Page 70 of On the Bright Side
There are a lot more pieces to this bed than I would have expected. Cheese watches from his little cat tree in the corner as I spend a full hour assembling the frame, turning that little wrench tool so many times that my wrist hurts. When I’m finally done, it’s such a relief to stack all the trash in our recycling pile and put clean sheets on my mattress. This is starting to look like a real bedroom.
I grab my phone from my backpack to see there’s no messages from my parents. They must not have made it home yet. I also realize that I forgot my laptop charger. I guess I need to face them eventually. They’d be worried if I wasn’t home tonight, so this confrontation was going to happen no matter what. Might as well get it over with.
“Hey, I’m running back to my parents’ real quick,” I sign to the others, who are out in the living room unboxing the couch parts.
“Good luck!” they all sign.
“I’m going to need it!”
When I drive back over, I get home before my parents, but as I climb the stairs, I notice the headlights of their car illuminating the driveway. Shit, I was really hoping to have more time to collect my thoughts. I grab my laptop charger so I can be ready to make my exit.
When they walk in and Mom sees me, she comes in hot, ready to lecture me. “You can’t just wander off at all hours. While you live here—”
“Idon’tlive here,” I interrupt her, feeling bold.
“What are you talking about?” she shouts.
Ideally, this would’ve been a civil conversation—the way Kayla had discussed the move with her folks. Arranging dinner plans to keepin touch, talking about the pros and cons. Real mature stuff. This isnotthat.
“I moved out,” I say casually. “All my stuff is gone. I even took Cheese.” I hold up the laptop charger in my hand. “I just came back forthis.”
Her reaction has a range of emotions. Confusion and anger all mixed into one. “Eleanor, what are you talking about?”
“I moved into a house with some friends.”
“You can’t just move out!” Mom is beside herself. “You can’t! Didn’t we have a whole talk about you needing to ask permission to go anywhere?”
Dad rushes over to her side. “Where are you living? Did you sign a lease? How are you planning on paying for that and the car?”
“A house near ACC. Yes, I signed a lease, and I got a job at the library.”
He lets out a defeated sigh, realizing it’s better to meet me where I’m at. “Okay.”
“Okay?” my mom yells. “How is this okay?”
“I don’t know what else you want me to do,” he says. “She’s been independent her whole life. She is eighteen. She seems to have it figured out.”
“So?” my mom asks, folding her arms and digging in her heels.
“I moved out at eighteen.” He shrugs. “Butyouare finishing school,” he says to me. “If we let you do this.”
“Whatever, yeah, I’m finishing school.” To prove I’ve thought this through, I add, “I also signed up for an ACC class for college credit.”
Dad nods solemnly, then continues, “And you’ll visit home.”
I shrug. It was never my intention to cut them out entirely, but I wasn’t exactly planning on rushing home for Sunday dinners, either. “Sure, I mean, I’m staying in town.”
“In town!” Mom echoes my own words at a significantly elevated volume. This isn’t productive. I knew telling them I moved out wasn’t going to go smoothly, which is why I avoided it until the last possible moment. “Why are you doing this?”
I sigh and manage to stay calm. “Because this has never been a welcoming home to me. I just needed you to realize that I’m Deaf, and things should’ve been a little different. It’s not that hard. We didn’t have to reach this point.”
My parents sit in the silence. Maybe, for the first time ever, my words are getting through to them.
“I’m not leaving forever. I’ll be around. But I need to do this.” With that, I turn around and leave. And no one chases after me.
When I get in the car, I look back at the house and notice the front door is closed. I can’t see my parents inside through the window. They just let me go. Isn’t that what I wanted? I thought I’d be more excited about this. To have my freedom back. But I just feel…down.
I get to the Deaf house, where Shay, Izzy, and Alex have finished assembling the couch. It’s a small two-seater, but we all cram together onto it. Even Cheese jumps on my lap. Already this house feels more like a home than anywhere I’ve ever lived.
