Free Understudy by Denise Kim Wy

way. It suddenly occurred to me that he'd literally wait the hours until I came back the next day. Until then, he'd be here all alone, doing who knows what. I wanted to say I was sorry, but it seemed inappropriate given what just happened. Instead, the only thing I managed to say was, "Yeah, see you tomorrow."
    ***
    Mom was hysterical when I walked into the kitchen. Dad stood beside her with his hands on her shoulders, his expression grim.
    "What happened?" I asked, I rushing to her side.
    "She thinks she saw a ghost," Dad said, rolling his eyes.
    "I don't think, I'm sure of what I saw!" Mom snapped at him.
    "What exactly did you see, Mom?"
    Both of them froze and they turned to look at me as if I just said something inappropriate.
    "What?" I asked, confused.
    They turned to each other, another one of those silent conversations passing between them.
    "Mom, what did you see?"
    She walked over to the fridge, turning her back to me. "Forget about it, honey. It's nothing," she said, grabbing a can of soda, which she almost dropped to the floor before Dad took it from her hands.
    "It's not nothing if you're shaking," I pointed out.
    "It's okay."
    "Mom−"
    "It's Adam," Dad said, silencing us both.
    My jaw dropped open. "What?"
    "Your mom thinks she saw Adam."
    My legs suddenly felt like they were made of rubber, and I held on to the countertop for support.
    Mom was immediately beside me, placing a hand on my shoulder, but I shoved her away.
    "Kat−"
    "It's nothing. I'm okay," I said, not missing the sudden irony of the situation.   
    Dad pinched the bridge of his nose, frowning. "Here we go."
    "Why did you tell her?" Mom's eyes were blazing.
    "She asked! And you started it anyway."
    They continued to argue, but I wasn’t really hearing the words. I was thinking of Adam, how this would affect our situation. Where did Mom see him? Was she in the woods? What was she doing in the woods? Did she see me in the woods with Adam?
    "I told you to stop drinking so much coffee," Dad said.
    "Don't blame this on my coffee intake, Thomas," Mom said. "I know what I saw. He was even wearing a black v−neck shirt!" 
    My heart skipped as I processed this information, and I felt myself calming down, though not enough to hide the bitterness in my voice.
    "It's not Adam, Mom."
    Dad jumped up, a mixture of triumph and relief washing his features. "See? I told you so!" He popped the soda can open and took a quick gulp. 
    "It's his twin brother."
    Dad coughed out his drink, some of it dripping out of his nose. "What?!"
    Mom sighed. "Oh, honey."
    "He has an identical twin brother. His name is Eric."
    "A twin brother?" Dad asked, grabbing the dishcloth from beside the sink.
    "That's what I said."
    "And you're only telling us this now?"
    "You never asked, and I know how much you guys avoid talking about Adam in front of me. I also know that you're constantly questioning my sanity."
    That shut them up.
    "If you don't believe me then you can come and sit with me in class tomorrow."
    Dad's eyes widened. "He's in your class? "
    "Do you have to repeat everything I say?" I didn't wait for his answer as I ran up to my room.
    I threw myself on my bed and buried my head in a pillow. I wanted to scream, I wanted to throw things. I even wanted to hurt someone. I was angry, but I wasn't really sure why.
    Maybe I was angry that Eric was out and about making people mistake him for Adam, while the real one was stuck somewhere in the middle of the woods. It wasn't fair.
    The sound of the door creaking open made me bury my head deeper in my pillow. If only I could bury myself literally.
    "Go away," I said as I felt someone sit on the edge of my bed.
    "What you did back there," Mom said. "That was rude."
    "I'm sorry," I said, the words muffled by the pillow.
    "Do you want to talk about it?"
    "No."
    There was a pause, and I felt Mom's hand on my shoulder.
    "We don't think you're insane, honey."
    I lifted my head from the pillow to look at her. "So I'm guessing that the