11
Sawyer
In my physics class, my teacher fiddled with the computer to get the news to project onto the screen. I knew what she was going to put on. I heard many projectors in the school were going to be broadcasting the historical event. My dad's company was going to be making some big announcement. Not that I knew what it was. I only lived with the guy. The teacher let out a squeal. On the screen, there was a long table with microphones in front of a row of people. In the middle was my dad. Dr. Green was two people down with Madeline between the two. The air caught in my throat.
I hadn't seen Madeline since she was in the hospital. She had gotten some of the color back in those cheeks. The dark circles under her eyes were fainter but still there. I wondered how she was sleeping. Were the nightmares bad? How was she dealing with them? Madeline's hair had her hair tied back, and she was wearing a sweater. Madeline had her hands folded on the top of the table. Even though the whole table was on screen, my eyes watched as her fingers twitched.
My dad fixed his glasses and tapped the microphone.
"We will start with the announcement. Madeline here has been the only known true clone that has survived. We had proven that there were false ones in the past, and we have had some failed experiments ourselves. Fourteen and a half years ago, Madeline took her first breath. For fourteen years, she has been the only clone in the world. That is until about three months ago."
Flashes were going the entire time my father spoke. My stomach dropped. I knew about the clone, but the announcement still surprised me. Had it survived? He hasn't talked about it for months.
A screen turned on behind them, revealing a baby. A chubby face filled the screen, and I sat up. The baby laughed.
"This is Adam. The second successful clone!" his whole face lit up. "We will start taking questions."
The teacher turned to look at me with a smile on her face.
"That's exciting! Did you know Sawyer?"
I only nodded as I watched Madeline turn to look at the baby. She didn't look surprised. Madeline knew about it, but for how long? Had she met Adam? My dad had a new experiment. Why couldn't he let Madeline come back home? I felt a hand on my shoulder.
"Madeline looks good."
It was Justin. All I could do was nod my head. Was I ever going to see her again outside of a screen?
Dad came home alone that night. He was beaming ear to ear as he busted through the door. I was at the table, trying to shove the bowl of cereal into my mouth before he started to talk.
"Did you see the news?"
Too late.
I nodded. "Yup, they played it at school."
"True history in the making. I'm so glad that your school understands that."
My dad was opening the fridge and pulled out some chicken thing he made the other night. My cereal was more appealing than the strong scent that came as soon as he opened the Tupperware.
"So, who is taking Adam home to raise?"
My dad shook his head.
"No one. There are a couple of nurses taking turns watching him at the center. He'll eventually have a room like Madeline."
I got up from the table and poured the rest of my cereal out.
"So, Madeline is never coming home?" I whispered.
"Not after you announced that you love her." My dad scuffed and put the food into the microwave. "The only time you'll see her again is on TV like you did today."
"You're punishing her because of what I said?" my voice grew more assertive.
My face scrunched, and my muscles stiffened.
"Her health is still up in the air, which is the biggest reason why she is not out. Her health does matter to me. However, your feelings don't help."
"I swear the second I graduate high school, I'm out of here," I growled.
I grabbed my keys and stormed out the front door before he could say anything else. I bolted out of my driveway, causing my tires to scream. I drove out of the neighborhood and turned the music on louder. I wanted to drown out my thoughts. Finally, I turned into Ricky's driveway behind his car. He was home for the week. His grandfather had surgery, so he came home to visit. My hands clenched the steering wheel. I took deep breaths, causing my whole chest to swell, then released the air. Repeating those steps over and over did not stop my spinning head. I jumped when there was a knock on my window. Ricky was bent over to look through the window with a raised eyebrow. I turned the music down and lowered the window.
"Hey."
"Hey, what's up?"
I turned the car off and got out. I could see my breath as it drifted out as I breathed.
"My dad."
"Okay, so long discussion, we're going to bring that inside then."
I looked down to see that Ricky was wearing his slippers and no coat. I followed him into the house. His mom and dad were in the other room as I hear pots and pans clattering. We went into his room, and I heard the door shut. I sat on his bed and ran my hands through my hair. My fingers shook as I repeated the process.
"I think I'm truly losing my mind," I muttered.
"Okay, you have to be a little more specific than that."
Ricky leaned against his closed-door as he faced me. I hunched over and stared at my hands.
"Did you see my dad today on TV?"
I glanced up, and Ricky raised an eyebrow as he crossed his arms over
