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Chapter 4
"Where are we going Cammy?" Candace asks as JC drives her, Cammy, and Justin to some unknown place to her.
"Just for dinner with my parents," Cammy answers, uncertain of how the news would affect Candace.
"Your parents?" Candace asks incredulously.
"Don't worry, they don't bite. This will be the first time JC is meeting them as well."
"Trust me Candace, I bet you that I'm the one that will be interrogated since I'm dating their daughter," JC says, trying to reassure her.
"Maybe," she mumbles, staring out the window.
It pains Justin to see her so down so he wraps his arm around her shoulders, trying to give her any comfort he could offer her. When the car stops, the four find themselves at a seafood restaurant located right on the beach. "This is my parents' favorite restaurant. It has terrific seafood and steak for you Candace," Cammy comments.
"Great..." Candace returns. She takes Justin's offered arm and walks towards the restaurant's doors slowly, each step bringing her more dread.
"Candace, it will be fine. Come on, you can do this," Justin urges.
Candace just nods her head as she follows JC and Cammy into the building and to a table where an older couple is sitting.
"Cammy! It's been so long since I've seen you darling. How have you been?" Cammy's mother asks, getting up and giving her daughter a hug and a kiss.
"I've been fine Mom. Hi Dad," she says, giving her dad a hug as well.
"How are you doing pumpkin?" he asks.
"I'm good. I want to introduce you to a few special people. This handsome young man is my boyfriend JC, and the other good looking guy is Justin."
Both guys shake the offered hands of Cammy's parents and wait for her to introduce her twin.
"Mom and Dad, as you've already guessed probably, this is the girl I've told you both about. This is Candace."
Candace doesn't know how to act so she just smiles and shakes Cammy's parents' hands and takes a seat in the chair Justin quickly pulls out for her. The six immediately open their menus and order, leaving Cammy, JC, and Justin trying to always fill in the silence that has fallen over the group. Candace refuses to say more than a few words though, basically because of the uneasy feelings she is dealing with, knowing full well that Cammy's parents are staring at her.
After dinner is through, and she is attempting to share a huge slice of chocolate and vanilla ice cream cake with Justin, Cammy's mother turns to her and says, "Candace, it's great to meet you finally."
This gets her attention. "What do you mean?"
"Well, Mark and I have been wondering about you for many years. It's nice to see that you have grown up so well."
"What are you talking about?"
"I mean, we were sorry that we had to let you go but putting you up for adoption was the best thing for us. I'm glad you found a good family and that we were able to see you at least once."
"You mean you are my real parents? That you gave me up for some materialistic reason?"
"Not materialistic. Candace, Jenny and I didn't want two children at once. We didn't even want more than one at all, which is why Cammy is an only child," Marks interjects.
"You didn't want me... God, this is more horrible than I thought."
"Candace, we don't mean to hurt you."
"Sure you don't. Excuse me," Candace says, pushing away from the table and running out of the restaurant, flagging down the first taxi she could get a hold of and telling him to take her to the hotel. She sees Justin running after her but orders the driver to go, not wanting to face him after that humiliating moment. 'God, I'll never be able to face him again.'
Justin is left standing on the curb, watching as the taxi speeds off into the night, carrying away the girl he loves so much. Seeing that there are no other taxis in sight and that standing on the curb did nothing, he walks back into the restaurant and back to the table. "I mean no disrespect but I hope that you are happy."
"What do you mean Justin?" Cammy asks.
"I mean that Candace has just taken off for some unknown place to me."
"Justin, we're sorry," Mark answers.
"Sorry isn't good enough. How could you tell your own blood daughter that she was unwanted?"
"We didn't mean it that way. We were just trying to tell her the circumstances," Jenny answers.
"Whatever reason, I believe that was uncalled for. JC, if you aren't ready to go, can I have the car keys?"
"No, I'll drive. You are too much of a wreck to drive buddy. Cammy, care to come?"
"No, I think I have some talking to do with my parents here."
"Okay, I'll see you back at the hotel. Hopefully, we'll find her somewhere," JC says, giving Cammy a kiss before leaving the restaurant with Justin.
The two jump into the car and start driving around San Diego. "This is no good. It's too dark. Where could she have gone?"
"I have no clue but we'll find her. Don't worry, we will."
At about 1 AM, Candace is still nowhere in sight of the two.
"Justin, she's probably fine wherever she is. Just let her calm down and come back to us."
"No way JC. Why don't you go to bed and check on your own girlfriend. I'm going to go search the grounds of the hotel again."
"Okay Justin. Give me a call if you find her."
"I will. Thanks JC," he says before heading off into the direction of the pool. An hour later, Justin is about to give up when he sees a lone figure out in the darkness of the golf course. 'Could that actually be her?'
He runs out to the figure and is relieved to find that sure enough, it is Candace, not Cammy or anyone else, sitting on the grass of the golf course. He nears her but stops as he sees her eyes are closed and she has a peaceful look on her face.
"You actually found me Justin," she says, not opening her eyes.
"I searched everywhere for you! Wait a minute, how'd you know it was me?"
"I heard footsteps and then smelled Woods cologne by Abercrombie and Fitch and figured it would be you."
"I could have been a kidnapper or something though."
"No, a kidnapper wouldn't creep so noisily."
Justin laughs a little and says, "True. I guess that's why I became a singer instead. Can I sit here with you?"
"Sure, if you want to sit with an unwanted person."
Justin sits down and pulls his girlfriend to him. She fights a little but eventually relaxes into his embrace and allows him to pull her onto his lap. "Don't let those people hurt you like this. Obviously, God worked things out for you to be given to two wonderful parents who treated you so much better than your biological ones."
"That's supposed to change the fact that I'm unwanted? I don't think so Justin."
"Not change it but help it. I mean, do you really want to say that your parents are Jenny and Mark, two people who obviously don't care enough for their own offspring to even try to keep in contact with you over the years in which you've grown up? I would think that you would be happier with the parents you have now, especially because they are the ones that chose you and have loved you since that day they picked you out of all the others."
"You make me sound like a puppy."
"But an adorable puppy at that! Sweetie, in truth, I think the fact that your parents did adopt you should mean a great deal more than the stupid fact that another set of parents, your biological ones, were stupid enough to give you up. I would never give you up for anything in the world. You're too precious, even if you are a puppy!"
This earns a small smile from Candace. "Thank you Justin for everything. God, I don't know what I would have done without having you around in my life right now. You've helped me through so much."
"I will always be here for you to lean on, just as you keep telling me that I can lean on you. Nothing will ever change that, okay?"
"Deal. God, I can't believe them."
"Neither could JC or I. They really are a bunch of-"
"Careful, they are my parents."
"Huh?"
"Even though they show poor judgment on how they speak, they are my parents, at least biologically. They do deserve some respect since they are older than us."
"Geez, you never stop amazing me, you know that?"
"What do you mean?"
"Any other girl would have totally blown them off. No, you have to be the right and proper person and pardon them. God, I love you."
Candace smiles and says, "I love you too Justin. Kiss me."
Justin happily obliges, making it deeper as the minutes pass by. Eventually, the two end up lying together on the green grass, kissing until they both contentedly fall asleep in one another's arms after staring at the stars and talking about happier things for hours.