Page 147 of Toxic Wishes
“I miss you too.” I shut my eyes. “So much. Wish you were here.”
“Abigail came by and taught me some more cool notes on the guitar. Is that why you called?”
“No, I didn’t know anything about that. But I bet you sound amazing playing it. I can’t wait to hear it when I come home in a few weeks.”
“Ya, Abigail said I sounded just as good as my uncle, and if I kept practicing, I could be even better than him.”
“That’s awesome, bud,” I say through a chuckle.
“I wish you were here. Abigail seemed happier, and everything seemed more fun. We all could be watching a movie right now.”
His words were a swift kick to the gut. I knew Bodie got close to Abigail over the summer, but not this attached.
“I'd much rather be there with you, too.”
“Grandma only lets me watch cartoons, not even the animated kind.”
I heard my mom say some words in the background, but I didn’t realize I fell silent until I heard Bodie say, “Are you there?”
“Yeah, bud, I’m here. Where is Abigail tonight? Did you guys go over to the lake house?”
“No, she doesn’t live there anymore. Grandpa had been coming to see me, and she was with him. He told me they were working on some album.”
While it brought me some relief to know she was still coming around, I had no idea she had moved out of the apartment already. That must mean my dad was staying there, which made sense. My real estate agent called me a few times asking me if we needed to update the ads to a four-bedroom house instead of a three-bedroom.
This is what I had expected to happen, what needed to happen, but I’d never get used to the idea. We talked for a few more minutes before Bodie put my mom back on the phone.
She must have read my mind because she lowered her voice. “I don’t know when Abigail officially moved out, but when I went over there, because Bodie wanted to let her hear a song he’s been practicing, she wasn’t there. Cliff gave me her number when I told him I needed to contact her because Bodie wanted to play a song for her. That’s when Cliff told me they’ve been working on some album together. And that’s the only reason why he had Abigail’s number. Not sure what that’s about, but I didn’t even ask. Knowing your father it could all be a bunch of bullcrap.”
“Your guess is as good as mine, Momma. I haven’t talked to Cliff much. I’m still not too happy he’s unloading on me again.”
“Well, it doesn’t shock me. Narcissism does exist.”
My mom resents my dad after all these years, but I can’t blame her. He left her to take care of me all by herself. Once, he stopped over, gave her a hundred bucks, and told her it was for child support, and now she could lay off his back. I’ll never forget the look on my mom's face, which was more of a slap to the face than anything.
There was a brief silence before I asked, “So, how is Abigail?” My heart pounded as I waited for her answer. My mom has seen her and was a pro at reading people.
“She seems okay, a little less distracted each time I see her. She must be busy because I have to remind that girl to eat. She looks thinner and thinner each week, so I invited her over to eat some of my famous chicken.”
“That’s nice of you momma. When will she be over?”,
“Well, she told me she would let me know for sure a day before.”
My heart sank. I remembered her eating disorder. Could I be the trigger to all that, or was it just the stress of school and work?
“Have you talked to her recently?”
That’s my mom’s way of asking what happened with us. My mom liked Abigail. I knew the day I brought her over by how she looked at her with a twinkle in her eye and how she talked and stayed with her on the porch. My mom never did that with Naomi. But I was not in the mood to rehash all the details again.
“Not since I left Missouri.”
“Does that have anything to do with that video Bodie posted?”
I take in a deep breath. “No,” I say as I exhale. “Not at all. Or Naomi, because I know that’s what you’ll ask next.”
“Oh, I know she’s not the reason.” My mom laughs lightly.
“The reason for what?”