Status: incomplete
Crashing down around me
Crashing down around me
We thought it was a lost cause. But then the detective called about a month ago. He said he had found her, our little girl. Only, she’s not so little anymore. She’s a gorgeous, talented, amazing sixteen-year-old young woman.
When he told us he had found her, our Violet, we wanted to set up a meeting. We called Kim and Patrick Mathews and they agreed. They hadn’t told her she was adopted yet but they were going too on her seventeenth birthday, which is three weeks away from today. We were going to go to her party, show up in the guise of being Kim’s childhood friends. Violet wasn’t to know we were her parents.
So we started learning everything we could about her. Hobbies, friends, grades, favorite subjects, taste in music, fashion, entertainment. We found out what she was scared of, what made her happy and what made her angry. The last part was hard. Kim said that Violet never showed emotion to anyone except her, Patrick and her best friend Scarlett. Kim said it took a lot for her to show people what she was feeling and what was going on in her head. Violet likes to seem strong, like nothing can faze her and like nothing matters. I used to do that too. If people can’t see how you feel about something, they can’t torment you in any way about it. If you stay strong, people think you have no weaknesses and won’t try to find them.
Anyways, we learned everything we could about Violet Daphne Katrina Mathews. We watched home videos, went to her dance recital and looked at the stories she posted on an online teen writing site. We listened to her band’s demo and went to a show. They’re unbelievable.
She’s amazing, Bri. She grew up better then we could have dreamed. Dude, she plays the bass! She’s in a band. She can do pretty much anything she sets her mind to. She’s been in plays, inside and outside of school. She plays the piano. She dances. She sings. She has straight A’s in all honors classes. She can do anything.
I just wish we were the people to help her become who she is. We never knew she was so special. We never knew a lot of things. We still don’t know so much! Now I’m worried we wont get the chance to find out. “ Matt was quite for a minute and Val’s crying punctured the silence.
“Now we get to have her. It may be under the worst of circumstances, but it’s what we’ve been dreaming of for the past eleven years. We finally have her, but she doesn’t want us.” He finished in a huff and I couldn’t hear anything more coming from the living room.
I slowly lowered myself onto Scarlett’s lap, holding tight to her waist as she rocked me back and forth, trying to quiet my violent sobs.
After about an hour, I had finished contemplating what I heard.
“Scar? I’m going down stairs.” I told her as we lay on my bed, quietly mulling over everything that had happened that day.
“Okay baby. Call me if you need anything.” I’m not sure Scarlett was convinced, but I was. These people loved me enough to choose Mom and Dad to take their place as my parents. They loved me enough to look for me for eleven years and not give up hope. They loved me enough to want to be in my life even if they couldn’t play a major part in it.
I thought they deserved a chance so I got up, dried my tears, and headed out of my room and down the stairs.
“Mr. and Mrs. Sanders?” I quietly called to them as I entered the living room.
Their heads snapped to look at me, disbelieving.
“I heard what you told Mr. Haner.” I admitted sheepishly, lowering my head to look at my bright pink toenails.
“We know, Violet.” Val started.
“We could hear you crying after I finished my story so we figured if we could hear you, you could hear us.” Matt finished his wife’s thought.
I still couldn’t refer to them as my parents, even though that was what they were.
“So, you really do love me? You searched for me for eleven years? Why didn’t you give up? I can assure you, I’m nothing special. I’m not the way you describe me.” I looked at Matt’s face, then Val’s.
“Yes, Violet, we love you. Yes we searched for eleven years. We didn’t give up because you’re worth it, Violet. You’re worth everything.” Matt looked at me earnestly, willing me to believe him.
And I did. Scarlett may be a skeptic, but she always has been. She’s been hurt many times so getting her to trust people is hard.
“I believe you.” I told them, looking at Matt, then Val straight in the eyes.
What Matt had said was true, my eyes and his were exactly the same.
Val started to sob uncontrollably, opening her arms and rushing at me. She engulfed me in a giant hug, pulling me close.
“Violet? Are you okay down there?” Scarlett’s voice entered the room through the vent that lead to my bathroom.
“I’m fine, Scar. Want to come down?” I didn’t get a response and I assumed she was making her way down the stairs.
“Matt? Val? Why does Scarlett know who you are? What did you mean by ‘Avenged’ when you were talking to Mr. Haner? Why do I get the feeling that you’re around screaming teenage girls a lot? You handled Scarlett’s demands well. You didn’t even flinch. Most people react like the police officers and lawyer did. How did you know I don’t cry a lot? Why do you think I’m going to come live with you now that my mom and dad are dead? I’m glad you’re back in my life but I don’t really know how to handle any of this.” I was really confused and not quite sure how to handle the situation.
Matt was the one to answer first. “Violet? Have you ever heard of the band Avenged Sevenfold?” He looked at me, as if this question was of the utmost importance.
“Yeah, Scarlett listens to them all the time.” I had no idea where this conversation was heading, couldn’t track its progress on the map of logic. I tilted my head to the side in confusion.
“Well… that’s our band. I sing. Brian here plays the guitar.” He looked nervous, unsure how I was going to take the news that my biological father is a rock star.
“But… I thought those people had odd names. Scar is like in love with the one with Jesus in his name… Jesus something… Something Jesus. I’m not sure exactly what it is.” I didn’t quite believe them but then Brian burst out in a fit of hysteric laughter.
“J-Jesus Something! Something Jesus! Oh this is amazing. I’m never going to let him forget you said that. Or you, for that matter. Johnny is going to die.” It seemed that the supposed guitar player of Avenged Sevenfold thought something was funny but I couldn’t guess what it was to save my life.
“VIOLET! I can Not believe you just said that! You can’t tell your biological dad and his best friend that I’m ‘like in love’ with one of their band mates! YOU SUCK BUTT! And it’s Johnny Christ! Not Jesus Something!” Scarlett barged into the room, her face red with chagrin.
“I can’t believe you didn’t recognize them from the poster on my ceiling! It’s the one right next to ATL, which you stare at nonstop. Jack isn’t that cute you know.”
Now it was my turn to blush. Scarlett was just blabbing my secret celebrity crush to the people I have recently learned are my parents.
“Scarlett?” My voice was innocent as I called her over. She had no idea what was coming.
“Yeah?” She answered.
“Come here please.” I politely requested. She did as I asked and walked over to me, leaning her ear to hear whatever secret I was about to share.
“Shut. Up.” I emphasized. She nodded, a smile on her face as she backed towards the kitchen.
“I’m going to go make some food. Anyone else want anything?” Scarlett took her cue to leave the room, letting me get the answers to the most important questions.
Everyone shook their heads until Matt shot a look at Brian.
“Um, I do.” Brian got up and left the room, following Scarlett down the hall.
“Matt? Val? You still haven’t answered the most important question. Why do you think I’m going to come and live with you? I live here, in Bellevue. My friends are here. My life is here. My family is here. Scarlett and Tara, they’re my family too. I don’t think I could live with out them.” I looked at them pleadingly. To leave my home after losing my parents would be really hard to deal with.
This time, it was Val who answered me.
“Violet, your parents left us custody of you. They saw how much we love you. When they redid their will about two weeks ago, they left everything to you and they left you to us. I don’t know how they knew something was going to happen. They said it was ‘Just in Case’, but sure enough two weeks later we get a call saying that a drunk driver had run a light and that we were to come explain everything and take you home with us. We flew out today and got here around three. We expected you home much sooner but I can see you went shopping.” She smiled at me, noting the bags I had dropped by the door when I came into my living room to find seven strangers.
“So… I have to come live with you? Where do you live? What am I going to do with my house? What about all the people my parents employ? Where are they going to find work? What about the kids? They come here all the time! What am I going to do?” I was partly mumbling to them, partly to myself.
Matt and Val just looked at each other before Matt answered two of my questions.
“We live in Huntington Beach about a ten hour drive south of here. And yes. You are coming to live with us.” He looked worried, waiting for my reaction.
Tears coursed down my cheeks as an idea hit me.
When he told us he had found her, our Violet, we wanted to set up a meeting. We called Kim and Patrick Mathews and they agreed. They hadn’t told her she was adopted yet but they were going too on her seventeenth birthday, which is three weeks away from today. We were going to go to her party, show up in the guise of being Kim’s childhood friends. Violet wasn’t to know we were her parents.
So we started learning everything we could about her. Hobbies, friends, grades, favorite subjects, taste in music, fashion, entertainment. We found out what she was scared of, what made her happy and what made her angry. The last part was hard. Kim said that Violet never showed emotion to anyone except her, Patrick and her best friend Scarlett. Kim said it took a lot for her to show people what she was feeling and what was going on in her head. Violet likes to seem strong, like nothing can faze her and like nothing matters. I used to do that too. If people can’t see how you feel about something, they can’t torment you in any way about it. If you stay strong, people think you have no weaknesses and won’t try to find them.
Anyways, we learned everything we could about Violet Daphne Katrina Mathews. We watched home videos, went to her dance recital and looked at the stories she posted on an online teen writing site. We listened to her band’s demo and went to a show. They’re unbelievable.
She’s amazing, Bri. She grew up better then we could have dreamed. Dude, she plays the bass! She’s in a band. She can do pretty much anything she sets her mind to. She’s been in plays, inside and outside of school. She plays the piano. She dances. She sings. She has straight A’s in all honors classes. She can do anything.
I just wish we were the people to help her become who she is. We never knew she was so special. We never knew a lot of things. We still don’t know so much! Now I’m worried we wont get the chance to find out. “ Matt was quite for a minute and Val’s crying punctured the silence.
“Now we get to have her. It may be under the worst of circumstances, but it’s what we’ve been dreaming of for the past eleven years. We finally have her, but she doesn’t want us.” He finished in a huff and I couldn’t hear anything more coming from the living room.
I slowly lowered myself onto Scarlett’s lap, holding tight to her waist as she rocked me back and forth, trying to quiet my violent sobs.
After about an hour, I had finished contemplating what I heard.
“Scar? I’m going down stairs.” I told her as we lay on my bed, quietly mulling over everything that had happened that day.
“Okay baby. Call me if you need anything.” I’m not sure Scarlett was convinced, but I was. These people loved me enough to choose Mom and Dad to take their place as my parents. They loved me enough to look for me for eleven years and not give up hope. They loved me enough to want to be in my life even if they couldn’t play a major part in it.
I thought they deserved a chance so I got up, dried my tears, and headed out of my room and down the stairs.
“Mr. and Mrs. Sanders?” I quietly called to them as I entered the living room.
Their heads snapped to look at me, disbelieving.
“I heard what you told Mr. Haner.” I admitted sheepishly, lowering my head to look at my bright pink toenails.
“We know, Violet.” Val started.
“We could hear you crying after I finished my story so we figured if we could hear you, you could hear us.” Matt finished his wife’s thought.
I still couldn’t refer to them as my parents, even though that was what they were.
“So, you really do love me? You searched for me for eleven years? Why didn’t you give up? I can assure you, I’m nothing special. I’m not the way you describe me.” I looked at Matt’s face, then Val’s.
“Yes, Violet, we love you. Yes we searched for eleven years. We didn’t give up because you’re worth it, Violet. You’re worth everything.” Matt looked at me earnestly, willing me to believe him.
And I did. Scarlett may be a skeptic, but she always has been. She’s been hurt many times so getting her to trust people is hard.
“I believe you.” I told them, looking at Matt, then Val straight in the eyes.
What Matt had said was true, my eyes and his were exactly the same.
Val started to sob uncontrollably, opening her arms and rushing at me. She engulfed me in a giant hug, pulling me close.
“Violet? Are you okay down there?” Scarlett’s voice entered the room through the vent that lead to my bathroom.
“I’m fine, Scar. Want to come down?” I didn’t get a response and I assumed she was making her way down the stairs.
“Matt? Val? Why does Scarlett know who you are? What did you mean by ‘Avenged’ when you were talking to Mr. Haner? Why do I get the feeling that you’re around screaming teenage girls a lot? You handled Scarlett’s demands well. You didn’t even flinch. Most people react like the police officers and lawyer did. How did you know I don’t cry a lot? Why do you think I’m going to come live with you now that my mom and dad are dead? I’m glad you’re back in my life but I don’t really know how to handle any of this.” I was really confused and not quite sure how to handle the situation.
Matt was the one to answer first. “Violet? Have you ever heard of the band Avenged Sevenfold?” He looked at me, as if this question was of the utmost importance.
“Yeah, Scarlett listens to them all the time.” I had no idea where this conversation was heading, couldn’t track its progress on the map of logic. I tilted my head to the side in confusion.
“Well… that’s our band. I sing. Brian here plays the guitar.” He looked nervous, unsure how I was going to take the news that my biological father is a rock star.
“But… I thought those people had odd names. Scar is like in love with the one with Jesus in his name… Jesus something… Something Jesus. I’m not sure exactly what it is.” I didn’t quite believe them but then Brian burst out in a fit of hysteric laughter.
“J-Jesus Something! Something Jesus! Oh this is amazing. I’m never going to let him forget you said that. Or you, for that matter. Johnny is going to die.” It seemed that the supposed guitar player of Avenged Sevenfold thought something was funny but I couldn’t guess what it was to save my life.
“VIOLET! I can Not believe you just said that! You can’t tell your biological dad and his best friend that I’m ‘like in love’ with one of their band mates! YOU SUCK BUTT! And it’s Johnny Christ! Not Jesus Something!” Scarlett barged into the room, her face red with chagrin.
“I can’t believe you didn’t recognize them from the poster on my ceiling! It’s the one right next to ATL, which you stare at nonstop. Jack isn’t that cute you know.”
Now it was my turn to blush. Scarlett was just blabbing my secret celebrity crush to the people I have recently learned are my parents.
“Scarlett?” My voice was innocent as I called her over. She had no idea what was coming.
“Yeah?” She answered.
“Come here please.” I politely requested. She did as I asked and walked over to me, leaning her ear to hear whatever secret I was about to share.
“Shut. Up.” I emphasized. She nodded, a smile on her face as she backed towards the kitchen.
“I’m going to go make some food. Anyone else want anything?” Scarlett took her cue to leave the room, letting me get the answers to the most important questions.
Everyone shook their heads until Matt shot a look at Brian.
“Um, I do.” Brian got up and left the room, following Scarlett down the hall.
“Matt? Val? You still haven’t answered the most important question. Why do you think I’m going to come and live with you? I live here, in Bellevue. My friends are here. My life is here. My family is here. Scarlett and Tara, they’re my family too. I don’t think I could live with out them.” I looked at them pleadingly. To leave my home after losing my parents would be really hard to deal with.
This time, it was Val who answered me.
“Violet, your parents left us custody of you. They saw how much we love you. When they redid their will about two weeks ago, they left everything to you and they left you to us. I don’t know how they knew something was going to happen. They said it was ‘Just in Case’, but sure enough two weeks later we get a call saying that a drunk driver had run a light and that we were to come explain everything and take you home with us. We flew out today and got here around three. We expected you home much sooner but I can see you went shopping.” She smiled at me, noting the bags I had dropped by the door when I came into my living room to find seven strangers.
“So… I have to come live with you? Where do you live? What am I going to do with my house? What about all the people my parents employ? Where are they going to find work? What about the kids? They come here all the time! What am I going to do?” I was partly mumbling to them, partly to myself.
Matt and Val just looked at each other before Matt answered two of my questions.
“We live in Huntington Beach about a ten hour drive south of here. And yes. You are coming to live with us.” He looked worried, waiting for my reaction.
Tears coursed down my cheeks as an idea hit me.