I’m startled awake by a loud thud, followed by more bangs that reverberate around the house. I sit up quickly, straining to hear what is going on. It’s then I hear Cathy’s voice.
‘You slut. Get out here, Maggie. Get your dirty slut ass out here and explain to me why you’ve been fucking my boyfriend.’
‘Fuck,’ I mutter, sliding my legs out of bed. A wave of nausea swells in my belly, and I smooth my hands over my wavy hair that I know will be tangled and messy.
There are stamping footsteps moving down the hallway, and I swear again, realizing that Mom is about to open the front door to my furious friend.
‘What the hell do you think you’re doing?’ Mom shouts. ‘Who the hell do you think you are, banging on my front door at this godforsaken hour?’
‘You know what your skank daughter has done? She’s pregnant with my boyfriend’s baby. She’s…’
‘Justin isn’t your boyfriend. He got fed up with your moaning and whining, and he moved on. What Maggie did with him when he was free and single is none of your goddamned business. And what is going on in her personal life is also none of your goddamned business. I don’t know what you thought you were going to do to a pregnant woman at this time of the morning, shouting your mouth off, but you better get your ass off my porch before I call the police and report you for harassment.’
‘But…’ I hear Cathy stammer.
‘BUT NOTHING!’ Mom bellows. ‘You think we don’t have other things going on? Maggie’s dad has just died. She doesn’t need this juvenile bullshit from you. So, take your dumped ass home, and get over yourself. And don’t you EVER come back to this house shouting like that again.’
I step out into the hallway, and I get to see Cathy’s furious expression from a safe distance. She must see the movement, and her eyes meet mine. ‘You shouldn’t have done it, Maggie,’ she hisses. ‘Justin is mine. He always has been mine, and he always will be mine. Don’t you go thinking that you can change that just because you got knocked up.’
‘Did you not hear me, Cathy Watson? You leave Maggie alone.’
Mom slams the door shut and slaps it hard once just to let Cathy know exactly what she’ll get if she dares to pound on it again. Mom’s face is red with fury, but she exhales a long breath, leaning against the cracked paint of the hallway. In her pj’s, she looks too young to be on the way to being a grandma. Some women haven’t had their first child by her age. ‘Thanks, Mom.’
‘That girl had it coming. She exists in a constant state of drama that she centers around herself. You don’t get to own a man because you dated him once, and you certainly don’t get to control who sleeps with him after you broke up.’
‘That’s not what you said yesterday,’ I remind her.
‘Yeah, well, she’s got a nerve coming here and shouting that about my daughter.’
The alarm on my nightstand starts to ring. It’s 7 am, and I should be getting ready for a typical day, but it feels far from ordinary. If Cathy knows, then everyone else will know. She’ll make sure my name is mud. Yesterday I might have been able to deal with that, but the news about my dad has stripped me of some of my tough coating. I return to my room to turn off the annoying sound. Mom is heading back to her room as I stick my head out of the door. ‘I don’t think I can face going in today. I’m gonna stay home and wait for Uncle Walter’s call.’
Mom would usually tell me that I have to go to college whether I’m sick or not. She always wanted me to get the best education and stressed so much if she thought I was going to drop behind. I guess now things don’t matter so much.
‘Okay, honey. I’ll send him your number so he can call you direct. That’s better for me. My boss doesn’t like it if I accept personal calls at work.’
It feels strange to be at home on a weekday. I spend time sorting out my closet, considering which of my clothes will still fit me in a few months. The conclusion is not many. I have no idea how quickly my belly will swell. I throw up twice, which is gross, but I feel so much better after the first time, I welcome it the second. It’s after lunch when my phone rings with an out-of-state number.
‘Hello.’
‘Hi, is that Maggie?’ Uncle Walter’s voice is deep and sounds so much like my dad’s that my hand flies to my mouth.
‘Yes.’
‘Maggie, it’s your Uncle Walter.’ He pauses as though he’s feeling as uncomfortable about this situation as I am. ‘I’m sorry we’re speaking under such sad circumstances. It’s been a long time since I saw you.’
‘I know,’ I say, because what else is there?
‘I’m sure your mom told you the news about your dad. It’s taken us all by surprise.’
‘Yes.’
‘Well, I don’t know what you feel about it. I know things between you weren’t great for a long time.’ I don’t say anything because the lump in my throat is too big to swallow, and I know that my voice will crack if I try. ‘He left a will. He was more organized about this stuff than I am… it’s made me think about what I need to do to get my affairs in order… but that’s not what I need to talk to you about. Your dad had a house. It’s in the will. He’s left you a letter too. I think he wrote it a couple of years ago when he drafted the will. He’s asked that you come here to get the keys and read the letter, and he’s left it to you to clear out his things.’
‘He left me a house?’
‘Why don’t you come over and I can explain everything? It’ll be better to deal with it all face to face. I’m sure you have a lot of questions. There will be a lot for you to do. We can spend some time together, and your cousin Jolene. I know she’d be made up to see you again. And Danna too.’
All I remember about Jolene is that she had red hair and freckles and used to drag a naked barbie around when she was a toddler. As for Danna, I think she’s a little older than me, but not much. We’ve all grown a whole lot since we last saw each other. Too much time has passed. That is all about to change.
‘I’ll leave tomorrow morning,’ I say. ‘Is that okay?’
‘Of course,’ Uncle Walter says. ‘I’ll send you the details. We’ll talk over coffee and see if we can work everything out.
I want to tell him that there’s no working anything out. My dad is gone, and I’m knocked up. There is no going back to undo either of those facts.
‘Okay,’ I say. And just like that, everything changes.
