Chapter 7

“Another sick day?”, John leaned on the door frame, looking at his daughter that laid weakly on the bed.

Joanne chuckled, precisely a month ago, she didn’t know that this man existed and now he checked on her almost every hour just to make sure she was okay. “I wonder when’s the right time for me to visit mom.”, she replied, completely ignoring her father’s question.

“The retreats facility hasn’t contacted me regarding her requesting a visitor. I’ll make sure to call her therapist today to send your regards.”, he shrugged.

“Why can’t we just visit her? We’re family. I am family.”.

“Unfortunately, it’s not as simple as that. dr. Gray said she could only get a visitor once she feels comfortable talking about the visitor. I am sorry your name hasn’t come up yet.”.

This was bullocks. Joanne needed to find a way to see her mother. Even if it meant swallowing her pride and ask for Victoria’s help.

**

It was the 4th day for her to stay home. She wasn’t sick. Honestly, she didn’t even try to pretend to be sick anymore either. There was no way Joanne could ever step foot on that school again, remembering the stunt she pulled at the school’s bathroom last Tuesday. John and Victoria were starting to worry, they even suggested Joanne to see a therapist, which she abruptly opposed to. Every time Victoria started to remind her how she needed to go back out there and face her fears, she would just say that it was pointless, she had to repeat her senior year anyway, so she would not miss a thing, in fact, she would have to re-live everything next year.

She felt like her life was way easier when she hid from everyone. The school was having a friendly match that day, with another prep school that she failed to recall the name of. The weeks Joanne had been having in this city were nothing like she saw in movies. She knew she did not belong there, but part of her wished that she was. She wanted to find it natural to walk with a crowd of sophisticated-looking people. She yearned to find some friends that she could talk to for hours, about things that she liked. Maybe New York was not for the underdogs like her. Perhaps it is only good for people that were born worthy, with privilege and unimaginable wealth.

Joanne looked around her room, it was the guest room that she was forced to move to a few days ago. She didn’t like how plain it was. Its lack of character almost made her uncomfortable. Joanne decided to leave her room for the first time in days. To her surprise, she found John whispering inaudible words on the phone as if he didn’t want anyone to find out who that was. She was more surprised to find her father at home at 10 in the morning than knowing that he kept yet another secret from her. She never tried to guess what her father worked as, but she assumed he must have a lot of responsibilities to be able to afford a huge house such as this one.

John eyed his daughter from her hair to the tip of her toes. She was petite and not in a good way. Although they had been staying together for the past few weeks, he never really looked at his daughter, which is ironic, considering the amount of time he spent wondering how his daughter looked like. She had her eyes, so he was told in the delivery room around 17 years ago. Where he was left by the love of his life for a richer man.

Where he had to say goodbye 5 minutes after he said hello to someone who just literally came into his life.

“Hey, I just took a sick day, do you want to tour around the city? If you have felt better, obviously.”, he said.

“Yeah, I would like that.”, it was not the answer that John was expecting, but he sure looked very excited hearing those words come out of her mouth.

**

They took the black Jaguar that Joanne never set her foot on before. It was always hidden at the end of the garage.

“How come I never see you in this?”, she asked, crossing her arms as her father started to drive.

“Well, this card belongs to Russell. It’s a gift from his father for his 16th birthday.”.

Joanne’s eyes widened. Russell got to have 2 fathers, yet he still got this car as a birthday gift. While she grew up with no father figure and a mother that never remembers her birthday. It was probably the reason why she lied about her actual birth date too.

“Are you okay?”, John asked once he started to notice the abrupt change in his daughter’s countenance.

“Yup.”, Joanne replied coldly. It was almost unfair for John since he believed he didn’t do anything wrong.

The rest of the car ride was silent. Neither one of them dared to say a thing. John was too worried that he was going to upset Joanne even more, and Joanne was still fueled by her teenage anger. She secretly enjoyed the peace. It had been 15 minutes, she was confused as to why her father was still driving. There was no sign of him to stop too. When she looked outside the window, she swore she could almost see the tip of the empire state building. If only her seat was higher.

When John pulled up to a full stop, Joanne looked around the parking lot. It was not empty, it took them 5 whole minutes to find a spot to park in. Joanne immediately unbuckled her seatbelt before she jumped out of the car. She inhaled the smell of the autumn air. She regretted not bringing any coat, as the cold breeze swept through her hair, sending down chills to her spine. John instinctively took off his cardigan and handed it to her. She took it without saying thank you, she never asked him to do this anyway.

Joanne follower her father’s steps, as they walked further, they grew closer to the statue of liberty. She never knew it was that tall, that proud, that grandeur. Her jaw dropped as she was mesmerized by the size and beauty of the renowned statue. John sensed the fascination, he smiled, knowing that he finally did something right for her.

“Enthralling, isn’t it?”, John began the conversation.

Joanne failed to respond. Her father didn’t know if she really didn’t hear, or if she was still giving him the silent treatment for reasons he didn’t know.

“You know your mother and I once went here.”, he added, looking at his firstborn from the corner of his eyes. “I always hoped you would grow proud and strong like her.”, he added. “That’s why I wanted to name you Liberty.”.

Joanne chuckled in disbelief. “Name?”, Joanne asked in frustration. “You never even visited, not once, not ever!”, she shouted, making all the tourists stared at the both of them. “The days I had before I came here were beyond difficult! I don’t remember any day where I wasn’t starving.”. Tears started rolling down her cheeks.

“Starve? What about the bills I sent your mother every month?”, he raised his eyebrows.