Family Reunion
Jan 30, 2016 12:04:36 GMT -5
Post by Savannah Taylor on Jan 30, 2016 12:04:36 GMT -5
(OOC- This is providing some backgound on not only the idea I have for my upcoming RP this week, but also on Savannah as well. I wrote this RP fora match back in September. For those who want to read the entire thing, promo included, just hit me up on Twitter!)
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Saturday, July 25th, 2015
University Medical Center
Las Vegas, Nevada
OFF CAMERA
The early afternoon sunlight cast a brilliant glow upon the impressive cement building, rising up like a monolith in the desert. The highly acclaimed University Medical Center stood head and shoulders above the rest in terms of quality patient care and excellence in service. The doctors and nurses who are lucky enough to work here have made it their personal commitment to be there at all levels of care, and that includes taking care of the friends and family who come by to visit with their relatives.
Standing just outside the main entrance is one such visitor. Clad in light blue jeans, a blue and white horizontal striped tank top and black ballet flats, the woman runs a hand through her softly curled blonde hair as she stares up at the hospital. The woman, who is actually Las Vegas native Savannah Taylor, stands with her hands in her back pockets and looks up at the hospital with a look of apprehension. Considering her luck, or lack thereof with hospitals, one would naturally assume that stepping inside the doors would bring up memories of almost one year ago. If only it were that simple. Savannah was standing outside the hospital as a result of a completely by chance encounter she had the night before. She was set to watch the Lip Sync battle as part of the EXODUS Fan Experience leading up to the iPPV, but that all changed. It changed when she ran into a young woman by the name of Harper. It was in talking with her that Savannah discovered that Harper wasn’t just some normal seventeen year old, but she was her sister. Finding out she had a sister, a fact that was later confirmed to be true, threw her for a loop. But what really took Savannah by surprise was finding out that her oft-estranged mother was currently in the hospital, recovering from a motor vehicle accident. Hearing that bit of news stirred something inside of Savannah that compelled her to show up at the hospital. Drawing in a sharp breath, Savannah adjusts her smallish purse over her arm and forces herself to walk towards the door. The automatic doors open with a woosh as she steps inside the lobby. The smell of disinfectant hits her nostrils as she makes her way over to the elevators. Pressing the up button, she waits as she fishes out a small slip of paper from her jeans pocket. That paper contained the floor number and room number where her mother was currently staying. Clutching it in her fingers, the doors open with a slight ping as Savannah steps inside. She presses the four button and leans back against the cool metal railing as the doors close.
So many thoughts were going through Savannah’s head as the elevator made its way up to the fourth floor. The last time that she saw or even spoke to her mother was well over a year ago. That conversation went about as poorly as one could imagine. For Savannah, it was a one sided argument that was mainly her yelling and venting twenty plus years of frustrations. Looking back on that last encounter, she was left wondering if that would be the last time she would see her mother. Back then, she was a woman who was filled with an undeniable amount of rage, rage directed at her mother and her father. But as time went on, she found herself feeling the rage inside lessening. All she ever wanted were some answers. There was no time like the present.
The elevator came to a lurching stop and the doors opened up onto the fourth floor. Savannah stepped out into the brightly lit hallway, her heart beating a thousand beats per second. She looks down at the crumpled paper in her hand and looks down the hallway to the right of where she came out of the elevator. Heaving a sigh, she starts off down the hall in what she viewed as the longest walk of her entire life. If this were a movie, then the tile floor would be painted a bright green and her final destination wouldn’t be her mother’s hospital room, but the electric chair. It doesn’t take long before she is standing just outside her mother’s room. Shoving the paper back into her pocket, she wipes her palms on her jeans and tentatively knocks on the doorframe. The achingly familiar voice from her childhood calls out from the inside. Savannah takes a few small steps inside and finds herself face to face with not only her mother, but her father and her sister as well. Her parents look on in somewhat shock.
Carla Taylor: S….Savannah?
Savannah Taylor: Hi mom.
Martin Taylor: I’m kind of surprised to see you, considering what happened last time…
Savannah looks at her father with the slightest hint of a smile as she takes a seat in the chair by the foot of her mother’s bed. Her father was on the side closest to the door and her sister was next to the large picture window.
Savannah Taylor: Let’s just say I was convinced to come here when I found out what happened last night.
She glances over at her sister, who looks down with a sheepish smile.
Savannah Taylor: So, uhh, how are you feeling?
Carla Taylor: The injuries aren’t as bad as they initially thought. I should be able to go home as early as tomorrow.
Savannah Taylor: That’s good. I’m glad to hear that. And that, you know you’re alive.
Carla Taylor: Thank you. It means a lot to hear that.
A few somewhat awkward seconds pass before Martin clears his throat slightly.
Martin Taylor: I’m guessing that there is a much bigger reason why you’re here. I’m glad you are here, though. Don’t get me wrong.
Savannah can only nod her head in her father’s direction. Carla senses this and turns her attention to her younger daughter.
Carla Taylor: Harper, honey, maybe you should wait outside or even go to the cafete…..
Savannah looks at her mother and cuts her off.
Savannah Taylor: She stays. She’s family, so she stays.
Harper Taylor: Are….are you sure? I mean, I don’t want to make anything more awkward.
Savannah Taylor: You are part of this family. You deserve to hear whatever happens.
The youngest person in the room can only nod as she sinks back into her chair and watches as her sister turns to her parents. Savannah rests her purse on her lap as she weighs how she wants to proceed.
Savannah Taylor: You know it’s funny. I’ve spent the better part of a year thinking about what would happen if I ever was face to face with you guys again. I’ve thought of so many situations in my head, so many things I wanted to say. I know what happened the last time we saw each other; I said some horrible things and did some horrible things. But as time has ticked by, I’ve felt a lot of that anger start to subside.
She laughs softly to herself as tucks a strand of flaxen hair behind her head, the same color hair that both her mother and her sister share. Her father’s hair was a slightly darker shade of blond, but blond nonetheless.
Savannah Taylor: I guess what I want more than anything right now is the truth. Mom, why did you let yourself get caught up in all of that mess that caused you to end up in prison?
The look on Savannah’s face was not one of malice, but of real and genuine curiosity. Carla adjusts herself in her bed as best she can so she is better able to address her oldest daughter.
Carla Taylor: It isn’t as complex or even as deep rooted as you might think. Before I met your father, I came across these people whom I ended up befriending. We would hang out on the weekends; go to clubs and casinos and whatnot, the typical Las Vegas lifestyle. It was maybe a few months into this friendship that they started divulging some more secretive aspects of their life to me. That is when the various baggies and bottles came into play. I didn’t take anything in the bottles, but the different colored powders I saw in the baggies were intriguing. Pretty soon they were not only introducing me to this dangerous game, but they were encouraging me to take part in it. After all, they were friends and I wanted to be viewed as an equal. My stupid self was out one night and I pulled out one of the baggies that they had given me. Only I didn’t realize but a police officer was standing right near me when I flashed it out.
Carla pauses as she reaches for the plastic tumbler sitting on the bedside table and takes a long sip of water. She sets the glass down with a slight thud as she continues.
Carla Taylor: That is how I ended up in jail for about a year. After I got out, I made a vow to keep myself out of trouble. I got a job at the local library. I met your father. Everything seemed to be looking up and everything looked like it would be perfect for the rest of time. After I gave birth to you, we were facing some slight financial issues. Your father took on more hours with the trucking company and I took a second job at the Tropicana. Looking back now, I wish I never had taken that second job. I was in a good position in my life. I had a wonderful husband. We had a beautiful baby girl. What could possibly happen that would screw that up?
She says with a sardonic smile on her face as she shakes her head slightly.
Carla Taylor: It turns out one simple, somewhat unknowing gesture cost me more than anyone could fathom. One day, your grandmother brought you home after a day in the park and had accidentally bumped into the table where I always kept my purse. It tipped over and stuff had spilled out onto the floor. She was picking up the contents and started putting stuff back when she found the plastic baggie. I didn’t know it at the time and neither did she, but someone else who worked at the Tropicana had the same exact purse that I had at the time and thought she was putting it into her purse, but it ended up in mine instead. Your grandmother did what any loving parent would do in a situation like this. She called the police and it wasn’t long before I wasn’t in jail. Because this was a second offense, they sent me right off to prison. They didn’t even care that I was innocent for a change. So that, in a nutshell, it what happened all those years ago.
Savannah looks at her mother, having listened to her explanation of things for the first time in, well, ever. Maybe it was because she was older and slightly wiser, but she could hear regret and remorse in her mother’s voice. She clears her throat and turns from her mother to her father.
Savannah Taylor: What happened with Grandma?
Martin Taylor: That was my doing, I’m regrettably admitting.
Savannah Taylor: What did you do, dad?
Savannah’s voice was slowly starting to drift to the emotional side as she waits for her father to explain what happened.
Martin Taylor: I was blinded by anger. I was angry at having my wife, the love of my life taken away from me for something that wasn’t even her fault that I took it out on the one person who was only acting like an actual adult. I took it out on your grandmother. I made up a story that was a complete lie and that resulted in Child Protective Services being called and you being removed from her home. With your mother in prison and with me on the road for weeks at a time, the decision was made to put you into the foster care system.
The revelation hit Savannah like a sack full of bricks. She remembered that fateful day when she was five. She remembers the people from the State coming in and the chaos that ensued. She remembered being an innocent little girl and having her entire world not just turned upside down, but ripped to shreds. Her grandmother’s house was the last place that ever truly felt like home to her. It was the last place she remembered, up until a year ago, feeling at peace. Her eyes began to glisten as she forces down the slight feeling of nausea.
Savannah Taylor: So you were blinded by a misplaced feeling of anger. You destroyed your own mother’s life because she actually did the right thing. Yet you didn’t even stop to think how this would affect the real victim here…..me. You didn’t think how this would shape MY life. Why did you allow this to happen? Why did you let your little girl be subjected to the kind of hell that you can’t really emotionally recover from?
The tears have begun to fall from her crystal blue eyes as she continues speaking.
Savannah Taylor: After Mom got released from prison, how come you two never fought for me? How come you never wanted me back in your lives?
The normally confident and collected professional wrestler was instead replaced by a scared and unsure little girl. She was replaced by a little girl who simply wanted to know why her family abandoned her and set her on a course that would make her the woman that graced the EXODUS ring.
Savannah Taylor: Because from the age of five right up until I turned eighteen, I went from place to place, searching for a sense of home. I wanted nothing more than to find a family, who would love me, protect me and most of all, fight for me. For one reason or another, no one wanted to take that risk. No one wanted to risk having the daughter of a convict living in their midst. Do you know the kind of psychological trauma I went through because of everything you just told me?
This time, it is Carla’s turn to have the tears fall down from her face.
Carla Taylor: Oh honey, you don’t know how hard we fought to get you out of there. When I was released, I wanted nothing more than to have my daughter back in my arms. I wanted to make up for everything. We fought and we fought, but we were told that there was no way you would be returned to us. There were people within the Department of Child Welfare who felt that no matter how much I proved myself, a convicted felon would never win against them. Despite that, we kept on fighting what was proving to be a losing battle. Then I became pregnant with and gave birth to your sister. Even though I had been given a second chance at being a mother, I still wanted nothing more than to have you back in my life.
Martin Taylor: We both screwed up, Savannah. We also know that no amount of apologies can ever take away what you went through. We thought that if we ever were able to see you again, we would get everything out in the open and hopefully begin the healing process. But the last time we saw you, we froze. I saw the hurt on your face. It’s something we both carry in our minds to this day.
Savannah closes her eyes and rests her forehead on her fist. So many things were going through her mind right now, the least of which was her match on Monday against Justin Brooks. It took several years, but she was finally getting some much needed and much anticipated answers. Picking her head up, she opens her eyes and wipes away some of the tears with the back of her hand.
Savannah Taylor: I’ve been waiting for a moment like this for God knows how long. I wasn’t in the right frame of mind last year or even the year before that to have this much dialogue with you guys. I think……I think I’d like to start communicating like this, with all of you again. I want to get to know my parents again, and I’d like to get to know the sister I never knew I had until yesterday.
The look on her parent’s faces was priceless. It didn’t show much shock or trepidation, but rather hope. However, the hopeful mood was quickly replaced by a more somber feeling as Carla cleared her throat.
Carla Taylor: You don’t know how much I’ve been wanting to hear that. But there is something that you should know, something that I need to tell you.
Savannah Taylor: Ok……I’m listening.
Carla looks at her husband and then at her youngest daughter, their expressions matching hers, before she turns her attention back to Savannah.
Carla Taylor: About a month and a half ago, I was getting my annual checkup at the doctor’s office. She decided to run some tests to make sure everything was running smoothly. About a week later, her office calls me in to discuss these results. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but was nervous going in there. One of the tests that were run was a mammogram, which was no big deal because I was coming up on my yearly one anyway.
She stops briefly and watches as Savannah bites her lip, almost afraid of what was next.
Carla Taylor: To make a long story short, I was diagnosed with Stage II Breast Cancer.
Time stopped right then and there. All Savannah heard was a wall of static in her mind when she heard the word cancer come from her mother’s mouth. It seemed like it wasn’t real, like this was all part of a sick and twisted prank that everyone knew about but her. Savannah sat back in her chair and blinked a few times, feeling a fresh bout of tears coming on. She sniffed a couple of times before reaching into her purse for a tissue. As she is fumbling around, her fingers graze against her iPhone. They remained there for a second before she lets go. Her world was slowly becoming more chaotic as the minutes ticked by. Yet the first thing in her mind was calling someone. She wanted nothing more right now than to pick up her phone and call someone, someone who would listen to her and tell her that things were going to eventually be alright. Unfortunately the one person Savannah wanted to talk to above everyone was also the one person who wanted nothing to do with her. She tried to push that thought out of her head as she finds the tissue and dabs at her eyes. That feeling of regret when she touched her phone would have to wait. Hell, even her final match preparations for Justin Brooks would have to wait. Right now, her family needed her as much as she needed them. This visit was proving to be a step in the right direction of slowly repairing not only a broken family unit, but a broken spirit as well.
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Saturday, July 25th, 2015
University Medical Center
Las Vegas, Nevada
OFF CAMERA
The early afternoon sunlight cast a brilliant glow upon the impressive cement building, rising up like a monolith in the desert. The highly acclaimed University Medical Center stood head and shoulders above the rest in terms of quality patient care and excellence in service. The doctors and nurses who are lucky enough to work here have made it their personal commitment to be there at all levels of care, and that includes taking care of the friends and family who come by to visit with their relatives.
Standing just outside the main entrance is one such visitor. Clad in light blue jeans, a blue and white horizontal striped tank top and black ballet flats, the woman runs a hand through her softly curled blonde hair as she stares up at the hospital. The woman, who is actually Las Vegas native Savannah Taylor, stands with her hands in her back pockets and looks up at the hospital with a look of apprehension. Considering her luck, or lack thereof with hospitals, one would naturally assume that stepping inside the doors would bring up memories of almost one year ago. If only it were that simple. Savannah was standing outside the hospital as a result of a completely by chance encounter she had the night before. She was set to watch the Lip Sync battle as part of the EXODUS Fan Experience leading up to the iPPV, but that all changed. It changed when she ran into a young woman by the name of Harper. It was in talking with her that Savannah discovered that Harper wasn’t just some normal seventeen year old, but she was her sister. Finding out she had a sister, a fact that was later confirmed to be true, threw her for a loop. But what really took Savannah by surprise was finding out that her oft-estranged mother was currently in the hospital, recovering from a motor vehicle accident. Hearing that bit of news stirred something inside of Savannah that compelled her to show up at the hospital. Drawing in a sharp breath, Savannah adjusts her smallish purse over her arm and forces herself to walk towards the door. The automatic doors open with a woosh as she steps inside the lobby. The smell of disinfectant hits her nostrils as she makes her way over to the elevators. Pressing the up button, she waits as she fishes out a small slip of paper from her jeans pocket. That paper contained the floor number and room number where her mother was currently staying. Clutching it in her fingers, the doors open with a slight ping as Savannah steps inside. She presses the four button and leans back against the cool metal railing as the doors close.
So many thoughts were going through Savannah’s head as the elevator made its way up to the fourth floor. The last time that she saw or even spoke to her mother was well over a year ago. That conversation went about as poorly as one could imagine. For Savannah, it was a one sided argument that was mainly her yelling and venting twenty plus years of frustrations. Looking back on that last encounter, she was left wondering if that would be the last time she would see her mother. Back then, she was a woman who was filled with an undeniable amount of rage, rage directed at her mother and her father. But as time went on, she found herself feeling the rage inside lessening. All she ever wanted were some answers. There was no time like the present.
The elevator came to a lurching stop and the doors opened up onto the fourth floor. Savannah stepped out into the brightly lit hallway, her heart beating a thousand beats per second. She looks down at the crumpled paper in her hand and looks down the hallway to the right of where she came out of the elevator. Heaving a sigh, she starts off down the hall in what she viewed as the longest walk of her entire life. If this were a movie, then the tile floor would be painted a bright green and her final destination wouldn’t be her mother’s hospital room, but the electric chair. It doesn’t take long before she is standing just outside her mother’s room. Shoving the paper back into her pocket, she wipes her palms on her jeans and tentatively knocks on the doorframe. The achingly familiar voice from her childhood calls out from the inside. Savannah takes a few small steps inside and finds herself face to face with not only her mother, but her father and her sister as well. Her parents look on in somewhat shock.
Carla Taylor: S….Savannah?
Savannah Taylor: Hi mom.
Martin Taylor: I’m kind of surprised to see you, considering what happened last time…
Savannah looks at her father with the slightest hint of a smile as she takes a seat in the chair by the foot of her mother’s bed. Her father was on the side closest to the door and her sister was next to the large picture window.
Savannah Taylor: Let’s just say I was convinced to come here when I found out what happened last night.
She glances over at her sister, who looks down with a sheepish smile.
Savannah Taylor: So, uhh, how are you feeling?
Carla Taylor: The injuries aren’t as bad as they initially thought. I should be able to go home as early as tomorrow.
Savannah Taylor: That’s good. I’m glad to hear that. And that, you know you’re alive.
Carla Taylor: Thank you. It means a lot to hear that.
A few somewhat awkward seconds pass before Martin clears his throat slightly.
Martin Taylor: I’m guessing that there is a much bigger reason why you’re here. I’m glad you are here, though. Don’t get me wrong.
Savannah can only nod her head in her father’s direction. Carla senses this and turns her attention to her younger daughter.
Carla Taylor: Harper, honey, maybe you should wait outside or even go to the cafete…..
Savannah looks at her mother and cuts her off.
Savannah Taylor: She stays. She’s family, so she stays.
Harper Taylor: Are….are you sure? I mean, I don’t want to make anything more awkward.
Savannah Taylor: You are part of this family. You deserve to hear whatever happens.
The youngest person in the room can only nod as she sinks back into her chair and watches as her sister turns to her parents. Savannah rests her purse on her lap as she weighs how she wants to proceed.
Savannah Taylor: You know it’s funny. I’ve spent the better part of a year thinking about what would happen if I ever was face to face with you guys again. I’ve thought of so many situations in my head, so many things I wanted to say. I know what happened the last time we saw each other; I said some horrible things and did some horrible things. But as time has ticked by, I’ve felt a lot of that anger start to subside.
She laughs softly to herself as tucks a strand of flaxen hair behind her head, the same color hair that both her mother and her sister share. Her father’s hair was a slightly darker shade of blond, but blond nonetheless.
Savannah Taylor: I guess what I want more than anything right now is the truth. Mom, why did you let yourself get caught up in all of that mess that caused you to end up in prison?
The look on Savannah’s face was not one of malice, but of real and genuine curiosity. Carla adjusts herself in her bed as best she can so she is better able to address her oldest daughter.
Carla Taylor: It isn’t as complex or even as deep rooted as you might think. Before I met your father, I came across these people whom I ended up befriending. We would hang out on the weekends; go to clubs and casinos and whatnot, the typical Las Vegas lifestyle. It was maybe a few months into this friendship that they started divulging some more secretive aspects of their life to me. That is when the various baggies and bottles came into play. I didn’t take anything in the bottles, but the different colored powders I saw in the baggies were intriguing. Pretty soon they were not only introducing me to this dangerous game, but they were encouraging me to take part in it. After all, they were friends and I wanted to be viewed as an equal. My stupid self was out one night and I pulled out one of the baggies that they had given me. Only I didn’t realize but a police officer was standing right near me when I flashed it out.
Carla pauses as she reaches for the plastic tumbler sitting on the bedside table and takes a long sip of water. She sets the glass down with a slight thud as she continues.
Carla Taylor: That is how I ended up in jail for about a year. After I got out, I made a vow to keep myself out of trouble. I got a job at the local library. I met your father. Everything seemed to be looking up and everything looked like it would be perfect for the rest of time. After I gave birth to you, we were facing some slight financial issues. Your father took on more hours with the trucking company and I took a second job at the Tropicana. Looking back now, I wish I never had taken that second job. I was in a good position in my life. I had a wonderful husband. We had a beautiful baby girl. What could possibly happen that would screw that up?
She says with a sardonic smile on her face as she shakes her head slightly.
Carla Taylor: It turns out one simple, somewhat unknowing gesture cost me more than anyone could fathom. One day, your grandmother brought you home after a day in the park and had accidentally bumped into the table where I always kept my purse. It tipped over and stuff had spilled out onto the floor. She was picking up the contents and started putting stuff back when she found the plastic baggie. I didn’t know it at the time and neither did she, but someone else who worked at the Tropicana had the same exact purse that I had at the time and thought she was putting it into her purse, but it ended up in mine instead. Your grandmother did what any loving parent would do in a situation like this. She called the police and it wasn’t long before I wasn’t in jail. Because this was a second offense, they sent me right off to prison. They didn’t even care that I was innocent for a change. So that, in a nutshell, it what happened all those years ago.
Savannah looks at her mother, having listened to her explanation of things for the first time in, well, ever. Maybe it was because she was older and slightly wiser, but she could hear regret and remorse in her mother’s voice. She clears her throat and turns from her mother to her father.
Savannah Taylor: What happened with Grandma?
Martin Taylor: That was my doing, I’m regrettably admitting.
Savannah Taylor: What did you do, dad?
Savannah’s voice was slowly starting to drift to the emotional side as she waits for her father to explain what happened.
Martin Taylor: I was blinded by anger. I was angry at having my wife, the love of my life taken away from me for something that wasn’t even her fault that I took it out on the one person who was only acting like an actual adult. I took it out on your grandmother. I made up a story that was a complete lie and that resulted in Child Protective Services being called and you being removed from her home. With your mother in prison and with me on the road for weeks at a time, the decision was made to put you into the foster care system.
The revelation hit Savannah like a sack full of bricks. She remembered that fateful day when she was five. She remembers the people from the State coming in and the chaos that ensued. She remembered being an innocent little girl and having her entire world not just turned upside down, but ripped to shreds. Her grandmother’s house was the last place that ever truly felt like home to her. It was the last place she remembered, up until a year ago, feeling at peace. Her eyes began to glisten as she forces down the slight feeling of nausea.
Savannah Taylor: So you were blinded by a misplaced feeling of anger. You destroyed your own mother’s life because she actually did the right thing. Yet you didn’t even stop to think how this would affect the real victim here…..me. You didn’t think how this would shape MY life. Why did you allow this to happen? Why did you let your little girl be subjected to the kind of hell that you can’t really emotionally recover from?
The tears have begun to fall from her crystal blue eyes as she continues speaking.
Savannah Taylor: After Mom got released from prison, how come you two never fought for me? How come you never wanted me back in your lives?
The normally confident and collected professional wrestler was instead replaced by a scared and unsure little girl. She was replaced by a little girl who simply wanted to know why her family abandoned her and set her on a course that would make her the woman that graced the EXODUS ring.
Savannah Taylor: Because from the age of five right up until I turned eighteen, I went from place to place, searching for a sense of home. I wanted nothing more than to find a family, who would love me, protect me and most of all, fight for me. For one reason or another, no one wanted to take that risk. No one wanted to risk having the daughter of a convict living in their midst. Do you know the kind of psychological trauma I went through because of everything you just told me?
This time, it is Carla’s turn to have the tears fall down from her face.
Carla Taylor: Oh honey, you don’t know how hard we fought to get you out of there. When I was released, I wanted nothing more than to have my daughter back in my arms. I wanted to make up for everything. We fought and we fought, but we were told that there was no way you would be returned to us. There were people within the Department of Child Welfare who felt that no matter how much I proved myself, a convicted felon would never win against them. Despite that, we kept on fighting what was proving to be a losing battle. Then I became pregnant with and gave birth to your sister. Even though I had been given a second chance at being a mother, I still wanted nothing more than to have you back in my life.
Martin Taylor: We both screwed up, Savannah. We also know that no amount of apologies can ever take away what you went through. We thought that if we ever were able to see you again, we would get everything out in the open and hopefully begin the healing process. But the last time we saw you, we froze. I saw the hurt on your face. It’s something we both carry in our minds to this day.
Savannah closes her eyes and rests her forehead on her fist. So many things were going through her mind right now, the least of which was her match on Monday against Justin Brooks. It took several years, but she was finally getting some much needed and much anticipated answers. Picking her head up, she opens her eyes and wipes away some of the tears with the back of her hand.
Savannah Taylor: I’ve been waiting for a moment like this for God knows how long. I wasn’t in the right frame of mind last year or even the year before that to have this much dialogue with you guys. I think……I think I’d like to start communicating like this, with all of you again. I want to get to know my parents again, and I’d like to get to know the sister I never knew I had until yesterday.
The look on her parent’s faces was priceless. It didn’t show much shock or trepidation, but rather hope. However, the hopeful mood was quickly replaced by a more somber feeling as Carla cleared her throat.
Carla Taylor: You don’t know how much I’ve been wanting to hear that. But there is something that you should know, something that I need to tell you.
Savannah Taylor: Ok……I’m listening.
Carla looks at her husband and then at her youngest daughter, their expressions matching hers, before she turns her attention back to Savannah.
Carla Taylor: About a month and a half ago, I was getting my annual checkup at the doctor’s office. She decided to run some tests to make sure everything was running smoothly. About a week later, her office calls me in to discuss these results. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but was nervous going in there. One of the tests that were run was a mammogram, which was no big deal because I was coming up on my yearly one anyway.
She stops briefly and watches as Savannah bites her lip, almost afraid of what was next.
Carla Taylor: To make a long story short, I was diagnosed with Stage II Breast Cancer.
Time stopped right then and there. All Savannah heard was a wall of static in her mind when she heard the word cancer come from her mother’s mouth. It seemed like it wasn’t real, like this was all part of a sick and twisted prank that everyone knew about but her. Savannah sat back in her chair and blinked a few times, feeling a fresh bout of tears coming on. She sniffed a couple of times before reaching into her purse for a tissue. As she is fumbling around, her fingers graze against her iPhone. They remained there for a second before she lets go. Her world was slowly becoming more chaotic as the minutes ticked by. Yet the first thing in her mind was calling someone. She wanted nothing more right now than to pick up her phone and call someone, someone who would listen to her and tell her that things were going to eventually be alright. Unfortunately the one person Savannah wanted to talk to above everyone was also the one person who wanted nothing to do with her. She tried to push that thought out of her head as she finds the tissue and dabs at her eyes. That feeling of regret when she touched her phone would have to wait. Hell, even her final match preparations for Justin Brooks would have to wait. Right now, her family needed her as much as she needed them. This visit was proving to be a step in the right direction of slowly repairing not only a broken family unit, but a broken spirit as well.