Celeste Carver hummed a little song to herself as she walked to her front door. She had been out on a date with Joe Kiriakis, the man of her dreams. They had been dating steadily for the past month or so. Tonight he had told her he loved her for the first time. They had stayed out a little later than usual and the lights were all out at her house. CD swung the door open carefully and peaked in. Satisfied that nothing was wrong she slid the door open and stepped in. She slid the door shut again and turned around.
A light snapped on and she saw her father. "You're out late." He commented sharply.
Busted.She thought guiltily. "Sorry Dad." She smiled apologetically. She turned to walk to her room.
"That's it?" He asked.
"What do you mean?" She feigned confusion.
"Where were you?" He asked. "I was worried sick." He said, more to himself than to her.
Lexie heard voices in the living room and sat bolt upright in bed. She felt like she had just had a nightmare. From time to time in her adult life, since her children had been born she seemed to have inherited a tiny portion of her mother's Gift. She could always tell when there was going to be an explosion that would rock her little family's world. Tonight was the worst feeling she had ever had.
Lexie slipped out of bed, grabbed a robe and padded to the living room. Abe was sitting there and he looked angry. CD was next to the door and she still carried the trace of a smile. Lexie frowned. Something was not right.
"I was out with Joe, not that it's your business." CD responded.
Lexie almost groaned. Could there be a worse response at this moment? She wondered.
Abe grimly set his mouth. "You've been seeing a lot of that boy lately." He drawled.
"Yeah, why?" CD's good mood was starting to dissipate.
Lexie sailed into the room. "CD, you're home. Wonderful. Now we can all go to bed." She tugged on Abe's arm softly.
"No, I want to hear this." CD didn't seem to realize how upset her father was. "Why do you care that I was out with Joe?"
Lexie's jaw tightened. The spit has hit the fan now. She realized.
"Why do I care?" Abe's voice was harsh. "You are my daughter and I have a right to know who you are seeing." He took a deep breath, intending to calm himself. "Was this about your business?" It was no secret in the Carver family that Abe disapproved of his older daughter's decision to skip college, even though it was for business, which he did approve of.
"No, this was personal." CD felt anger at having to defend her actions to Abe.
"Oh. Personal." Abe repeated in a strangled tone.
"CD, let's go upstairs." Lexie pleaded with her daughter, trying to ease the already heated tension between father and daughter.
"What kind of personal?" Abe demanded.
"Joe and I are dating. Didn't you know?"
Of course he didn't know. Predicting how Abe would react, CD had intentionally kept that little tidbit from him.
Abe's face turned several colors before he thundered, "You are never to see that boy again."
CD stared at him in shock. "Why not?" She managed. Lexie did the only left for her to do and stepped back. She had known this was coming for weeks, ever since CD started going around the house with a dreamy look in her eyes that Lexie knew all to well.
"He is much too old for you." Abe managed, but the excuse sounded weak in his own ears.
"That's a load of bull, Daddy and we both know it. You're twelve years older than Mom, Joe's only eleven years older than me." CD snapped.
"That's different." Abe snarled. "Your mother and I understand each other. We were both raised a certain way. We're the same kind of people."
CD froze. The in a deadly quiet voice she asked, "Is that what this is about? Because Joe's white?"
"Now, honey I'm not saying that." Abe started. "Some of our best friends are white, and it's not that I'm against that kind of relationship. But think of what it would mean if the two of you were to have children�" He trailed off.
"Mom is half white. But you still love her." CD pointed out, trying to put together a logical argument in the face of such illogical prejudices.
"I didn't know that when I met her." Abe began.
Lexie's gasp startled him. He suddenly realized what he had said. "Now, baby you know I don't mean that." He directed his statement to Lexie. Her jaw was working but no words were coming out.
CD was stunned too. Her father, the man she had looked up to with love and respect for all her life, her daddy was a racist? It didn't seem possible. "But when I dated Austin�" She jumbled.
"That was different." Abe said lamely. "He was your age."
CD took a shuddering breath. "I don't even see why you care." She said to a stunned Abe. "You never loved me anyway. At least not as much as Frannie."
The tensions of the past months, with his job, his memories, and everything rushed over Abe. He suddenly needed his daughter to understand all the helpless rage burning inside of him. But he didn't have words to make her understand. In a lightning quick move he lifted his hand to slap his child.
Lexie was faster. She grabbed his arm and Abe inadvertently hit his wife instead. CD realized what had happened and began to cry. "I hate you." She screamed as she turned and fumbled with the door. "I never want to see you again!"
"CELESTE!" Abe screamed after her. But it was too late. She was gone. Lexie was on the floor. He knelt next to her.
Lexie sat up. "You were going to hit her. You were going to hit our daughter." She accused.
"Lexie, you know I just got carried away. I would never�"
"I don't know what I believe any more." She said. "But I do know I can't stay here. I can't stay with you, knowing what I know after tonight." She picked herself up off the ground. In just her nightgown, she threw open the door. Exposed to the frigid night air Lexie turned to look at her husband.
"Lexie, please forgive me." Abe said desperately. "I love you, you know that. And the children. I would never hurt any of you. You HAVE to know that."
"I'll forgive you." Lexie said coldly. "When our daughter does." She slammed the door on her way out. And Abe was left alone in his suddenly, violently, broken home.
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