Author's Note:Jessica feels lost in the hecticness of her mother's third wedding. In a matter of a month her last name changes, she get's a stepfather, and she moves.
Six year old Jessica gently touched the fine wood of her new bedroom set. It was in a new house, in a new town, where her family was living with a new father.
Her mother Jennifer was getting married in a week, and even though Jessica liked Christopher Callaway, she missed her father so much. Her mother had told Jessica that her dad was going away for a very long time, because of his drug, alcohol, and abuse record.
Jessica knew that when her father drank he got angry, and he beat up his family, but she still loved him, and as hard as it was to admit, she really did wish her parents could have worked things out.
Her mother had been married two times already and had five children from those two marriages. Her first husband was a farmer, who had five or six farms that he owned across the U.S. But Jennifer didn't fall in love with Jack Gallagher for his money. She fell in love with him, because he had that rough, rangler, cowboy thing going.
Jennifer had two twin boys Tyler, and Jason, and a daughter Nicole in their short six year marriage. In the end it just fell apart. With Jack getting cancer, and Jennifer delivering a stillborn daughter. It all took there toll on the couple.
After Jessica's mother divorced Jack she focussed on her career, and got her degree and set up an architechture business in New York City, that did very well, and in the end payed off very well. In that time, her mother fell for David Shontell, a stock brooker with a hefty police record, and smooth talking mouth.
Within a month he had gotten Jennifer pregnant and married. Jennifer's brother Calvin Kensington never trusted David from the start, he told Jennifer to be careful about him.
A few months later Kyle Lucas Shontell came into the world. Three years later Jessica was born after David had pushed Jennifer down the stairs, causing her to go into labor, and almost lose the baby.
After four year marriage of abuse, drugs, alcohol, stress, and pain Jennifer filed for divorce, with the help of family. Jessica was only three weeks old when her parents split.
For the next three years Kyle and Jessica were shuffled between their mother's penthouse apartment in New York, and their dad's country home in Vermont. Then her father made one mistake that took him away from his children.
Her father needed a pick me up after his druggie girlfriend broke up with him. He took Kyle and Jessica and put them in his car. He drove to a dark alley in the bad side of town to get coke. When the seller wanted more than what David wanted to pay, he ended up pulling a gun out, and shooting him. The young teenager was killed instantly from a gunshot to the head.
After David was arrested for murder, Jennifer took her kids and retained full custody of Kyle and Jessica. Jessica missed her father. She hadn't seen him in two years since she was at his courthearing where he was convicted of murder.
When David was put away behind bars, Jennifer began to see Chris Callaway. A thiry-five year old divorced man, who ran a successful construction business. Jennifer took the relationship slowly at first, but in the end she fell madly in love with him, and soon they were engaged.
At that point David was making death threats toward Kyle and Jessica, because he believed that they had desserted, and betrayed him. Jessica and Chris made a motion for Chris to adopt the two children which went through without any hitches, and soon her name changed from Shontell to Callaway.
Then her mother, and soon to be stepfather relocated to Boston,MA. She thought it was nice town, with nice people. But the changes for her and her brothers, and sister were happening so fast. She felt lost in all of the preparations for her mother's upcoming wedding.
Her mother interuppted her thoughts, when she put her hand on Jessica's small shoulder. Jessica turned to face her mother. Her blue eyes brimmed with tears of pain.
"Honey, what's wrong?"
"Mommy I don't fit in. I feel like nothing is ever going to be the same anymore.",Jessica told her mother.
Jennifer took her daughter into her arms and told her,"Oh, Jess I know how hard all of this is on you. But I also know that this is all for your well being. And I know that you may not believe that now, but you will in time, come to love Chris, and our new home. Please just give Chris a chance honey, he is a good man, who really loves us. Okay?"
"I'll try mommy. I need some time to get through all of this. All these changes is a lot for me. But I will try. And I do love Chris, he is a nice man.",Jessica replied to her mother.
"Thank you Jess. You are a beautiful girl, with a kind heart, and a good head on your shoulders. Never forget that no matter what happened between your father and I doesn't mean you weren't brought into this world loved, or that your father never loved you. It just means that he and I weren't ment for one another. But I think I may have found the right man that has made me very happy, now I hope that you can be happy as well."
"I will be mommy.",Jessica told her mother.
"I love you sweetheart, always remember that.",Jennifer told her daughter as she embraced the small version of herself.