Beautifully Broken

Chapter 32

"Kayla, baby. There you are, we've all been looking everywhere" Tyler approached me.

I looked up at him, my tears had stopped now, I had begun to calm down by focusing on my breathing. The reality of everything that I had just revealed in front of everyone was creeping up on me and the way I blasted my dad. I needed to talk to him, that wasn't fair on him for me to blow up like that. I also needed to explain things to my friends and apologise to them and Tyler. How did a perfect night suddenly become such a mess. 

Tyler came closer, lifting me to my feet and wrapping his arms around me. I immediately sunk into his arms, he always made me feel like things would be ok just by hugging me, just being there.

"I'm sorry for not telling you. I was so embarrassed; I didn't tell anyone except Kara" I said, still burying my head into Tyler's shirt.

"Hey, it's ok. No one is mad at you. Your dad is incredibly worried though. That probably wasn't right just dropping that bomb on him, right after you introduced me too. The poor man probably just aged 10 years."

"Oh god. What have I done? He has been so broken and tonight he looked ok, now I've just done that. I... I need to find him" I said, panicked now, my breathing increasing again.

"Hey, hey, look at me, breath Kay" he said, lifting my head up. He wiped under my eyes, where my makeup had probably run down my face with my tears.

"Still beautiful" he said, kissing my forehead. "Talk to your dad, you can talk to the rest of us later, only if you want to though. You don't have to tell us about it."

"I will talk. You, especially. We are together, you have shared all the horrible parts of your life with me, you deserve to know. I just, well I had been ignoring it and naively I hoped that if I pretended it wasn't true then it wasn't. Stupid I know."

"Not stupid Kayla. Not at all" he said gently.

Tyler slipped his hand into mine and lead me back to the party where my dad was sitting at our table. He looked broken again, resting a beer in one hand while slumped back on my seat.

"Dad? I'm sorry. Uh, maybe we can go and talk?" I said softly as I approached the table. I looked around at my friends faces and the pity that they had for me was obvious. That was exactly what I was trying to avoid.

My dad looked up at me, relief flooding his face that I had come back. He stood and we walked away from the music towards the clifftop. When we stopped, he wrapped his arms around me, holding me close to him.

"Kayla, I'm so sorry. So, so sorry. I wasn't the parent that you needed, and it led to you getting hurt. I hope you don't mind, Kara filled me in on what happened. I... I don't even know what to say."

"Dad, you don't need to apologise. It happened and it was horrible, but I really am in a better place, Kara, Tyler, all my friends actually have been a huge support. Mrs. James too."

"I hear that boyfriend of yours was a big help. He seems like a good kid"

"He really is perfect" I confirmed.

"But you are living together in that house? I'm not sure about that Kayla"

"We have separate bedrooms, and sleep in our own rooms. I can't go home Dad; I can't go to that house. Not just because of Garret but that house reminds me of mom, and I hate her. I hate her so much. I hate what she did to us."

"Don't hate her Kayla. What she did is wrong, but she is still your mother"

"How do you not hate her? She broke you; she broke all of us. I don't know if I can ever forgive her and let her in again."