It is today

　　Today is Sunday. Mum is calling. I should be on my way back home or planning towards that but none of that is happening. The trial is tomorrow and Ben needs my presence now more than ever. 

　　The continuous ringtone intensifies my guilt but I don’t reach for the phone. I bite my nails and clench my eyes shut but the ringing doesn’t stop. 

　　I march to the door and return to the foot of the bed. Pacing doesn’t help. Ben is somewhere in the house so he isn’t here to witness my confusion and lie practice. If I pick, it will lead to an argument.

　　My phone stops ringing and starts immediately. Daddy. I drag a seat from the vanity to the window and push it open. The outside view is beautiful. It calms me, maybe that’s why I hit the answer button. 

　　“Where are you?” is Daddy’s first question. In my silence, he says, “Tessa, where are you?” 

　　“Here.”