She's So Country

“Lucy!” My mom called.
“Yes mom?” I asked walking in.
“We need to talk.” She said.
“What about?” I asked. I sat down at the table and waited for her.
“I know this is really big news, but your father is here.” She said.
“What?” I asked confused.
“He’s here and he wants to talk to you.” She clarified.
“B-but I don’t understand. I d-don’t have a father.” I said.
“Everyone does sweetie. We just never knew who’s yours was. Until now.” She said.
“Well why is he here now?” I asked.
“He wants to get to know you.” She said. Then a tall muscular guy walked into the room. I looked at my mom as if questioning her if this was him.
“This is Matt, your father.” She said introducing me.
“Matt this is Lucy.” She told him. We were all speechless as we just stood there.
“Do you think we can talk? Like Jean said, I want to get to know you.” He said. I looked at both of them and took in a deep breathe.
“Well, I don’t want to get to know you.” I said quietly and walked out. I could not deal with him right now so I left. I ran to the stable and got my horse Oklahoma Crew out of the stall. As I guided him out Matt ran up to me.
“Please Lucy, I just want to talk.” He pleaded.
“Well I don’t.” I said hopping up on Oklahoma Crew.
“Lucinda!” I heard Jean call as I rode off. I rode Oklahoma Crew for about a mile and came to a stop at the small fence that separated Rain Tree Farms and Davis Farms. I pulled out my cell phone and sent a text to my boyfriend, Ryan, telling him to meet me here. Soon I saw his red Mustang pull up and he got out.
“What’s up buttercup?” He said kissing me.
“I just need you.” I whispered and kissed him back.
“What’s going on?” He asked concerned.
“A guy showed up at the ranch today.” I said.
“What did he want?” He asked.
“He claims that he’s my father.” I said. As I looked him in his eyes I could tell he was confused.
“What does this mean?” He whispered.
“I don’t know. I ran off before I gave him a chance to talk to me.” I admitted.
“You should talk to him.” He said.
“I don’t want to.” I said quickly.
“Luce, you need to. If he’s your dad than you need to get know him. You’ve never had a dad, or a mom. Now’s your chance.” He said taking my face in his hands. I sighed and rested my head on his chest.
“Hop on. I’ll meet you back at Rain Tree.” He said. I nodded my head and hopped on Oklahoma Crew. Like he said, we met back at the ranch.
“Lucy!” Jean called as I walked in the door with Ryan.
“Ryan.” She said curtly. Being that Ryan is from Davis Farms she still wasn’t happy that we were together. You see, Rain Tree and Davis Farms were rivals, in the horse racing business that is.
“Jean.” Ryan said politely.
“Matt’s waiting for you in the kitchen.” Jean said. I sighed and kissed Ryan on the cheek before leaving them and walking into the kitchen. I saw Matt sitting down at the table and decided to sit across from him.
“I just want to talk.” He said.
“Fine, talk.” I said.
“Your mom and I met when she was visiting Huntington Beach, about a year before you were born. We spent all summer together. She was amazing. I thought things were going great, but then she just up and left. Until a couple weeks ago I didn’t even know that she had died.” He said.
“When she left I was heartbroken, but I thought if she truly loved me then she would have come back. I made a mistake, I should have found her, because then I would have known about you.” He said and sighed.
“I never even met her. She never got to hold me. Jean says she knew she was going to die. Everyone knew. I wasn’t supposed to live either.” I said softly.
“But I’m glad you did. You’re my daughter and I love you.” He said.
“So what now?” I asked shifting my eyes away from his.
“I want you to come live with me.” He said.
“Are you crazy? I have a life here, my friends, my family!” I shouted.
“I know but I want to get to know you better! I can’t do that if you’re in Texas!” He said.
“I don’t even know you! Up until today you were a total stranger!” I said.
“Then let’s change that. What do you want to know?” He said.
“What do you do for a living?” I sighed.
“I’m in a band. You’ve probably heard of it, Avenged Sevenfold.” He said.
“Nope.” I said.
“Really? It’s a big band.” He said. So now he was being conceited?
“In case you haven’t noticed I live in Texas, where the majority of music here is country.” I said. We obviously had differences.
“Alright. What else do you want to know?” He asked.
“Are you married, do you have kids?” I asked.
“No and no.” he said. I really had nothing else to ask. I already knew I didn’t want to go with him.
“Anything else you want to ask?” He asked me.
“No, I’ve heard enough.” I said standing up.
“Wait- what now?” he asked me.
“Now you go back to your life, and I stay here in mine.” I said.
“Lucinda, you don’t get it. You’re my daughter; I have a right to have custody over you. Your the only thing missing in my life.” He said.
“And you don’t get that this is where I’ve spent my entire life. My family is here. My friends are here. My horses are here. If I go with you, then I leave all of that behind. I’m training to be a horse jockey. I can’t do that out in California without my horses. My boyfriend is here. This is my life. I don’t want to move to Huntington Beach. I won’t move to Huntington Beach.” I said.
“I really hate to do this, but I’m not missing out on any more time in your life. Unless you, Jean, and I can all come to an agreement, then I’ll sure for custody.” He said.

******

“Please don’t make me go mom.” I cried to Jean. We sat on the couch as she held me in her arms.
“Honey this is your one shot at getting to know your father. I have prayed for this day since you were born. I’m not about to let you pass this up. Your mom would have wanted you to know him.” She told me.
“If she really would have wanted me to know him then she would have told him about me before she died.” I said.
“Your mom was scared. The thing is that she knew she was going to die. She just didn’t want to hurt Matt. She figured that maybe if he was mad at her that maybe that was better than him being heartbroken because she died.” She explained.
“Can’t I just visit him on weekends?” I asked.
“I don’t think that would really work out.” She laughed.
“When do I have to go?” I sighed.
“You have three days to pack.” She said. finally I just gave up. There was obviously nothing I could do.
"I'm gonna miss you." I said.
"I'm gonna miss you too. But you just be brave and keep safe out there ok?" She asked me.
"Yes." I sighed.