Page 87 of Secret Puck
Adam speaks from across the table. “Yeah, Dad. I went in your and Mom’s closet to loan Mav a shirt, but I couldn’t find anything. Did she finally take over the entire closet and ban your clothes to the basement?”
Adam laughs at the idea, but then an uncomfortable silence follows as Mr. and Mrs. Scott share a nervous glance.
My skin prickles with awareness even before I’ve put it together. I’m good at reading bad news. Ginny’s confused expression is heartbreaking, and I rest a hand on her leg under the table.
Mrs. Scott frowns and then says, “We wanted to wait until after the weekend to tell you.”
“To tell us what?” Adam asks, his tone hardened in anticipation.
Uncomfortable silence falls over the room.
“Your mother and I have separated,” Mr. Scott answers finally.
Mav goes into a coughing fit, unable to hide his surprise and I elbow him hard in the ribs. He grunts loudly, but no one is paying him any attention anyway.
“Separated?” Adam questions. “You’re getting divorced?”
Mrs. Scott looks around the table. “Maybe we should talk about it later.”
“Mom?” Ginny’s voice wavers and my chest… my chest fucking aches.
Mrs. Scott’s mouth pulls up into a smile, but it’s sad as hell. “We love you both very much. That hasn’t changed and it won’t. We’re still a family.”
Rauthruss clears his throat. “Maybe the guys and I should give you some time to talk.” He glances to me and Mav, and we start to stand only to have Adam beat us to it.
“No, you guys stay. I need some air.”
Ginny pushes back her chair so quickly it scrapes against the wood floor. “Me too.” She disappears after him.
“Holy uncomfortable Batman,” Mav whispers.
“I’m going to talk to them,” Mr. Scott says and looks to his wife, maybe for approval. She nods and he follows them out.
It isn’t until Mrs. Scott stands and excuses herself that the guys and I take a breath.
“Fuck, man, that was rough.” Rauthruss grimaces. “What do we do?”
“No clue,” I tell him honestly.
31
Ginny
Adamand I sit in the garage after Dad leaves to go back to his place.
“He has his own apartment. How weird is that?” I ask, mostly to myself.
“You really had no idea?” Adam looks to me again like I should have known and warned him. Maybe I should have, but I didn’t.
I shake my head. “I didn’t know. Dad was in Scottsdale for work when I got here earlier this week.” I think back, not only to the days since I got home for Thanksgiving break, but over the last few months. “They were going on trips and…” It hits me then that those trips were probably a last-ditch effort to save their marriage, and I feel like throwing up.
At some point, my brother grabbed a bottle of wine from the kitchen and we are well on our way to finishing it off. Adam’s drunk the lion’s share. He seems to be taking this harder than me. I feel numb, but he… well, I haven’t seen my brother so devastated since the day I got locked inside the pantry. He’d been nine then and took on the big brother protector role with a dedication second to none. Since then I’d thought of him as unbreakable.
He can’t protect me from this though, and I can’t protect him. Everything is going to be different whether we like it or not.
Rauthruss walks outside with his hands in his pockets about the time Adam is tossing the empty wine bottle in the trash. “Are you guys okay?”
“Getting there.” Adam holds up his wine glass and takes a healthy drink.
