A Special Summer Ch. 04

"Your father and I support you and pay for you to go to college, which means we decide what is best for you," Sally responded, getting angry.

Andi said angrily, "If being your daughter means I have to be a piece of shit like you, then fuck you, I'm done with you and Dad." She turned and started to go upstairs to her room. As she reached the bottom of the stairs she turned and said, "And so you know, I've been fucking women for a year."

Sally stood dumbfounded for a moment, then stormed up the stairs. She went to Andi's room and tried the door, it was locked. "Andrea, open this door right now," she demanded. Andi didn't respond, so she said, "When you're done with this childish tantrum, pack your belongings and come home." She crossed the hall and went into the other room, stuffed her belongings into her bag and stormed back down the stairs. As she left, she looked back over her shoulder and said to Christie, "I told Mark this was a bad idea, but he insisted it was fine. But now look at what you've done. You've destroyed her life, just like you destroyed your own." She slammed the door and left.

Christie ran immediately upstairs and knocked on Andi's door. "Andi, it's me," she said and waited as Andi unlocked and opened the door before retreating to the bed with tears running down her face.

Christie went to her and wrapped her arms around her, holding her close. Andi turned to her and said through her sobs, "Christie I'm so sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for, sweetie," Christie said as she held her niece close.

"I just can't believe she talked to you like that, Christie," Andi said through her sobs. "How can she treat her own sister like that?"

"I don't know, Andi," she said shaking her head, "She's been like this since she found out that I was getting a divorce."

About ten minutes later Andi's phone rang, she picked it up and saw that it was her father. She swiped to answer and said curtly, "Hello."

"Hello, sweetie," Mark said softly, "I just talked to your mother."

"And?" Andi said angrily.

"And I told her she was being a bitch," he said.

Andi's mouth dropped open and she said, "You called her a bitch?"

"Well, maybe not in those exact words, but I let her know that what she did was completely wrong," he said. "Unfortunately, I can't tell her how to treat her sister, but I get a vote when it comes to you."

"Dad, she was horrible to Christie," Andi said, tears flowing again, "It was terrible. I couldn't believe the things she said to her."

"I know, sweetie," he said softly, "Please tell your aunt I'm sorry about all this. I hoped that this summer could get us past all this, but it seems it only made it worse."

"I'll tell her," Andi said.

"I'll deal with your mother when she gets home tonight," he said, "But I didn't want you to worry. I'm so proud of you and the woman you have become, no matter who you decide to sleep with."

"Oh," she said, "She told you about that."

"She was fuming about it," he said, "and how she was going to have to face the women at the club." He paused for a moment, then continued, "Andi, you know I don't care about anything but your happiness, if that makes you happy, that's all that matters. You are my little girl and I love you no matter what."

"Thanks, Dad," she said softly. "I'm not coming home, you understand that, right?"

"Yes, I understand," he said.

"And I won't speak to her again until she apologizes to Christie," Andi continued.

"I will talk to her," he replied, "I wouldn't hold your breath though."

"I know, Dad," she said quietly, "But that is not negotiable. If she can't apologize, I will never speak to her again."

"I'll talk to her, that's all I can do right now. I love you, sweetie," he said.

"Love you too, Dad," Andi said then ended the call.

"Dad says hello and he's sorry about how mom acted," Andi said.

Christie smiled and said, "Your dad was always so sweet. Even after your mother stopped talking to me, he would still send me cards at Christmas and my birthday, would send me pictures of you and kept me updated on what was going on in your life. He was the one that called and told me about your internship and thought it would be great if you got to spend the summer with me."

"How about pie?" Andi asked out of nowhere, right now she just needed to think about something else.

Christie squeezed her tight, then they went downstairs, and Andi started making the pie. It took her about an hour to get it into the oven, then they went into the family room while it baked. When the pie was finished and cooled, they each had a slice with vanilla ice cream.

Christie took a bite and her eyes lit up, "This is fantastic," she said.

And took a bite and smiled, "It's pretty good, huh." It was the first time she'd made one by herself and she was very excited about how well it turned out.

By the time they had the kitchen cleaned up, it was late, and they headed off to bed. They said goodnight and headed to their rooms. Christie cleaned up and dressed in her blue nighty, then climbed into bed.

She was lying in bed staring at the ceiling, unable to sleep, when she heard a soft knock at the door. "Christie? Can I come in?"

"Sure, Hun," Christie answered.

Andi came in and sat on the edge of the bed next to Christie. "You OK?" she asked.

Christie took her hand and smiled. "I'm OK, still angry, but I'll get over it," she answered.

"I just can't believe she would treat you that way," she said as she laid her head on Christie's shoulder.

"You were willing to give up school because of the way your mother treated me," she said.

"Yeah, of course I was," Andi whispered. "It's just money. If her money meant being like her, I'd find another way to pay for school. That's part of what made me so mad, she acts like I'm some doll for her to play with and decide how my life is going to play out. She has no idea what I'm capable of."

"Why did you tell her you were sleeping with women, Christie asked, "I thought you hadn't.

"I haven't," Andi said, "I just thought that maybe, if it was me, she would see how horrible what she was saying was and would change or something. I don't know, maybe I just wanted to hurt her."

Christie stroked her softly as they sat together. She wanted to tell her not to destroy her relationship with her mother over her, but decided it was not a good time. They'd have time to talk more when their feelings weren't so raw.

"Can I sleep here tonight?" Andi asked.

"Of course," she replied and slid over, making room for Andi beside her.

Andi slid in and cuddled against her aunt, pressing her face into her chest and breathing softly. They held each other close, enjoying the comfort of their bodies together while they fell asleep.