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Forgive or Forget By Tonya Ramagos "Mackenzie Olsen, don't you leave this house," her mother, Glinda, yelled at the top of her lungs. "Get back here right now." But Mackenzie didn't listen. She snatched her blue imitation leather purse off a hook in the hallway and bolted out the door, digging for her car keys as she ran. "Don't you leave in that car young lady," her mother ordered, rushing to the doorway of their three bedroom house. Still Mackenzie didn't listen. She retrieved her car keys from her purse and hopped in the little blue Honda her mother had given her for her sixteenth birthday. Without looking back, she started the engine and peeled out of the driveway. She didn't know where she was going and really didn't care. Anywhere was better than staying in that house any longer. She glanced in the rear view mirror and was surprised to find that her mother hadn't followed her. Maybe she was actually going to use her head for a change and leave her alone for a while-give her time for the terrible news to sink in. Just the thought of the Earth shattering news caused the tears Mackenzie had been holding back to begin to fall as she sped through the dimly lit streets of town. It was after nine-o'clock PM but the traffic in the city that night was still pretty heavy. How can she do this to me? She wondered aimlessly, pounding the steering wheel with her fist in frustration. She's ruining my life and she doesn't even care. She doesn't care about my feelings, about what I want. All that matters to her is what she wants. How can she be so selfish! The ear piercing sound of a blowing horn abruptly broke into Mackenzie's thoughts. Through the enormous amount of water that had accumulated in her aquamarine eyes she realized she had just ran a red traffic light and had nearly caused an accident. From the side mirror she could see that the driver of the other car was cursing at her and flashing obscene gestures at her as she sped away. "I've got to get off the road," she said aloud, wiping the tears from her face with one hand as she tightened her grip on the steering wheel with the other. She thought of going to her best friend Cara's house but dismissed that idea when she glanced at the digital clock on the dashboard and realized how late it was getting. Although she knew Cara's parents wouldn't mind her popping in so late it still wasn't such a great idea. Pouring her heart out to someone else wasn't what she felt like doing at that moment anyway. She needed some place quiet, some place where she could be alone. Suddenly she knew exactly where she could go. Her favorite place to think-the city park. And it was only about a block away. She just had keep her attention focused and make it that far without causing a major accident. Attempting to push her troubles aside at least long enough to reach her destination, she squeezed the steering wheel harder and sat up straighter in the seat. She kept her eyes glued to the road in the darkness ahead of her until she safely pulled the car against the curb at the park a few seconds later. She turned off the ignition, fell back in the driver's seat and wiped the remaining tears from her face with the back of her hand. As she stepped out of the car it suddenly occurred to her that the park was closed. It had been closed for nearly two hours. She hesitated for a moment wondering what to do but then decided she wasn't going to let a little pad lock stand in her way. If there was one thing she had learned in her childhood days of hanging out with the boys it was how to climb a fence. She shoved her car keys in the pocket of her tight fitting Levi jeans and shimmied up the chain link fence, landing safely without a scratch on the other side. Only a few dim yellow lamplights that were scattered throughout the area lit the park in the night. Gazing around, Mackenzie was relieved to see there were no hobo's or homeless people sleeping on the park benches. She would be safe there-for a while. She made her way across the damp grass to the marry-go-round that sat in the center of the park and climbed on. Careful not to hit her head on any of the bars, she lay down on the cool metal circular object and stared at the dark evening sky. Hundreds of little stars twinkled brightly in the distance and she wondered briefly what life would be like if she could really reach the stars. Fly through the sky like Superman, maybe even move to another planet and leave all the troubles behind on Earth. But then her pleasant thoughts of leaving the world behind were quickly clouded by the reality of the life she was stuck with. Mother is going to marry Joe, she thought, feeling a lump of tears form deep in her throat again. She's actually going to marry him and there's nothing I can say or do to change her mind. By this time next week my entire life will be changed and I'm helpless to stop it. Why does she have to do this to me? Sure, Joe Ducote was a nice man. Or at least that's what he wanted Mackenzie to think. He was constantly pushing himself into the events of her life. Like the graduation committee. The minute she had announced she was joining the committee he had instantly jumped in, volunteering countless time and any money he could to do whatever the committee decided they needed him to do. He always made sure to treat her mother like a queen when she was around, always laughing and making his corny jokes, he bought Mackenzie everything she needed, and attempted to appear the perfect father figure. But Mackenzie was certain it was all a front. She could see right through him. His actions were just a show to win over her mother's heart and take her away. She was positive that the instant her mother married him the real Joe Ducote would come out. The worst part was it seemed his plan was working perfectly for him. Her mother appeared to be head over heels in love with the man. Her mother thought he was the greatest thing in the world. Of course it was so obvious that things were beginning to change already. Mackenzie knew it had to be Joe who had convinced her mother to urge her to apply to different colleges-most of which were out of town and some out of the state. She knew that was only an attempt to get her out of the house and as far away as possible so he could have her mother to himself. Why can't we just go back to the old days - back to the way things were before he came around? Mackenzie wondered in devastation. We were so happy then-both of us. Just mom and me. At least after dad left us behind that is. Why does that have to change now after all these years? As an avid reader of young adult romances, THE SECRET ADMIRER author Tonya Ramagos has always dreamed of writing her own teen novels. The road to her writing career began when she was a youngster in Junior High School but it wasn't until April 1999 that her first book titled The Feud was accepted for publication by Domhan Books and released in June 1999. Since then Tonya has had three other teen books and two short stories accepted for publication. She is a resident of Ocean Springs, MS where she lives with her husband Jarett, 5-year-old son Korlin, and a baby on the way. Please visit her website Romance 4 Teens at www.geocities.com/romance4teens |
