"Mais oui! He did, he did!" I exclaimed into the phone as I watched the last of my things being packed away. "I bet it's all 'cause of his wife too! That bitch is canaille, I'm tellin' ya!" I heard a bit of yelling and shuffling in the background and then I heard T-Paul's voice on the other end. "A.J., we ain't seen you in days! What's goin' on?" he barked. Unable to keep calm any longer, I broke down in tears, telling Rae and T-Paul everything that had happened...

*flashback*

"You want to tell me why I got a call from the sheriff saying you and that little hoodlum you run around with got pulled over for under-aged drinking AND drunk driving ?" Dad growled as I got in the car. It was true, T-Paul was lit, but he wasn't driving. We left the party at 2 and had agreed we'd go to his house. He said he'd bring me home when he was sober enough to drive. Dad had just come to get me from city jail...at 3 a.m. "Deddy, no one was drivin' drunk. I was driving, and we got stopped because I don't have a licen-"

"Dammit Adrienne! Why don't you ever listen? Why don't you THINK?" he yelled. "No wonder your mother left you with me. You are out of control!" How dare that feet pue tan bring up my mother!? "Pic kee toi," I mumbled, crossing my arms and glaring out the window. The light in front of us quickly turned red and he slammed on the brakes, scowling at me. "Do you even hear yourself? You sound ignorant and uneducated. I don't send you to the most prestigious school in New Orleans for you to speak that garbage," he said through grit teeth. "Garbage? That garbage," I sneered, "is our heritage. In case you forgot, Deddy dear, you grew up in the same swamps and backwoods as all the people you stepped on and squashed to get to the top. What makes you think you have the right to treat everyone like merde? You ain't nothin' but a bastard!" I quickly unbuckled my seat belt and jumped out of the car just as the light turned green. "Adrienne Jeanette! Get in this car NOW!" he bellowed. "Embrasse moi t'chu!" I screamed before slamming the door. I didn't know where I was going, so I decided to rodier.

*flashback ends*

"When I got home, that bonne rienne Leah told me they were sending me away!" I sobbed into my cell phone. "Go to bed! You a lie!" Rae shrieked. "She ain't gonna do it. She can't! She ain't ya mama, no," T-Paul added. "They told me they was takin' me away from y'all because y'all are no good. And that...that tête couillon, Tres Alex, gonna agree with her! Some deddy he is! What am I gonna do all by my lonesome in Japan!?" I wailed. "Japan!?! Why?" They screeched in unison. I wiped my nose on the sleeve of my hoodie, sitting up in bed as one of the maids brought me a single duffel bag, the only thing I would be able to actually take with me. "His sister, my Aunt Jeanie, lives there. I ain't never met the woman and they sendin' me to her! Boy, I feel like a cow bein' sent off to slaughter," I pouted. "Adrienne, we're leaving!" Dad yelled from downstairs. "I gotta go. I love y'all and I'll call when I can," I whispered, my voice hoarse from all of the crying and screaming. I hung up and slipped my phone in the front pouch of my backpack. All of my important papers, my journal, a couple chut-chuts, a photo album, and every penny that had been in my bank account was in this bag; and in the duffel bag I had my toiletries and maybe two pairs of pajamas and three sets of clothes. These two bags would be the only thing I had to my name for a while, along with my purse. I sadly stroked the military ACU fabric that matched my pants. My entire life had been reduced to three small bags. That in and of itself was depressing, but adding to it the fact that in the next twenty-four hours I'd be on the other side of the world practically on my own made me want to jump out of a window.

The She-Beast (a.k.a my stepmother), smiled as we pulled up to the airport. Some of Dad's goons were already waiting for me. He had probably paid them extra just to make sure I got on the plane. 'Anything to get rid of me,' I thought bitterly. "Have a safe trip," Dad said. He almost looked...sad. No, there was no way. He was glad I was leaving. After all, he had wasted no time throwing out all of my belongings and buying me a ticket for the first plane out of here. "Ba pa madra, Alex," I sneered, grabbing my bags and jumping out from the back seat. The further I got from him, the better. I didn't need him.

~~~~~~~~~~

It was dark when I landed, and I felt all fuzzy and discombobulated. I woke up to Avenged Sevenfold's Nightmare blaring from my headphones. I grabbed my bags-- awake and alert enough to make sure they were mine-- and waited. It seemed like it took longer to get off the plane than it did to get on. Eventually, I was wandering through the airport, looking around for anyone or anything that stood out and hoping for a clue. "Gah-dey-dawn! I ain't seen you since ya mama had ya! Oh, you're so big sha!" someone squealed, completely blindsiding me and picking me up in a bone-crushing hug. "Um...Aunt Jeanie?" I wheezed. "Mais, oui! Who else would it be?" she grinned, setting me down. I took a step back and looked her over warily. She looked nothing like my father, her twin brother. He was a large, burly man, and she was tee-tiny! Her dark auburn hair tumbled down to her hips and her big hazel eyes (the only part of her that resembled Dad at all) were shimmering with excitement, my own looking back at her in a swirl of green and brown confusion. All of the Breaux spawn had hazel eyes. Daddy was fair blond, chiseled-- your typical All-American guy. Aunt Jeanie looked laid back and fun, whereas my father was a stoic brick of flesh. "Oh, I got your room all set up and tomorrow we can go shoppin' and get you enrolled in school on Monday. I know this is all different, so I-"

"Wait, why you sound like me?" I cut off her rambling. "What'cha mean sha?" she replied, raising an eyebrow at me. "You've lived in Japan a long time, yeah. Well, that's what Deddy said. Why you don't sound no different if you been here for years?" I asked. She stared at me for a little while before bursting into a fit of giggles. "What ya deddy done told you? That I'm strict? Refined? That I'ma put you in line? Maybe give you some act right?" she scoffed, her Cajun accent as thick as molasses. I nodded numbly, not knowing what to say. She straightened herself, heels and all, probably standing at a solid 5'3"; then she looked at me and said, "I like to keep my job and my personal life separate. You can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl!" Her voice had changed. It was now proper and precise, the words flowing from her mouth smoother than silk. "You gotta teach me to do that!" I exclaimed. She laughed even more, wrapping an arm around me as she guided me outside into the cool April night. I fumbled around in my purse for my cigarettes, lighting one and inhaling as I climbed into my aunt's sleek, black convertible. "Don't be askin' me for money to buy no squares. Just 'cause I can't stop you from smoking don't mean I'm gonna pay for your habit," she scolded as she dug around in the center console for her own cigarettes. "Tres Alex thought this would be a punishment for you, but this is just a chance for you and me to catch up on all 'dem years I missed. It'll be fun," she reassured me, blowing smoke as she stomped on the gas. I couldn't help but grin like a fool as the midnight wind whipped my hair all around me. "Kee-yawww!" I exclaimed.

*****Chapter 3 will be up before you can say poo-yi! ^_^*****