Learning Curve

Finn

“Dad had a whole other family,” Willow says, but it’s more for herself than for anyone else. A musing of wonderment after the absolute whirlwind of the last twelve hours.

It’s a little after nine in the evening, and I’m sitting in my dorm on FaceTime with all four of my siblings. Willow, Trav, and Jack are on one screen, and Reece is on the other. After everything that’s happened today, I knew a face-to-face discussion was necessary, and because of Ty’s request that I stay in my room tonight to ensure no more trouble with Dane while he packed his shit, this is as close as I could get to that.

“I can’t believe he abandoned his wife and five kids,” Travis says and shakes his head. “That is so messed up.”

“Yeah, and then years later, he changes his name and starts a whole other family,” Jack adds on a sigh. “He’s a bigger dick than I thought. Which is saying a lot, given the guy broke my finger in three places.”

“Could you imagine being his other kids?” Willow questions, and a disgusted expression forms on her face. “To find out that not only did your father abandon you when you were little, but he just went off and had a whole other five kids. It’s gross.”

“I think we can all agree that his other kids got the better end of the bargain,” I interject. “I mean, they got a life without him. We got a life with him.”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t change the fact that their father left them when they were little,” Willow counters. “I can’t even imagine the kind of trauma that causes.”

“Low is right,” Jack agrees. “It’s a miracle his other kids even want to help us. I mean, if my dad abandoned me and started a whole other family, I don’t know that I’d be rolling out the red carpet for the kids who actually got a father.”

I’m floored over my siblings’ reaction to this. It’s quite literally the opposite of mine and full of perspective and grace. Shame eats at me.

“How long did you know about this, Finn?” Reece questions, but Jack is quick to chime in right on top of him.

“What are the damn odds that one of your professors ends up being our brother from another mother?” His face gets this comical expression, and a laugh jumps from his lungs. “That has to be the biggest coincidence in history.”

“Yeah,” I say and avoid Reece’s eyes. “Definitely a huge coincidence.”

My eldest brother’s spidey senses are engaged, but I refuse to get into the dirty details of how long I’ve known about our father’s other family. It feels unnecessary at this point and, more than that, absolutely fucking stupid in a group setting such as this.

“How’s Mom?” I question, and Willow shrugs.

“She’s doing okay. I’m sure it’s a lot to wrap her head around, her husband having a whole other family and all. She’s also worried about missing shifts at the factory, but Remy told her she has nothing to worry about.”

“Not to mention, this lake house is sick,” Jack adds. “I feel like I’m in a damn Hallmark movie, bro. The Winslow siblings hooked us up.”

After the state trooper that Remy called in a favor with picked up my brothers and sister from the park down the street from our house in Westchester, he took them to a lake house that’s owned by their uncle Brad and aunt Paula. Ty was there to meet them. Apparently, Brad and Paula decided to spend the winter months in a rental in Florida, and they were more than happy to open their doors to Hayes strays. Then, Remy waited for my mom outside of work this afternoon and drove her up there to be with them after convincing her to come with him.

“The view here is unreal,” Low says with a smile, even turning the camera to face the floor-to-ceiling windows that look out onto the water. “I can’t believe we get to spend Christmas here.”

“Ty even took Jack and me to this Christmas tree stand up the street to get a tree. I can’t remember the last time we actually had a tree up,” Trav comments. “You should’ve seen the look on Mom’s face when we brought it in. I don’t think I’ve seen her smile that big in years. Hell, probably my whole damn life.”

“Damn,” Reece muses. “I don’t know how we’re ever going to repay them for what they’re doing for us.”

“Dude. You’re preaching to the choir,” Trav agrees with a sarcastic grin. “I think I might like my new siblings better than I like you guys.”

“I’m with Trav.” Jack nods on a laugh. “If Winnie, Flynn, and Jude are anything like Ty and Remy, I might disown you fucks.”

Low rolls her eyes, but she also smiles when she says, “All this time, I thought I was the only girl stuck around a bunch of stinky boys, but I actually have a sister. How cool is that.”

“Are you going to try to come home for the holidays, Reece?” Jack questions, and Reece shakes his head.

“I wish, man. But I’m a broke-ass college student who can’t afford a ticket. Plus, I need to save up for when I make the big transfer to Dickson next year.”

“I still can’t believe you’re coming to Dickson,” I admit.

Reece flashes a knowing smirk at me. “After all the fucking fights you’ve been getting into? I think it’s safe to say I need to come to Dickson to keep your ass in check.”

I shake my head. “I’m done fighting.” Unbelievably, I mean it.

“Food’s here!” another distant voice echoes in the receiver, and when Jack and Trav glance over their shoulders, it’s apparent it’s on their end.

“This has been a real lovely chat,” Trav says with a wink. “But my new favorite brother Ty just brought a shitload of takeout, and I’m starved. See you fuckers on the flip side.”

He’s doesn’t look back, and Jack follows his lead, only offering his middle finger and a laughing, “Love you assholes.”

Low rolls her eyes and tells us she loves us, and Reece and I end the call shortly after that.

“So…I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop, but it’s kind of hard, you know?” Ace states, and I glance over my shoulder to find him eating a bag of potato chips on his futon. “Quite the turn of events, huh?”

“Yeah.” I run a hand through my hair and drop my phone on my bed. “A fucking whirlwind.”

“Don’t worry, man, I don’t even expect a thank-you or anything.”

“What?” I furrow my brow, and he shoves a chip into his smiling mouth.

“For calling my dad, who called your—who’d have guessed it—brother to come save your ass. It’s on the house. No charge. In fact, you can consider it a free service, complimentary with your roommateship.”

I don’t bother explaining that I’ve already known Ty is my brother for years. It’d mean having to explain the whole coming-to-Dickson-to-plot-his-downfall thing, and I don’t think that would go over too big.

“I have a hard time believing you were starved for attention when you were a kid, but you sure as fuck act like it.”

He laughs as I reach for my phone when it pings with a new text message.

Julia: Hey, just wanted to update you that I just left her dorm. I stayed all day until she literally made me leave, but she’s not doing that great. Honestly, she’s a mess. Embarrassed. Mortified. Doesn’t want to leave her room. She wouldn’t eat anything when I was there either. I’m worried about her, for sure.

I’m already on my feet, shoving my phone into my pocket and grabbing my keys.

“I’ll be back in a few,” I tell Ace, grabbing my jacket from the hook by the door.

He jumps to his feet, nervous. “Hold up. I thought you told Ty you’d stay in tonight.”

I roll my eyes. “I’m not going to get into any trouble, I promise. But there’s something I have to do.”

He’s reluctant, but he’s also Ace. There’s a reason I like him—he knows when it’s not a good idea to cross a boundary. “All right, dude. But call me if you need something.”

I nod and jet, running down the hall, down the stairs, and out the door, before anyone can spot me.

Thirty minutes later, I’m standing in front of Scottie’s door with a bag of food from her favorite hoagie joint up the street. Every cell inside my body wants to see her, talk to her, but I know she’s not ready for that.

So, I do the second-best thing. I set the food on the floor and knock three times before I jog down the hallway and out of sight.

I stay hidden, but I don’t leave until I see her open the door and take the food inside her room.

Her eyes look sadder than I’ve ever seen, and her body is sunken and hollow. I wish I had the power to turn back time—to change the course of her fate.

But if I did, I would have changed mine and my family’s a long time ago.

This is no Aladdin, and I’m no genie. Only time will heal this wound. But there’s nothing to stop me from granting secret wishes while we wait.