"Rayne, are you hearing what I'm saying?" I hear my aunt say, and I give her a little smile and answer. "Yes," I reply to her as I turn to face the rear window of the car. Everything starts coming back to me as I gaze out the car window.

Rewind

Knock, knock.

The knocking on the door catches my attention, so I turn to face the time. I see it's 9 p.m., and nobody should be at the door. I see two officers standing there when I run down to the door. My nerves start to ball up in my stomach, making my hair stand on end as I see them waiting patiently with their heads hung low, holding their hats in their hands. "Hello, officers. How may I assist you?" I speak a little nervously.

The older-looking officer with more medals on his shirt asks, "Are you the daughter of Melissa and Anthony Wilson?"

"Yes? What's the problem here?" I question them.

"Well, we regret to inform you that there has been an accident, and they didn't make it," they say, causing everything around me to fade away. I don't recall what they said after.

end of flashback

It's been two weeks since my parents passed away, and I feel as hollow as I did the day the police showed up at our house and told me the news. I haven't cried since that day, but I can't. I have to hold it together, not just for myself but for my son. I look behind me and see my three-year-old little boy and smile. Yes, you heard that right. I have a three-year-old son. His name is Dante James Wilson. His dad was a one-night stand one summer when I went to a party with my best friend. I didn't get his dad's name; I have no idea where he lives. I know that might make me sound like a whore or easy, but I never slept with anyone before him. I don't regret it, though. I love my little boy. Yes, I had him when I was 15 years old, but I wouldn't give him up.

"Rayne, we set up a room for Dante. We also didn't know what you would need, so we got him the basics: a bed, some toys, and clothes. We can go get him whatever else is needed tomorrow. Also, Uncle Frank's friend and his family are coming over tomorrow. Caleb will be flying in tomorrow morning, and Korey and Melanie just got back from their vacation with their friends, and school starts next week." Aunt Tina says, looking at me before looking back at the road.

We finally pull up to my aunt's house; she lives in the middle of a huge piece of land, and the guards at the gate let us in. My aunt's house is surrounded by lots of trees, and her front yard has a beautiful fountain. I do not even know how to describe her house; besides that, it's not a house or a mansion; this woman lives in a castle. I also don't know what my Uncle Frank does for a living for as long as I have known him, which is my whole life. He runs a company my dad worked for, and that's all they would ever tell me. I do know my aunt is a fashion designer, and my cousins all have jobs. Caleb works in a garage. Korey works in the garage with Caleb, and Melanie isn't working yet, but she is 16.

"Aunt Tina, what does Uncle Frank do?" I ask her as we pull into the garage. "He is a business owner, dear." She answers and smiles at me.

Hmm, if he is a business owner, then why does he need all these guards? Maybe it is because Aunt Tina is a major fashion designer.

"Rayne! Oh my god, I have missed you." I hear someone yell as I'm getting Dante out of his car seat. I turn and look, and I see Melanie running into the garage, but she stops when she sees Dante. She looks at me, and then at Dante, I can see the confusion spreading in her eyes until it all clicked for her.

"Oh my god, you have a baby. Oh man, my dad is going to freak out. Wait, why didn't you tell me we talked all the time?" Mel asks me.

"Chill Melanie Your dad knows already, and he was fine with it. He is the one who asked me to come here after my parents's accident; he was worried for me and Dante," I say to her as I walk over to hug her and introduce her to Dante.

"Melanie, this is my son, Dante," I say to her, and she smiles softly at him.

As we walk inside the house, my stomach feels like it's in knots. I haven't seen my cousins since the summer they came to visit; it was the night I went to the party. They came over to have dinner and to hang out before they headed back here to West Virginia. They live in Beckley, West Virginia, which is about an hour's drive from Charleston.

Korey and Caleb don't know about Dante or that I went to a party the night they left. No one knew I snuck out; my parents made me hide it from everyone. I was home-schooled that school year and then transferred to a different school. My parents were ashamed of me; they were worried I would ruin the family's reputation by being a teen mom. I think that's why I'm worried about Korey and Caleb's reactions to seeing Dante.

I followed my aunt Tina upstairs to drop my stuff off in my room and then into Dante's room. I walked in, and I was left speechless. His room is full of toys, and the walls are painted a light blue with Paw Patrol stickers. His bed is a platform queen bed. Yes, a queen bed with blue bedding and tons of Paw Patrol-stuffed animals. I did tell them he is obsessed with paw patrol, but what three-year-old boy isn't?

I turn to look at Aunt Tina and try not to cry. "Aunt Tina, this is way too much," I say, shaking my head.

"None of that. Now listen. I know your parents loved that boy; he is their only grandson. Yes, I know your father made you hide him, but Frank and I have always known about him. Your mom loved him so much and was always talking about Dante this and Dante that. Now that they aren't here, I'm taking over, and we are helping you. I'm going to spoil the hell out of him like an aunt is supposed to, just like your parents would want. There is no need to be ashamed of being a teen mom or of him." She says she is hugging me close, allowing me a chance to collect myself without Dante seeing me upset.

"Ok, enough of that. Let's go see Korey and let Dante sleep; it's 10 p.m." I shake my head and lay him down on his bed.

"Umm, Aunt Tina I'm probably going to go to sleep with him tonight. I don't want him waking up in the morning and freaking out," I say.

She says okay, and I follow her down the stairs. "He is probably in the game room." Aunt Tina says, I've been here before, so I know where to go. As I was walking to the game room, I could hear him talking to someone, probably Melaine; she didn't follow me to my room or Dante's room because she got a phone call when we walked into the house.

I rolled my eyes before I walked into the room. "I'm surrounded by idiots," I say, and Melaine laughs as Korey snaps his head towards the door and his eyes get big.

He jumps up, runs to me, and pulls me into a bone-crushing hug. I swear he is suffocating me.

"I can't breathe," I say as I tap his back and start coughing.

"Oh, Shit, sorry," he says and puts me down. I back away, look up at him, and smile.

He has gotten so big; he's like 6'3 and so built that he looks like he could snap someone in two with his massive arms. He has brown hair and blue eyes, but his face is kind of boyish. I mean, he and Meliane are only 16; I'm two years older than them. Melanie and Korey are twins; they are 16 years old, and Caleb is 20 years old. Melaine looks like Aunt Tina, with blonde hair and brown eyes. They are 5′3 and have beautiful, light skin. Caleb and Kory take after Uncle Frank's brown hair, blue eyes, and very tall stature. I take after my mom's and Uncle Frank's sister Raven, who has black hair, brown eyes, a dark skin tone, and is 5'2 and curvy, but not in a bad way if that is a thing.

My mom and Aunt Tina were best friends growing up; that's how she and Uncle Frank met, if you guys were wondering, and my dad is Frank's best friend. But they did not meet until college, while Mom and Tina grew up together.

We talked until, well after midnight, I told them I needed to go to bed. It had been a long day, and I needed sleep, so I got up and told them good night, then headed to Dante's room and laid down.