I know you hardly ever see your mother, and your dad walked out years ago.

Jack's words pushed me deeper and deeper into a sea of rage. How dare he tell me about how miserable his life was when he couldn't keep his stupid mouth shut.

The festering ball of fury coiled in the back of my throat as my fingers gripped the steering wheel so hard my brown knuckles turned white. What was it about Jack Garrison that wrecked me so completely like this?

Keep running, Shayna. One day, you'll have to forgive me for whatever I did.

He didn't even know. It was all so far under the bridge that he didn't even know what he had done. I remembered. It haunted me each and every day.

Now, he just expected me to feel sorry for him. He had the guts to talk about his father, making his life hard when I hadn't spoken to my father in years.

I took a deep breath and reached for my phone. Parker would be at practice right now, so I couldn't call him until later, but I could go home. At least there, I wouldn't be judged for Juan cheating on me or have Jack attempting to apologize for something he didn't remember.

There'd be questions later about why I walked out of rehearsal. Anton would probably blame Jack. He usually assumed it was his nephew's fault.

But I couldn't go back in there now. I'd probably slap Jack if I saw him again today. Samantha and Juan were all lovey-dovey, and I wasn't ready to play a woman trying to teach the man in love with her how to court her. Not today and not now.

Keep running, Shayna.

I decided to drive home. Mom's apartment wasn't too far from the theater. Slowly, I pulled out of the parking lot and made the short drive to the big gate, where I punched in the code to let me into the complex.

Five minutes later, I was in front of our blue door on the third floor. I unlocked it and was greeted by the smell of lasagna. Aunt Layla was in the kitchen since it was too early for Mom to be home. It smelled like she was meal-prepping for the week.

The apartment wasn't small by any means. It had three bedrooms and was roomy until last year when Aunt Layla and my cousins Trevor and Brady moved in. With six people, it got a little tight.

Trevor was nineteen and lived half the time on campus, while Brady was only twelve. After Parker went to college about six months after they moved in, Brady got his room, and when Trevor was here, he slept on a roll-away bed.

I didn't mind the clutter or extra people. Aunt Layla's husband kicked her and her kids out right before their divorce. Mom said the family was always welcome, and her sister and nephews were no exception.

She kept saying that she and Aunt Layla would go house hunting, but Aunt Layla always said she'd find a place for her and her boys. Neither seemed inclined to do anything about the current predicament, however. Mom worked long shifts as a surgeon at the hospital, and Aunt Layla had a job teaching art at the local elementary school.

Brady was parked in front of the television, playing some Sonic game on Parker's old gaming system. I set my school bag down in my room and walked back into the family area.

"Shayna," Aunt Layla said. "How was your theater thing?"

I shrugged. "Nothing to report, Aunt Layla."

"I wish y'all weren't performing so far away," she said, placing a plate of lasagna in front of me. "But I know I'll make the drive, and I'll even drag your Momma along if she isn't working."

Mom was always working except when she agreed to do a movie night with me. We had a huge DVD collection of classic films, and Mom made the best parmesan garlic popcorn in the whole world.

"I don't mind," I said. "Mom is always saving lives."

Parker and I had spent a lot of time at the apartment together. We'd always had a babysitter until Parker turned sixteen. Now, we only needed a babysitter for Brady unless I had something for school when Aunt Layla wanted a girls' night.

"Wanna play, Shayna?" Brady asked.

"She needs to eat first," Aunt Layla said, putting a fork in my hand. "And you need to do your homework, Brady Porter."

Brady groaned and paused his game. I sat down at the table and halfheartedly dug into the lasagna.

Aunt Layla crossed her arms. "Do I need to make you a double hot fudge sundae since you obviously aren't over that cheating boy?"

I moved the lasagna around my plate. "No. I'm just not hungry."

"I know that tastes like heaven, and you love my lasagna," Aunt Layla said. "So why don't you tell Auntie L what's bothering you."

"There's this guy," I said.

Aunt Layla rolled her eyes. "Shayna, there's always a guy. What's he done this time?"

I sighed. "Different guy."

"Is this the guy you went out to do homework for at eight a.m. on a Saturday?"

"No," I laughed. "Not Kai. This guy is the lead in our play, and I hate him."

"Ah, that guy," Aunt Layla had heard the Jack rant multiple times. "Before we get into the fact that you're hung up on him, tell me, is he cute?"

I rolled my eyes. "Half the girls at my school have a crush on him."

"So hot," Aunt Layla clucked her tongue. "Just wanted the full picture. So you hate him, huh?"

Aunt Layla wasn't much better than a gossiping high school girl when we talked about school, but she gave genuine advice, unlike all the cheerleaders I hung out with. Clearly, she didn't believe I hated Jack, but I wouldn't let that bother me.

"Jack told me something personal that was supposed to make me feel sorry for him," I said. "It was probably all lies, but it just made me really angry."

"So you're all mad, and he wants you to like him," Aunt Layla said. "Right after you broke up with Juan. He likes you, Shay."

"I know that," I said. "He's been hitting on me for the entire production."

Aunt Layla sat down next to me. "So why do you hate his guts so much?"

"Back in the day, he told everyone that my parents were splitting," I said. "Parker told him, and suddenly everyone knew."

Aunt Layla sucked in her cheeks. "So yeah, maybe that's not so good."

"But today, he just dumped his alleged personal problems on me and expected sympathy," I said. "And I stormed out."

She whistled. "Wow, girl. You need to work on that temper."

I glared at my aunt. Forget Parker's triple dare. Going back to the theater and facing Jack and Juan after that would be impossible. Especially after seeing him so shameless with Samantha.

Not to mention Jack trying to be my buddy by saying we weren't so different because we both had issues with our dads. Jack and I were nothing alike.

"I know it was rude," I said. "But between that and Juan..."

Aunt Layla got up and walked over to the freezer. She pulled out the vanilla ice cream and opened the fridge to get the whipped cream, chocolate sauce, and strawberries.

"Never worry," Aunt Layla said. "Heartbreak sundaes to the rescue."

I helped Aunt Layla chop strawberries as she scooped two heaping bowls of vanilla ice cream and drowned the cold confection in chocolatey goodness.

We topped the ice cream with strawberry slices. Then Aunt Layla finished them with whipped cream, more chocolate syrup, and sprinkles.

We plopped onto the couch. Aunt Layla flipped the TV to the classic movie channel. Casablanca was playing.

"You should apologize to that boy," Aunt Layla said. "At least for how you reacted. Then, you need to find a way past your ex. You can't let him and that girl he cheated on with you ruin your life. Stand on your feet. Be strong."

"I'm trying," I said. "It's hard."

"Honey," she said. "I've gotten over dozens of boys. Your momma got over your father. You should have seen her with her boyfriend when we had drinks the other night. She was smiling and happy, Shayna."

Mom hadn't brought a boyfriend around in over a year. She dated casually but not so seriously that she introduced me to the men in her life.

"So I should find a rebound boy?" I asked. "That's your big advice?"

Before she could answer, the front door opened. I looked over because it was too early for Mom to be home.

Instead of Mom, though, Parker came in through the front door.

"Oh dear," he said, throwing his bag down. "Casablanca and heartbreak sundaes. Could there be a worse combination?"

I smiled. "I didn't know you were coming home."

Parker's grin widened, and he walked behind me to ruffle my curls. "I wanted it to be a surprise for you and Mom. I'm staying until tomorrow evening."

"He called me so I could get the roll-away bed ready for him in Brady's room," Aunt Layla smiled. "Go and put your stuff up, Parker, and I'll get you some lasagna. Maybe my culinary artistry won't be wasted on you."

Parker laughed. "You know I'm hungry."

Aunt Layla got up to fix Parker a plate while he dragged his bag to his old room. I finished up my ice cream and reheated my lasagna. Parker and I both sat at the bar overlooking the television.

My brother changed the channel, so some superhero movie with Batman played. We didn't talk much. I didn't want to share my problems again, even with Parker, who was barely stopping to breathe between bites.

Brady finished his homework and challenged Parker to a game of Mario Kart. I begrudgingly joined them, secretly hoping to crush them. It was satisfying to beat the boys with Baby Peach as my character.

"Forgot you were this good, sis," Parker said after we finished the first race. "But you were supposed to finish behind Brady. It isn't good for his little ego to lose."

"Hey!" Brady said. "Not fair."

I laughed, and Parker vowed he'd win the next race. When I shelled him a few feet before the finish line, he swore loud enough that Aunt Layla reminded him about language in front of Brady.

"I don't lose Parker," I said. "You could always forfeit."

We'd played a dozen more rounds before Mom came in the front door looking bedraggled. Her hair was frizzing out of a messy bun, and shadows were under her eyes.

"Hey, Mom," Parker said casually.

"P-Parker," she said, dropping her purse, and the contents spilled all over the floor.

"Surprise," Parker said. "I had some spare time. You already missed some epic Mario Kart rounds and heartbreak sundaes."

"Sorry, I didn't tell you, Genique," Aunt Layla said. "But your boy wanted to surprise you."

Mom picked up her things and scooped them back into her purse. Parker paused the game and hugged Mom. Aunt Layla heated a plate of lasagna, and Mom joined us in the living room.

"I tried to see if Trevor could come too, but apparently, he had a big test on Monday," Parker said.

"It's still a nice surprise," Mom said. "I missed you, Parker."

It was nice to see almost my whole family all together. It made up for storming out of rehearsal and all the stuff Jack dumped on me. I could just sit back with my family and deal with Jack, Juan, and all my other troubles tomorrow.