Chapter 66: Pretty broken family
Chapter Sixty Six
**OLIVER WEST **
What did he want from us now?
Pumpkin’s expression paled like someone had flipped a switch, and she took several quick steps backwards until she was pressed against Mom’s side, her hands clutching at Mom’s apron like she used to do when she was five and afraid of thunderstorms.
"Hey there, kiddo," Dad greeted. Maybe it was just me, but I thought his voice carried a fake cheerfulness that made my skin crawl.
It reminded me of the same tone he’d used when he promised to take us to the park and never showed up.
Pumpkin didn’t respond when he waved at her, she just stared up at Mom with wide, anxious eyes, as though she was silently begging for protection.
This was something I hated, the way she shrank into herself was totally unlike her.
My hands clenched into fists at my sides as Dad stepped further inside without being invited, his expensive shoes crossing our threshold like he still belonged here.
His smile didn’t flinch, like he hadn’t shattered our family and walked away without a backwards glance.
The sight of him in our living room felt wrong. This was our space now - Mom’s, mine, and Pumpkin’s. We’d built something here after he left, something fragile but real. And now, I felt as though he was contaminating it just by breathing our air.
"Well, aren’t you all very welcoming?" He said with that bitter laugh that used to make my stomach twist when I was younger.