The sound of forks scraping against ceramic plates woke me from my sound sleep. I bury my face deeper into my pillow and let out a groan. Even though I had just woken up, I was already tired. With a sigh, I raise my head and look up at the small clock on the nightstand. It was a little after eight.

After my little talk with Jasper last night on the porch, I started to feel a little bit better. Of course my situation was still a little messed up, but as time went on I was able to come to terms with my new life here. The only thing I had to do now was tell my grandparents that I plan on staying for a little while longer.

I push back my covers on the bed and swung my legs over carefully. Bumping my leg against something hard wasn't how I wanted to start this day. With a groan, I lazily rubbed my face with my hands as I tried to get rid of my sleepiness, but all that accomplished was nothing. Nothing was going to change the fact that I got little to no sleep last night. After I chatted with Jasper last night on the porch, I stayed awake most of the night thinking.

I pulled myself onto my feet. The moment my bare foot hit the cold wooden floor, shivers went up my spine. I shook that feeling away as I wedged my crutches under my arms and walked out of the room.

The smell of pancakes and eggs wafted down the hallway and I could feel my mouth practically watering. The thought of having a home cooked meal was so appetizing that my stomached growled loudly. For the past week, I had been living off of canned soup. While I have no problem eating that, chicken noodle gets old real fast.

When I entered the kitchen, I saw my grandparents as well as Jasper and Evan surrounding the table. Both my grandparents were wide awake as they ate and chatted to one another. On the other hand, the boys looked extremely tired. Evan had his elbow propped up on the table with his head in his hand. His eyes were closed and he looked as if he were sleeping with then and there. Jasper, however, was staring at the pancakes on his plate and his eyes were half opened. His hand was clenched tightly to a mug of steaming hot coffee. When I entered the room, both my grandparents were the only one who noticed. They looked up at me and smiled.

"How'd you sleep last night?" my grandmother asked as she motioned to the seat besides her. Both Jasper and Evan suddenly perked up and they watched me intently as I got into my seat. My grandfather reached out and slid a short stack of pancakes onto the plate in front of my as well as the rest of the scrambled eggs that were on the platter.

"Alright, but I'm still a bit tired though," I say as I reached out and grabbed the bottle of syrup on the table and began to pour it on top of my pancakes.

"Seems like you're not the only one," grandpa says sarcastically as he motions over to the boys. "We had a hard time getting them up to eat."

I look up at the boys and I couldn't help but feel their pain. The sun was barely up and here they were, being fed when all they wanted was to be asleep. However, I didn't notice last night that the boys were wearing pajamas that were no doubt my grandfathers. Grandpa was a bit of a bigger man, so the clothes looked large and ridiculous on them. Evan was wearing a dark green flannel set that was way to hot to be wearing while Jasper wore the exact same one but in red.

"So, what's the plan for you three today?" grandma asked as she started to cut her pancakes into small pieces. Both Evan and Jasper looked up at me as if they were suddenly not tired anymore. I let out a sigh as I set the bottle down. Putting off the truth was no longer an option. I had to come clean with everything. Well, mostly everything.

"Actually," I started to nervously as I looked at both my grandparents. "I was actually wondering if I could stay here for awhile."

"Of course you can," my grandmother said with a smile on her face, but I knew she didn't fully understand what I meant. "How long are you planning to stay here?"

"Well, that's the thing," I started to say. My hands started to feel clammy, and my throat instantly dried. "I was planning to stay here. You know, for a while."

Both my grandparents exchanged worried looks at each other. They looked like they were shocked by my sudden request, but I couldn't blame them.

"Sweetie," my grandma said as she reached over and touched my arm. "Did something happen with you and your mother?"

I glanced up at the boys to see them shifting awkwardly in their seats. Jasper looked up at that moment and made eye contact with me. Without a word, I nudged my head towards the living room, hoping he would take the hint and leave. Almost instantly, he got up and motioned Evan to do the same. They both got on their feet, grab their plates full of food, and disappeared out the back door. Once the door closed, I took a deep breath and started to talk.

"Mom and I kind of had a fight," I say to them as I try to think of the right words to say.

"A fight?" grandpa asked in confusion. "About what?"

I chuckled slightly. "I honestly have no idea. But I apparently have a stepfather now."

A frown formed on my grandmas face. "I didn't know she was seeing anyone."

"Neither did I until she came back from Italy," I sighed. "She completely ignored everything I said to her when she came back. It was like she didn't even care that I was her daughter."

"Oh, sweetie. I'm sure that's not true," my grandpa says.

I shake my head. "I'm pretty sure it is. Something's changed about her. She's acting like I don't exist." My grandparents remained silent as they exchanged worried looks with one another.

"Did your mother hurt you?" my grandpa asked. I couldn't bring myself to tell him about how she slapped me, so I just nodded my head. "Christ."

"I couldn't stay there anymore," I say to them. "This was the only place I could go."

"We understand," my grandma said in a soothing tone.

"Why are the boys here then?" grandpa asked.

"They wanted to make sure I got here alright," I tell them. "I tried to ditch them, but they're stubborn."

"I believe it," grandpa mumbled as he lifted his mug of coffee to his lips and took a sip.

Suddenly, the sound of a car pulling into the gravel driveway filled the house through the opened windows. At first, I thought someone might have pulled into the driveway mistake, but that quickly changed when the sound of car door slamming shut echoed off the walls.

My grandparents quickly looked at each other in worry, but that only confused me more. Before I could ask what was going on, my grandpa spoke up. "I thought they weren't coming til noon?"

I was just as confused as them as we listened to the front door opening and then the patter of feet entering the house. It wasn't long until a familiar voice rang throughout the house. A voice I didn't want to hear.

"Hello," called out a deep voice as it got closer to us. My eyes widened as I listened to the sound of footsteps walking towards us. I glanced at my grandparents for them to explain what was going on, but they remained silent. It wasn't until the footsteps stopped in the doorway did I realize what was about to happen. "Hattie?"

I looked up to see my father standing there looking just as confused as me. This is the first time that I had actually seen in in the last few years. Typically I would pick up Justin and Candice outside of their house if I was going somewhere with only them. My father would just stand in the porch watching from a distance. Now being up close to him, I noticed that he looked different. His hair was streaked with gray, and he looked as if he packed on a little bit of weight.

"Did you say Hattie?" questioned a squeaky voice. Suddenly, both Justin and Candice stepped into the doorway, and the moment they saw me they rushed over to me and wrapped their arms around my waist.

"Hey guys," I smiled as I returned the hug to both of them.

"What happened to your leg?" Candice asked as she placed her finger on the piece of plaster that was holding my leg in place.

"I fell," I told her knowing she wouldn't press on. I looked back up at my dad and he looked dumbfounded.

"Why are you here, Hattie?" he asked softly as he just looked at me.

I tore my gaze away from him and looked at the table. "Mom decided she didn't want me either, so."

My dads jaw dropped, but he instantly closed his mouth. "Kids, why don't you go help your mother with the bags. I need to talk to your sister." The two released me without a word and ran out through the front door laughing. My dad stepped forward and took a seat at the table right besides me. "What happened with your mom?"

I sighed and looked up at him. "Don't like like you care. She did the exact same thing as you."

My father narrowed his eyes in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

I scoffed as I leaned back in my chair. "She did the exact same thing as you, you know? She decided that she didn't want be to be in the picture anymore."

My father looked completely confuses by what I had said. "What do you mean I wasn't in the picture no more? I didn't have a choice."

I narrowed my eyes in confusion at him. What did he mean by he didn't have a choice? I clearly remember him walking out of the house one day and leaving me behind. There were not court cases, custody hearings, and I even remember reading a letter from him explaining that he wanted no part in my life.

"What do you mean you had no choice? I read the letter you wrote to me," I say defensively. "You wanted out. You even left the house and never came back."

His eyes softened. "What letter? I never wrote a letter."

My heart dropped. He didn't write that letter? If he didn't, then you did?

"You didn't write it?" I asked and he shook his head. "Then, how come I stayed with mom? I don't remember any custody hearings. All I remember was that I woke up one day and you were gone."

My dad sighed as he reached out and grabbed my hand. I can tell by the expression on his face was that he was serious with what he was about to tell me.

"Hattie, we never told you this, but your mother and I were separated for about four years before our divorce was finally finalized."

"What?" I questioned.

"We tried to make it work just for you, but then I met Tess," he started to tell me. "Your mother was the one who was sneaking around behind my back way before I met Tess. I tried to get full custody of you, but your mother had another trick up her sleeve."

I sat there, utterly shocked by what I was hearing. Was this all true? Did I think my father was the bad guy for something he didn't do?

"What did she do?" I asked softly.

My dad sighed. "Remember that time when you got sick when you were eight? You were in the hospital with a really bad case of the flu?"

"Barely," I say as I recall laying in the hospital bed.

"They did blood work on you to make sure everything was okay. I didn't think anything of it, but when your mom and I went to court one day while you were in school, she took out the papers and showed them to the judge."

"I don't understand," I say shaking my head. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Hattie," my dad said softly as he gave my hand a squeeze. "Your mother is type A. I'm type O. You're type B."

"So?"

He sighed. "When a child is born, they have the same blood type as one of their parents."

I felt my stomach drop to the floor. "That means..."

Hattie, I'm not your biological father."