It’s the usual. Screaming even…”
He nodded, “Sounds like them.”
“Unfortunately.” I sighed.
“Have you been crying?” He asked.
“I’ll explain someday.”
The phrase he’d used didn’t have the same impact when I used it. It didn’t quite fit but it made him crack a smile.
Before either of us could say anything more my parents re-entered the courtroom and took their seats next to their lawyers. Alex placed one more kiss just below my ear before we had to stand as the judge walked in. With how he was behaving I just wanted to leave and go back to his place. We could curl up in his bed and keep doing this, maybe after.
When we sat back down he put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer. He was asking me to put my head on his shoulder. I did. He’d offered me the escape I needed for the moment. Nothing seemed quiet as bad and the bickering seemed far off. All I cared about was concentrating on the little things; his smell, where he placed kisses, and what rhythm his fingers were tapping on his leg.
I wondered what we must have looked like sitting all the way in the back and cuddled up that way. My parents were fighting like dogs and then there I was with a boy curling himself around me and kissing my head. I felt like laughing at the irony of it, especially since we were not dating. I started to drift off a little while later.
In what seemed like no time the court session was over. I sat up and blinked a few times.
“What happened? Why are they done already?”
“It’s been three hours, you fell asleep. Saved you from having to get involved.”
“What’d they want me for?” I asked picking up my purse.
“Something about who bought who what and was it a gift…”
“Oh, screw it. I don’t care. I would have told them whatever would have made them fight more.”
“Why?”
“They both pissed me off this morning.”
I followed Alex out of the courtroom.
“Fighting this morning?”
“I had to break it up so that we could get here.”
“Ahh…” He took hold of my hand.
“Where’s you’re truck?” I asked as we passed the guy who’d commented on my ass before.
“Not far.” He looped his arm around my back. “Are you hungry?”
“A little. Haven’t eaten for a while.”
“Want to go get something, or I can make you something at my place.”
“Let’s just get something. We can bring food back for Rian too.”
“’Kay.”
We got into his truck and I waited until we were a safe distance from the courthouse to tell Alex about the guy who’d commented on my ass.
“He what?!” Alex just about slammed on the breaks and stared at me.
“You heard me.”
Alex didn’t say anything. He put the truck back in gear and did a u-turn in the middle of the road. We narrowly avoided getting hit and caused a few horns to go off.
“What are you doing, Alexander?”
“Going back to see this guy, Emmeline.”
“I told him I was sixteen and threatened to sue.”
“So, I’ll just say you’re my sister. By the way you don’t pass for sixteen. You didn’t even pass for sixteen when you were sixteen.”
“Thanks, I think?”
“Yea, that was kind of a compliment.”
“You don’t have to go back.”
“Yea, I do.”
“No.”
“Yea, no one’s going to say anything like that to you if I can help it.”
I rolled my eyes. Boys. They’re so dumb. He’s probably going to go in there and find the guy, since he was asking me now what he looked like, and yell at him. He might get himself thrown out of the courthouse. That’d be interesting.
For the first time I noticed Alex was wearing a tie because he was loosening it. Great, that meant he was going to fight this guy if something got started. Once this was in his head there was no sense in trying to get it out so I just sat back in the seat as he hit the gas all the way back to the courthouse.
He parked in the same place and got out. He told me to stay, as if I was going to watch him get into a fight. I’d had enough fighting for the day, thanks.
While I waited I pulled out my phone and texted Courtney. She was probably still asleep but she’d get this eventually. So I told her that she could experiment on my nails if she wished. Maybe my hair if I could make up my mind. She’d be excited for that one. They’d just done dyeing techniques and she’d been after me for weeks to let her try it once she’d learned.
I looked up just as Alex was approaching the truck. He got in with a smile and started up the car.
“What’s funny?”
“I just made that guy wish he’d never said that to you is all.”
“You didn’t hurt him, did you?” I asked checking his knuckles for any sign.
“No, I couldn’t do that. I would have been sued for assault. I just very calmly explained to him that you were my sister and that if he ever came near you again or you said something about him that I didn’t like I was going to find him.”
“Alex.” I sighed in a disapproving tone.
“What Emmy? Did you want me to just sit there and let that guy say that to you? He’s disgusting for that.”
“I know I told him so.”
“It’s taken a little more seriously when coming from and angry brother, no offence.”
“You’re not my brother though. Far from it, thank God!”
“I know, but he doesn’t. Besides I wouldn’t care for you in the same way if you were my sister. For instance,” He stopped the truck at an exit and turned to me, “I wouldn’t do this.”
He leaned over and kissed me, forcing me to kiss back open-mouthed. We got a little carried away and forgot we were sitting there. He let his foot off the break and the truck rolled out onto the street. Another person honked at him and he responded with the finger while getting his own truck straightened out.
“All these assholes going to lunch in their big fancy cars.” He muttered.
“It was kind of our fault you know… we deserved that one.”
He kind of nodded his head like he didn’t want to admit that I was right.
“After we eat… are you coming back home with me? Or do you want me to drop you at your place?” Alex asked pulling into a parking lot.
I looked up and we were at a Denny’s. Perfect, I was craving Denny’s.
“Uhm, I kind of don’t want to go back there, you know? But I need to get my stuff so that I can move into your place for the summer. I started packing when I got home last night. So it shouldn’t take me that long to get everything else I need.”
“Pack all your undies yet?”
“Yea, why do you care?”
“I was gonna help you pack them… but I guess I can help you unpack them.” He smirked.
“You don’t want to help me, you just wanna be able to imagine things.”
He didn’t say anything; he just smiled. Caught! So predictable.
Alex fixed his tie while walking to my side of the truck and opening the door for me before I could do it myself.
“You don’t have to do that.”
“Yea, I do. You’re a girl.”
“You don’t do this for all girls. We both know that.”
He couldn’t deny that one and his cheeks turned a faint shade of pink. I kissed him.