The drive to Hayden's place is silent, my head filled with everything I just discovered tonight, and it's making my head spin. Noah's behaviour all these years start making sense, his hostility towards mum and Paul. I remember how he reacted the first time I asked Paul if I can call him dad, I was ten years at the time.

For years during my childhood, I woke up sweaty and crying because of a nightmare I couldn't run away from. I was aware that my dad passed away, and how he died, but could never remember being in that car that day. As I grew up I stopped having such nightmares, up until Lily's death, it unlocked nightmares I haven't had in years and still didn't make sense.

"Are you okay?" Sam breaks the silence in the car making me sigh.

"Okay, that's a stupid question. I thought you knew, I'm sorry."

'You have no reason to apologize Sam.'

"It's just, it feels like my fault." He says, his voice feeling dejected.

'What exactly did they say to you when they told you he is your dad?'

Sam was about three years old when mum and dad divorced, and a year later we moved to here to Orlando

"As you know they changed my last name when I was still pretty young, so when I was in grade 4 I think, I came across some of you guys past papers. So I asked mum why our last names were different and they sat me down and told me. They told wasn't your biological dad and that your dad died years ago."

"What I didn't know was that your dad thought I was his child, only just found out today."

'I am sorry you had to find out like that.'

"It's okay, you got delt the bad hand than I did."

I may have been delt the bad hand, but our parents' lies affected all of us. Noah had to grow up pretty fast, taking care of me and carrying all the load alone. I can't imagine how it feels knowing that your mum is mostly the reason for your family breaking. How do you continue seeing her as the person who used to wipe tears from your cheeks and kissed your injuries to make them better?

Sam discovered he is a product of infidelity, not that this makes me view him as such, and his identity was not  clear at birth with my dad thinking he is his son. I think out of the three of us he is the one who had an almost normal childhood.

Then there's me, I suffered for years due to my subconscious, trying to remind me of a past I couldn't piece together. Called a man who had a hand in my parents separating dad, I hate myself for it, but it's not like I can change the past. I'm not sure how to proceed from here, but I know that today's revelation will change so much for me.

"Don't you hate me?" Sam says as we are pulling up in front of Hade's home.

'How could I hate you Sam? This doesn't change that you are my brother and that I love you and never doubt that.'

"I guess you are right, even Noah hasn't mistreated me during the years though he knew the truth."

"Does Hayden know you are coming over?"

'No, I didn't think anything through then. Let me call him'

.............................

Hayden and I are in his room, he was surprised to see me at his house so late, but one look at me he knew that something was wrong. I haven't said anything since Sam dropped me off, and I appreciate it that Hade hasn't pushed me, he is letting me be.

He stands up and disappears in his bathroom, I hear the water running so I'm guessing he is preparing to shower. He returns after a few minutes and he holds his hand out waiting for me to take it and I do, following him in the bathroom.

"I ran you a bath, it will relax you" he says in a small voice as though afraid to break me.

'Thank you, I must look awful.'

I never thought about how I must look right, I'm still in the dress I wore earlier and still have make-up on.

"You look beautiful, even with the mascara smudged on your cheeks." He says making me roll my eyes.

"Let's clean you up, here is everything you will need. Call me if you need me." He kisses my forehead and walks out.

I get out of the clothes I am wearing and get inside the bathtub to find the water just the right temperature I love. The water is soothing, it reminds me of mum when we were still happy in New York. She would run me a bath, then sit with me in the bathtub, and she washed me as she sang to me.

Even if we didn't spent time as a family everyday, especially after mum had Sam, she made sure that we all spent Fridays together. This was one of a few days where we saw both our parents, as mum become a big deal in the culinary world we start seeing less and less of her at home. We were mostly with nannies during the day, dad would make sure that he was there in the evenings.

"Love, are you okay in there? The water must be cold by now" Hayden's voice brings me out of my thoughts.

"Victoria, why are you still in here, you will get sick. My goodness you are shivering love"

It's like I am here physically, but my mind is elsewhere. I am aware of Hayden getting me out of the bathtub and carrying me towards the shower. The tears I have been holding from the moment I left home just flow heavily down my cheeks.

"It's okay, baby. Let's warm you up in the shower okay?" He says getting in the shower with me and washes my body and hair while I stand there embarrassed that he has to take care of me and wash me. He rinses my hair, getting rid of the shampoo and proceeds to rinse my body.

When he is done he stops the water and opens the shower door and we get out, Hade takes the towel and wraps it around my body and another around my hair. I walk out of the bathroom while Hayden takes off his wet clothes, as he got in the shower with them earlier.

"You can use my body lotion, I am going to put this in the dryer. I will be back in a minute."

.........................

'I am sure you are wondering what's going on with me. After you left earlier, I found mum and Noah at each others'throats.' I pause to gather my emotions.

'I finally managed to get most of the piece from the gaps in my childhood. Earlier you asked me why my mum calls herself Wells and not Thompson, Paul is not my dad nor is he Noah's dad. They got married a year after my parents divorced hence the different surnames.

Tonight I found out that mum cheated on dad for years, even had a child outside marriage."

"I'm sorry to my love, that you had to find out the way you did. So where is the child now?"

'It's Sam. Sam is my half brother." I say as my eyes bream with tears.

"Oh sweetheart! I wish I could take your pain away."

'That's not all, after mum and dad divorced, dad and mum had shared custody, we stayed with mum and spend weekends with dad. My father found out that Sam wasn't his the day he came to get us from mum's place for the weekend. That day he discovered that mum had been cheating for longer than he thought, he took me and Noah, o-only to get involved in a car accident and he died.'

"So the car accident in your nightmares is something you actually went through?"

'Yeah, I still don't have the full details of what really happened that day and afterwards, but at least I know now.'

"I am sorry about your dad, I didn't know."

'It's okay, only a handful of people knew that Paul is not our dad. They got married just before we moved here, and then he adopted Sam. I call him dad because he acted like one.'

'I am angry with myself, for over a decade I called a man who broke my family dad, I even fought with Noah over the years with his hostility towards him and mum. It only made sense tonight.'

"I understand how you feel love, but you couldn't have known all these. Don't be too hard on yourself."

I feel drained and numb by the time I am done, my mouth feels dry and my throat hurts. Hayden pulls me close to him and hugs me, cradling me like a small baby. He keeps doing this for a while, kissing my forehead and telling me we will get through this together. My eyes feel heavy and before I know it I am taken by sleep.

Please vote, comment and follow.

Kikipee ❤️