Delta

Chapter Twenty-Six: Forgotten Memories (Part 2)

Even though the stares weren't directed at me- current me anyways, I still felt uncomfortable from the heavy silence that followed the man's departure. 

A few awkward seconds passed before a boy stood up from one of the tables.

"Stacy, Jake, find somewhere else to sit," he ordered. The boy and girl that had been sitting in the chairs across from him immediately complied, though a little grudgingly, and moved to a different table. "You two, sit here." He gestured to the now empty chairs in front of his table.

Japer and Riley (I'm going to call myself Riley to make this less confusing) hesitantly walked over to the table and pulled out the chairs before sitting down.

"Alex, Skylar, you guys get over here too," he called.

I watched as a girl and a boy walked over from different corners of the room and took a seat next to the boy. Jasper and I walked closer so we could view the scene better.

"So wait, your names are Jasper and Riley?" He asked, sitting back down.

"Yeah," they said at the same time.

"Well, I'm Liam," he introduced. "This is Alex, and that's Skylar." 

Something about the two boys seemed familiar for an odd reason. I studied their features, racking my brain for any sort of connection.

I focused on Liam. Messy brown hair, light freckles, vibrant green eyes...where did I recognize him from? For some reason he was reminding me of-

"Adrian!" I gasped aloud, then whipped my gaze to Alex. "And Jason! They're...younger."

Jasper looked up at me, his eyebrows drawn together in confusion. "You recognize them? But those aren't their names."

"They- it's not- I know-" I stumbled over my words, trying to find a way to explain. "It's a long story."

I swept my gaze over to the girl, wondering if I would recognize her as Ella, but discovered that she was someone that I did not recognize. Instead of having Ella's naturally long blonde hair, she had shoulder-length dark black hair. She struck me as very pretty in a natural kind of way, with light skin and bright blue eyes that contrasted beautifully with her dark hair. 

Strangely, she wore a somber expression on her face, much like many of the other kids in the room, I realized.

"So...what is this place?" Jasper asked, looking around the room. "This doesn't look like foster care."

Riley looked surprised. "Foster care? I think this is where my dad works. Some people came to my house today and told me that my dad needed me and they were taking me to see him, but they didn't tell me why."

Adria- uh, Liam, snorted, looking up with a grim smirk. "Is that what they told you?"

Riley and Jasper stared at him in shock.

"Riley, your dad's probably dead by now."

She stared at him in horror. "Dead? But-but he was alive this morning when he left for work-"

"You're here because he's dead, just like almost everyone else here," he said flatly. I noticed that he shot a quick glance at Skylar as he spoke, and I wondered what her story was.

Riley stared at the table almost in a daze, the news sinking in.

Jasper, however, looked angry. "What the hell are you talking about?" He demanded, shooting a glare at Liam. "Quit telling lies! You can't just tell someone that their dad died as a joke! Look, she looks ready to cry!"