Free That Was Then... by Melody Carlson Page A

where I brought your mother last New Year’s Eve.”
    I stared at the fireplace. “Oh.”
    “She loved this place.”
    Now I looked back at his untouched food. “We can go, Dad,” I said quickly. “I’m really not that hungry.”
    “No…” He shook his head and reached for his fork.
    Then we both picked at our food in silence. And before I knew what hit me, tears were slipping down my cheeks.
    “I’m sorry, Kim,” he said when he noticed me blotting my eyes with my napkin. “I didn’t mean to upset you too.”
    “No…” I waved my napkin at him. “It’s not your fault, Dad. I just, you know, miss her—a lot. I mean, I was thinking about her pumpkin pie today. I don’t like anyone else’s pumpkin pie. And now we’ll never have it again.”
    “Maybe you could make it,” he suggested with a hopeful expression. “Use her recipe.”
    I nodded. “Yeah. Maybe.”
    “She’d like that, Kim.”
    “I know.” I looked around the restaurant again. No wonder Mom loved this place. It was really pretty cool with the softly burning oil lamps and old pieces of art on the wall. “I think she’s glad that we’re eating here, Dad.”
    His eyes lit up a little. “I think you’re right.”
    Finally, we’d eaten as much as we wanted, and the waiter came over. “We’ve got a really good pumpkin pie to go with the special,” he told us with a bright smile.
    But we both declined. My dad asked for the check, and I carefully drove us home. Happy Thanksgiving. Okay, I guess it could’ve been worse. The good thing is that it’s over. One less holiday to get through this year.
Sunday. November 26
    Yesterday was so cool. I jammed with Redemption. They’re trying some new things, some quieter, mellower songs, and I actually worked pretty well with them. And so later that night, I joined them for an open mike performance, and it was so awesome. Okay, I know they won’t be inviting me to join their band anytime soon, but it was pretty cool just the same.
    Chloe didn’t mention anything about Ben today. And I was sort of glad. I’m sure she passed along to her brother what I said by now. And hopefully he’s on it. Butto my disappointment, Ben and Nat weren’t at church today. And when I called their apartment this afternoon, Nat sounded pretty gloomy. I really wanted to mention my conversation with Chloe to her but knew that would be a dead giveaway that I’d said something. Even if I didn’t give any specifics. Instead, I just kept the conversation light and finally told Nat to call me if she needed to talk or anything.
    “Thanks,” she said as if she really meant it. “I really do appreciate you, Kim.”
    And, okay, that just broke my heart. I mean, I was thinking about poor Natalie living in that horrible little apartment, going to the pregnant girl school, putting up with Ben’s anger and drinking binges—and was it possible that he was abusing her too? It just made me feel really sick.
    I’d be tempted to go over there right now, but it’s Ben’s day off, and I can’t stand the thought of seeing him face to face. I’m getting really mad at this guy. I’m thinking, grow up! I mean, sure, Ben never wanted this, but he made all the choices that landed him here. No one forced him to have sex with Nat. No one held a gun to his head to marry her. And I’m sorry, but if he’s feeling trapped right now, well, it’s a trap of his own making. Get over it, Benjamin O’Conner!
    Dear Jamie,
    Everyone in my family is fat. Both my parents and my sisters and even my little brother are all obese. Imean, really fat. Like together we might be a ton overweight, but I can’t remember how big that is. The thing is, I don’t want to be fat. But I feel trapped. I feel like no matter what I do, as long as I live in this house, I will continue to be fat. I really want to leave home. But I’m only fifteen, and I know I can’t live on my own. What should I do?
    Finished with Fat
    Dear Finished,
    The good news is that