Unexpecting by Jen Bailey

Author:Jen Bailey
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group

“Yes!” I shout, shaking the offer letter triumphantly. “Yes, yes, yes!”

“What is it?” Roger asks again.

I shove the paper at him. “Check it out!”

Mom hurries in, worry dragging her brows together. “Ben, why are you so excited?”

“This is fantastic. I don’t know exactly what this means, but it sounds great.” Roger claps me on the back, passing the letter to Mom. “Congratulations, Ben.”

Mom is the only one who doesn’t seem excited.

Roger picks up on this the same time I do. His smile dims.

Mom must not get how big of a deal this is. “Mom, thousands of kids apply for this program. Thousands. They only take like fifty. This is huge. There are actual recruiters as part of this program. College recruiters. Major colleges. And scholarships.”

“Ben,” she says softly.

I cross my arms over my torso, hoping to contain the swishing sensation in my gut and the tightness in my chest. “What am I missing?”

Roger’s hand lands on the back of my neck, heavy and steady. Instead of jerking away from the touch like I normally would, I let it ground me.

“It’s a summer camp, right?” Mom says.

“Yeah. It starts the first week of July and runs through August. Six weeks.”

“And it’s expensive, right?”

“Kind of. I mean, yeah, it’s pricey, but it’s worth it. It’s in Boston, but attendees almost always end up with amazing grants and scholarships. And I’ve got some money saved from Greco’s.”

“Ben.”

No. No no no. She isn’t telling me I can’t go. She can’t.

“You said I could go. When we filled out the application online, you said we’d make it work if I got in.”

“That was before,” she says. “Things are different now. You’re going to be a father of an infant. You won’t have the time, the money, or the energy to attend summer camp.”

“It’s not a camp, it’s a practicum. This is a huge opportunity.” My brain refuses to connect the dots. I know—I know—on some level that Mom is right, but I can’t see past the opportunity. Her words, her logic, are white noise in the background. All I know is that she’s changing the trajectory of my future. The Jacques de Vaucanson Summer Academy isn’t just the first step in securing my future—it’s the proof that my future is meant to be. And now Mom is telling me I can’t go?

“Ben—”

“Stop!” I gather the envelope, the brochure, and the offer letter to my chest. “Stop saying my name like that. Stop—” I struggle for the words. I’m so angry, so unbelievably angry. I don’t want to be reasonable, or logical, or practical. The pressure builds inside me, threatening to overwhelm me.

I tear free from Roger’s grip and storm to my room.

I slam my door behind me. The impact jars the framed photograph of my father loose and it falls from the wall, crashing into Sonic’s enclosure. Sonic squeaks and scurries to hide behind his plastic wheel. I toss the academy information onto my dresser and reach for the frame. The glass front is cracked and at least a couple of pieces are missing.

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