Jennifer's day seemed to peak with finding that stone. Sure, she chatted with her friends Kay, Ella, and Emma between classes and during lunch, and sure, she enjoyed maybe one or two of her classes, but it was a bland day, overall. And it didn't help when the last class ended and Jennifer found herself bumping into none other than Paige McMillan.
Normally, Jennifer would probably be the kind of person to go under Paige's radar, but Paige's older sister was dating Jennifer's older brother, and that put a target on Jennifer's back.
"It's weird how you have a different last name from the rest of your family, right?" Paige gestured to her own friends, opening up the question to them. "That's weird, right?"
"Shut up, Paige," Jennifer managed through gritted teeth as she ducked her head and pushed past the small gaggle of preteen prima-donnas, towards the car pick-up loop.
Hurtling herself into the black Chevy Tahoe that met her there, Jennifer let her emotions break.
"Aw, babygirl," her mother, Lorraine, soothed from the driver's seat, "did Paige get to you again?"
Jennifer nodded through her tears as she buckled her seat belt.
Like a tank, the large SUV pulled away from the curb and towards home, protecting those inside. "I know she can be a real pill, but I don't want you letting her treat you like that."
Jennifer didn't respond.
"I know you want to honor your father's memory," Lorraine continued, "and I do too. But Gary's been your daddy now for most of your life. I'd understand, and I'm sure your father would too, if you want to change your last name to Meadows."
"Father" was always the word they used to refer to Cooper Montana, Jennifer's biological father and Lorraine's first husband. He was a driven man, an expert photographer, and bound to change the world through photojournalism. When the Syrian Civil War broke out, a colleague gave him the opportunity to travel to the Middle East to document the atrocities that were happening. Cooper took the opportunity. And one of the atrocities took him.
"Daddy" was always the word they used to refer to Gary Meadows, the former staff sergeant who left the army when his own first wife was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer. When she passed, he settled himself and his son Biff in Lake Point, where he and Lorraine first met.
After a few blocks of silence, Lorraine stopped at a red light. "You know, the reason I chose not to have your last name changed when I married your daddy was so that it could be your choice. It's still your choice. Whatever you choose, you know I'll support you."
"I don't want to change it."
"Okay," Lorraine held up her right hand, as if in surrender. "I just want to make sure you know the option's always there."
When they got home, Jennifer turned straight for her bedroom, but Lorraine called to her when she was halfway up the stairs: "Now I don't want you just sulking in your room all afternoon. Something bad happened, but that's not going to be what you remember about today, you hear me? Drop off your books, and then you come sit with me out on the porch, alright?"
Jennifer paused. "Yes, Momma." Then she kept on making her way up the stairs.
