the worst things in life

His would finally be it. Gracie would finally know who her father was. She would finally have a family again. A parent. Gracie needed a parent. Not a brother or sister or uncle or aunt or whatever. A mother and a father.The girl was only fifteen years old. The girl needed a parent. She had know idea that everything was about to change though. That she was about to learn that even the people whom you trust the most keep secrets, lie about who they really are. She was suppose to meet Uncle Ben at his office. Uncle Ben. Sure, he was actually her brother. But she had always grown accustomed to calling him Uncle Ben.

Gracie was actually excited. Her parents. She would finally find out who they were. She could have a daddy again. For so long, a piece of her felt completely empty. Deep down, all she wanted to do was find out about her real family. But this was something that she could never say aloud. She was a good girl. Proper. She never cried, never showed when she was upset. She never threw tantrums. She was a rules girl. She always followed them. That was just who she was.

After school, Gracie stopped by her locker to check her make-up and to grab the things she would need in order to do her homework that night. She left the building and walked to the bus stop. Paying the bus fair after getting on, she walked to the back, taking a seat, sitting by the window. After about ten minutes, she reached her stop and got off. She walked up to the building where Ben worked and walked inside, looking for the correct door. When she found it, she took in a deep breathe. She finally knocked on the door and slowly opened it. “Uncle Ben?”

Gracie took a seat in the chair and stayed quiet, listening to Ben speak. “Why are you telling me about some girl that shot her parents? That's not me. I would never do such a god awful thing. You should know. You know the woman who raised me. I'm more mature than any other kid my own age. I don't cry or throw tantrums. I can handle anything that comes my way, Uncle Ben.” And it was true. Gracie was a good girl. She never caused any sort of trouble and always followed the rules. Even if it was something that she disagreed to. She never shared her own opinions. Not if it would possibly cause an argument. “Uncle Ben? I don't care. I am fifteen years old. Papa passed away. Mama... she has Alzheimers. I need a parent. I need to know who my dad is. I have to know.”

Gracie was never one to ever get impatient. But this one time she found herself getting that way. So she got to her feet, grabbing the envelope. She turned her back to him and ripped it open before he could stop her and pulled out the piece of paper that wpould change everything. She unfolded the piece of paper and her eyes went straight to the name... No! No, no, no. That could not be right! “No...” she could feel the tears stinging her eyes, her hands trembling. She could feel her anger rising. Immediately she ripped the paper up, the pieces dropping to the floor. “He is not my father.” She shook her head, turning back to Ben. “I don't know what to believe anymore. Everyone has lied to me. I feel...betrayed. I feel...angry. I have never felt like this before. I-I don't-” She shook her head.

Get out. Go somewhere. To a place that you feel like you belong, feel safe. She trusted Ben more than most people. She had never said that to anyone. And now, well, he was the only person that she could trust. Her parents, Nathan, everyone had lied to her. She needed to get out of here. To get away from it all. She wanted to go back home. Back to the UK. She knew exactly where to go. To the one place that she had felt like she belonged, felt safe, felt like she was at home. At it was the only place that she had left. She had money. Enough money to get her there. This was it. Tonight. No, she was not going to go home and pack. No time. She did have her credit card. That should be enough to get her plane ticket straight to the UK. And she had two thousand in cash. In her purse.

“Uncle Ben?” Uncle Ben. That suddenly sounded so freaking weird. Yet, that was what Gracie had always called her brother. But now, as it turned out, he really was her uncle. She pulled her wallet from her purse. “I have all of the money that I need right here. I'm all set.” She gave a nervous chuckle. “Guess it pays to be a saver and not a spender. Huh? Anyway, do you think you could drop me off at the airport?”

Gracie did not even stop to pack some things. She just wanted to get the hell out of Toronto. Once at the airport, she hugged Ben and told him that she would call, let him now how she was doing. He was the only one Gracie could trust her now. And then she got onto her flight to London, England.

Ten hours. That was how long it took for the plane to reach its destination. Ten very long hours. She got off of the plane and caught a taxi, giving him the address of the school she had lived at. The only place she ever truly felt safe, felt at home. Her plan? To go back. To live there. She was friends with a lot of people there. She was so sure that it was possible. But she also had a friend there. One she had kept in touch with, even after leaving London. And it was her room she had gone to. Told her the whole story and asked to stay in her room for a few days until she sorted everything out.

This could not be happening. How could her family do this to her? Lie to her like that? Did they believe her to be some kind of idiot? Did they think that this was something that she would never find out? They were nuts, psychotic. Her entire family. No way was she ever going back to that Hell. Not one fucking chance. Even if they did happen to find her, there was no way. No fucking way at all was he going to take her back to Toronto. Back to the family that did nothing but lie to her for fifteen years.

At the moment, Gracie was alone in her friends room. She had told her that she needed to stop by the library to do some research. Gracie had decided to take a name while she was out of the room. After one hour into her nap, however, she heard the door and sat up. She was not so sure that she should even answer. But she decided to go ahead and do so, just in case it was important. Standing up, she walked over and opened the door. And did not expect to see him. She shook her head and folded her arms across her chest. “What are you doing here, Nathan?” she hissed. “Or should I say... Father?”

No one could possibly understand how she was feeling right about now. When Gracie was a little girl, she use to dream about her birth parents. She thought that maybe they gave her up because they wanted to do what was best for their child. Maybe they were poor, didn't have the money. And one day, they would come looking for her. She was upset. And disappointed. That fairy tale would never happen now. She had no one left that she could trust. Didn't they ever think how this would affect her? Or maybe her feelings just did not matter. To anyone. Why should they? She was just some stupid little kid, right? That's probably what everyone thought of her as.

Gracie just rolled her eyes and took a step back. “I do not care.” She shook her head and walked over, sitting down on her friends bed. “You cannot make me do anything that I do not want to do. You may be my biological father, but you are not family. You're dead to me now.” She was not sure that she would ever be able to forgive him for this. Ever. “Get the Hell out of my life. Okay?” She quickly got to her feet and pointed towards the door. “Leave. Now!”