Chapter Nine

Fiction Press User:

Morgita2014

[All The Pretty little donkeys]

Laine's mother does not support her daughter's creative beliefs. She thinks that the world is only books and learning; Laine disagrees. A trip to her grandmothers makes her question everything her mother had taught her in previous years. She comes upon an enchanted forest full with mysterious creatures that spins her world upside down. Now that Laine has seen the two sides of the world which will side will she choose, the realistic New York City environment with her mother of The Enchanted Forest?

"Dad, what is it?" I asked him when he got closer.

"Can we talk?" He said looking around nervously. Why was he nervous?

"Yeah sure…" I led him out to the stable that held Polly and started brushing her, encouraging him to talk.

He saw the radio in the corner and turned it on, guitar solos screamed at him the second he turned it on the station I had last listened to was still on.

"You listen to this crap?" I nodded my head and didn't add much. I listened to all kinds of music, one of my favorite rock songs had just happened to be on at the time.

We stood, not saying a word. I had halted my brushing after the radio had turned on and have yet to return to the task. He stood awkwardly in a suit-I assumed was for work-and listened to the loud music.

After two songs of this I was done. I stomped over to the radio and flipped the power switch, "What do you need?" I asked him impatiently. His gloomy attitude was really starting to ruin my good day.

"Hey!" He called, grabbing my arm, "You don't speak to me like that… have some manners." I scoffed at the snide remark. "What the hell is your problem, girl?" His accent was noticeable when he was irritated but I tried not to notice.

"Biologically, you are my father but I only respect people who deserve respect so dammit! What do you need?" I said the last part slowly, hoping he would just tell me once and for all.

"Who said I needed anything?" I rolled my eyes, "I could just be here to see what's going on… nothing interesting happened today right?"

I almost cried right there, he didn't even remember "It's my birthday…"

I heard a muttered curse from under his breath and then he was fiddling with his pockets. "Yeah… I remembered sorry." He riffled threw his wallet and handed me a gift card to Wal-Mart.

"Gee, thanks." I said with obvious sarcasm.

He smiled anyway, unaware of my sour mood, "You're welcome; it has like seventeen dollars and a few quarters on it."

"You didn't remember."

"No, I'm sorry…"

"Its fine, you're just not used to being a dad." I was trying to look at the situation in an understanding way but he kept making that difficult.

"Actually, I have three children." I looked at him so widely I was concerned my eyeballs would roll out of my head.

"Really?"

"Yeah… Indiana is a year older than you, fifteen—" I stopped him right there.

"Dad, I turned fifteen today—we established this."

"Oh, yeah…"

I told him it was okay—even though it was not.

"Anyway, I also have twins and they are Georgia and Virginia and they are ten." He seemed so proud when he spoke of them, it made me jealous. I was not normally a jealous person but how could I not be when my own father is gushing about his other children when he couldn't even remember my birthday. Not to mention, who names all of their children after states?

"What is it you needed exactly?" I asked him, an unshed tear in my green eyes. My mother said they were so close to being neon green it was scary but she was glad her father's strange eyes had been passed onto me.

"To talk." He answered simply, I was not good with vague answers I deserved at least an entire sentence for an explanation.

"About what?" I asked him seriously looking on up at him. He wasn't very tall, maybe five foot six at most but I wasn't very tall either. "Obviously you didn't come to wish me a happy birthday."

"Katherine—"He began.

"Elaine…" I growled at him. Yes, growled… not screamed or shouted or whispered—growled.

"Fine." He said not seeming to care either way. "I can't really spend time with you anymore, my wife is starting to think I'm cheating and she doesn't know about you…"

"How does she not know?"

"That's not important but I'd really appreciate it if you just forgot about me." He moved towards me and reached to grab the brush from my hand. I jerked it out of his grasp but he reached again and succeeded in retrieving it.

He began to brush Polly while I was fuming internally, glaring daggers at the man I now officially hated.

"Sorry but I can't just do that as easily as you think."

"Sure you can—you never had a dad so I'm sure you're used to it." He seemed a little happy when he said that like he was getting enjoyment from making me angry. What the hell had my mother done to make him hate his own child so much?

I opened my mouth ready to snap at him when he interrupted me, "Oh, sorry… I forgot about all those crack addicts you're mom must date. I'm sure they're great fatherly figures." He said happily. I screamed and backed him into Polly's tail.

Polly made an irritated noise and struck her leg back, kicking my father in his upper thigh. He flew back and landed his butt in a bucket and just sat there for awhile letting the pain sink in. "Damn that hurt." I was laughing now though and he stared up at me like I had no humanity. It was just too funny that my donkey kicked him and got his bottom stuck in a bucket; karma's on my side, I guess.

I laughed and laughed while he glared at me, he deserved it though.

"Are you going to help me?"

"No."

He pulled himself up and forced the bucket off, he snatched the Wal-Mart gift card from where I had sat it down, and then threw Polly's brush at my left arm. "Happy birthday, Katherine, tell your attention-whore mom I said 'Hi.'" I reacted impulsively I'll admit but I didn't care, taking the brush and chucking at his head had made me feel better.

He turned his eyes to me and full-on glared reaching for his cell phone, "I'm calling the police." On his daughter? The weirdo deserved it!

I decided to continue to act impulsively and hopped onto Polly (Luckily she was ready to ride).

For the first few minutes of the ride I was dead set on getting Polly to go as fast as she possibly could. I turned my head and saw my father trying to catch up, limping due to my jenny kicking him; he was still on his phone.

Polly kept on running without direction from me. We ended up in the middle of my grandmothers woods—much further than I'd ever been before.

"Where are you taking me?"

"To Green Place." I was turning my head around franticly looking for the source of that child-like voice. "Oh, and my name is Alex, not Polly."

A/N: Sorry it took me two weeks to update, I was on spring break and then I had to get back into a regular routine.

Kind of a cliff hanger don't you think? That was officially the end of Part One, now onto the more exciting, more fantastical Part Two. It will be two weeks until next update because I want to work on finishing three chapters in advance so I have a regular update schedule.