The Missing Piece Book One

26. New Beginning?

"Can you forgive me?"
Danesha looked up with hopeful eyes as she examined Vanessa's face while she stooped above her, Vanessa was angry Danesha's could see it all over her face,
"Look you're my best friend, but what you did? That's unforgiveable but I'll try to look past it" Vanessa words fell from her lips, and stabbed into Danesha's chest, she didn't feel all bad, Vanessa was willing to try, which made everything better. "Now let's get you some food and cleaned up" Danesha gave Vanessa a silent nod, her body was weak but Vanessa pulled her off of the floor,
"I'll let you shower and I'll got get you some food"
Vanessa left Danesha in the bathroom to check the fridge, but there was nothing there, so she headed back to the car to find Derek reclined in the passenger seat,
"She's not dead?" he casually stated eyes glued to his phone,
"She's not dead" Vanessa rolled her eyes sticking the key into the ignition "but she's not a 100% I'm taking you back to the beach house and coming back here"
"Uh what?" Derek finally dragged his eyes away from his phone screen and examined Vanessa as she drove, "What do you mean coming back?"
"Well she hasn't eaten since Saturday, she's a wreak she needs someone" Vanessa could sense the tension growing in the seat next to her but she kept her eyes on the road,
"She's a wreak? SHE'S THE ONE SLEEPING WITH A MARRIED MAN! SHE RUINED A MARRIAGE!" Vanessa slammed brakes, at the light since she was so focused on his screaming beside her,
"I'VE HAD IT WITH YOU ACTING LIKE A FUCKING VICTIM, YOUR FATHER IS THE MARRIED ONE FOR CHRIST SAKE, YOU SHOULD BE SCREAMING AT HIM AND NOT ME, YOU ACT LIKE THIS IS ONLY AFFECTING YOU NOW SHUT UP AND LET ME HELP MY BEST FRIEND WHO WAS HERE FOR ME WHEN YOU LEFT ME AT THE AIRPORT IN TEARS" tears of anger stumbled down her face, Derek sat wide-eyed, as Vanessa erupted into a ball of fire, her breath was heated with emotions, she slumped back into her seat and continued to drive, Derek couldn't believe this was his Vanessa, so many emotions, he decided to remain quiet.
She's right.

***

They arrived at the beach house and Vanessa slowed down enough for him to get out and she was off, Derek watched her car disappear in the cloud of smoke she left behind.
Before Derek could reach the door Hannah swung the door open with concern etched across her features,
"Where's Nessa?" She said attention on the cloud she left behind,
"She's gone back to Danesha's" Hannah sensed something was wrong as Derek slid past her by the door,
"And she left in such a hurry? What happened?"
"Lay off Hannah, it's none of your damn business"
"Hey, who do you think you're talking to like that?" Cat made her presence known, Derek heaved a heavy sigh and plopped into the couch, holding his head in his hands,
"I'm sorry Hannah" Derek said muffled between his hands
"That's okay" Hannah smiled biting back what she really wanted to say, when Catherine stepped up,
"She deserves a better apology than that Derek"
"I'm sorry Hannah, I didn't mean to yell at you, I'm sorry" Derek said to Hannah, who this time charmed with her genuine smile,
"What happened?" Hannah asked again sure she wouldn't get the same response sitting next to him and Catherine sat in the chair adjacent to theirs,
"It's my fault, Nessa is going back to Danesha's to help her out I guess, she said she's a wreak so I got angry and started yelling and she told me I'm acting like a victim and she's right"
"That's all?" Catherine asked uninterested as she lounged in the chair "Vanessa is under a lot of pressure I would think you'd know that she's fighting a war between the man she loves and her closest friend how you gonna act like a crazy motherfucker? " Catherine finished with her typical chuckle, "You're lucky she didn't make you walk back here" and with that Catherine was finished with that topic,
Hannah whispered to Derek,
"They are both right but they both care about you, Vanessa loves you so much it's disgusting " Hannah got a smile to pull at his lips "Cat loves you too she only came here for you, it's a hard situation but we'll get through this okay?"
"Ya know you'd be a great mom" Derek said pulling Hannah into a bear hug, Catherine glanced over her shoulder at the sound of laughter and shook her head, she heard every word Hannah said and smiled.

***

Derek was in his and Vanessa's room, when he heard a soft knock on the door, couldn't be Vanessa she wouldn't knock, he got up and went to the door, it was Hannah,
"A very upset, curly haired girl just headed down to the beach"
Derek said thanks and headed down to the beach to find his curly haired girl sitting on the sand with her knees to her chest, her hair blew in the wind. She was gazing out to sea deep in thought.
He sat next to her, "Hi" he said she replied in a half-hearted way, "What's wrong?, how did things go with Danesha?" He waited for a response none came, "Oh I forgot I'm sorry I never once thought of how this is affecting you", silence once again, they sat in silence until she finally spoke
"She told me everything" "Everything lik-" "Everything about her and your father"
"Oh do you want to tell me?"
She sighed a heavy sigh, "I'll tell you, I need to share this with someone, so he met her at that coffee shop downtown and remembered her from being with us, he started calling her, talking to her about work and asking her out, then a night early in the morning he showed up at her house said he wanted someone to talk to about his marriage, she found it strange too" she said referring to the look on his face "That's the first night they had sex, she said the- uh never mind, and she didn't want to see him again, then she got fired from her job and he offered to pay her rent if she had sex with him, since she needed the money she did" Derek looked bewildered realizing his father was the aggressor after all, "after a while she got dependent on that money and just enjoyed it"
"So it wasn't her fault" he said also inaudible, they both sighed, "We'll get through this" Vanessa said hugging him.