Evie's POV

Every muscle in my body ached. I shifted uncomfortably in the passenger seat of my dad's car. Four hours on a flight from Oklahoma City to Jacksonville and then an hour cooped up in the car on my way to dad's house was already taking it's toll on me.

God, I hated flights.

I was tired, queasy and had a bad headache. Earache was at an all time high. I know most people had these complaints on long flights, but in my case, an hour on a flight was equal to a normal cranky person's ten hour flight. And I'm not a normal, cranky person. I'm a cranky, cranky person. Now imagine what a four hour flight would do to me. I'm not even exaggerating.

Though that sounded bad, it wasn't the real reason for the frown I was wearing on my face. I would've somehow made peace with being on an airplane if this vacation meant something. Even remotely.

But no.

It didn't.

All it did was rob me of my cabin trip with my friends and instead ship me off to visit my dad, who despite what he said, struggled to spend even a day of quality time with his daughter.

The very idea of spending my spring break holed up in dad's house, when I could instead go on an adventure, made me hate my mom and dad a little more than I already did.

That was when I finally realized that there was no way I could convince my mom to let me skip my court ordered yearly visit to dad for the third consecutive time in three years.

I'd groaned and cried and grumbled and threw a fit around the house, but nothing worked.

"Mom, I don't know anyone there. What am I going to do for ten days? He doesn't care whether I go or not!" I argued.

She gave me a stern look. "Evie, your dad wants you there. It's your last year. Next year you'll be eighteen and leave for university and he's afraid you won't be obliged to visit him anymore." Her tone told me this wasn't up for debate, but I'd tried my best.

"I was never obliged to visit him! Everytime I went there, I spent all my time with Nana. He was too occupied with his wife and daughter and his job to notice me!"

"You're his daughter."

"I'm talking about his other daughter."

She frowned. "She's your sister, Evie."

"Hey!" I put my hands up. "I got nothing against the kid or Christina. I'm just saying I'd rather spend time with my friends in a place where I'm wanted, instead of being holed up in a big house wearing sweats in spring."

My mom picked up my duffel bag from the floor and dropped it on my bed. "Start packing. The flight is at eleven am tomorrow."

"You gotta be kidding me!" I kicked at my bed, but it only hurt my toe. "Ow!" I cried out in sharp pain holding my foot in my hand and hopping around my room. "Mom, I'm hurt. I can't make the trip." I tried one last time.

She didn't even spare a glance at me as she left my room.

Now one day later, after arriving in Jacksonville, I let it sink that I'd lost. I never ever won any arguments in my whole life. In school debates, students panicked when I was on the same team as theirs. That's how pathetic I was at arguments.

I hadn't said a single word to dad since he picked me up at the airport. I greeted him by handing the larger duffel bag to him.

I cracked my neck and gazed outside at the trees lining either side of the roadway, wondering what on earth I was supposed to do to kill time for the next ten days. It was four in the afternoon already. Basically, I'd made it through half a day.

After I got home, I decided I'd take a long shower to ease all my cramped muscles. After that, I'll have to make it through the rest of the day and then it's gonna be just nine more days in Jacksonville. I closed my eyes and sighed.

"Are you tired?" I heard my dad ask.

I opened my eyes and turned to look at him. "I'll be okay."

I saw the corner of his mouth lift in a smile. "Good. Christina and the kids are so excited to see you."

Sure they are.

He cleared his throat and spoke again. "I'm so glad you decided to visit me, Evie."

I was moved by the sincerity in his tone and immediately regretted being so hard on him. But I knew it didn't matter what he said. "Yeah," I said without conviction.

I did want to spend time with my dad, if he actually did that. But every year I came over, he'd be busy with his wife and his work and I'd end up spending the whole duration of my visit with my grandma in her bakery.

But she was gone now, I thought sadly. She's been gone for four years. The first time I visited dad after she was gone, I realized how lonely this place was without her.

It wasn't fair.

Maybe this year will be different, I hoped. Then immediately, I laughed at myself for letting the thought grow in my mind.

Nothing's going to be different. It's going to be as dull as it was three years ago.

The rest of the car ride went by in silence. We reached home and my dad pulled out my two duffel bags from the trunk. I stepped out of the car and at the same time I saw Christina come out of the house.

"Welcome back, Evie!" She gleamed. "We all missed you so much." She came to hug me and I awkwardly patted her shoulder and quickly moved back.

She was just as I remembered her. She looked like she hadn't aged a single day in the last three years. She was hardly ten years older than me.

Christina was of my age, seventeen, when my dad cheated on my mom with her. I was seven at the time. After my parents' divorce, my mom took me and moved halfway across the country to Oklahoma.

"Mindy and Daniel are so excited to see you," Christina repeated what my dad had said earlier.

I smiled amused. They didn't even know me. Daniel wasn't even born the last time I'd been here and Mindy was just a few months old.

Sure, they're so excited to see me. Possibly as much excited as I was to get here.

"I'll take these to your room," my dad said lifting my bags. Christina and I followed him inside. Mindy and Daniel were sitting on a couch in the living room.

"Hi," Mindy chirped.

"Hi," Daniel repeated.

Then they went back to watching cartoons on TV. So much for excitement.

I smiled. "They're precious."

"They are," Christina agreed.

My dad came downstairs carrying a briefcase. "Your bags are in you room, Evie. I've got a meeting with a client. I'll be home by dinner."

There you go, my inner voice sarcastically says to me. He's out already. So much for father-daughter bonding.

"Drive safe, baby." Christina kissed my dad.

I gave him a weak smile as he left. "Right. I'm just going to head to my room and take a shower."

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