The Truth According to Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig (books to read for self improvement txt) 📕

“Rick, you have to stop,” says my Forever Dad. “We can’t talk about these things in front of Ginny. If you can’t abide by—”

“Abide? Where the hell do you think we are, a college classroom?”

“I’m just trying to say that Ginny needs a stable, uncomplicated environment, and what we’re doing right now isn’t exactly—”

“I don’t like the way you treat her!” says Rick. “I don’t like the way you treat me. I know you got into this because you couldn’t have a kid of your own, but now you got one, and you’re in over your heads. Way over your heads. And—”

“Ginny, time for bed,” says Aunt Megan. She puts her hand out to me. When I take it she brings me into the hallway. I listen to Rick and my Forever Parents argue but in my brain I’m thinking. I have to talk with Rick but he sounds really angry and my Forever Mom is yelling at him. Maybe I can talk with him at Special Olympics instead. I’m hoping Gloria won’t try to break through Forever again before then but she sent me a giant freaking cat and then a bacon-and-onion pizza. If she doesn’t stop she’s going to end up in jail with Crystal with a C. And who will take care of my Baby Doll then? Will it have to go to jail too?

The yelling gets louder in the living room. “Could someone please drive this asshole home?” I hear my Forever Mom say. And then, “He’s not welcome in my house anymore, but I still don’t want it on my head if he dies in a fucking snowbank.”

Upstairs I hear my Forever Sister start to cry.

I lick my lips. “I think I need—”

“What, a beverage?” says Aunt Megan. “I’ll go get a glass of water for you while you’re getting dressed. I think a nice glass of water is exactly what everyone needs right now.”

EXACTLY 7:07 AT NIGHT,

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5TH

I am going to Special Olympics with my Forever Dad. It is cold and dark.

When we get inside I see Rick right away. He is sitting by himself on the bleachers. We walk toward him and he stands up. I see Katie MacDougall and Brenda Richardson shooting hoops but I go right up to Rick and say, “Can we please talk about something?”

And Rick says, “I’m sorry, Ginny, but I’m here to say goodbye.”

I am confused. Goodbye is something you say when you are leaving. When you see someone you know you’re supposed to say Hey or Hi, how are you? instead. I don’t know why he said he’s here to say goodbye. I wait for him to explain.

“I need to go on a trip,” Rick says. “I have a big delivery to make down south.”

“Are you going to drive truck?”

Rick makes a breathing sound and smiles. “Yes, I’m going to drive truck. But I’m going to be away for a long, long time. So I wanted to give you something.”

And I say, “Is it a present with a giant freaking cat inside?”

Rick looks surprised. He looks at my Forever Dad and then looks back at me. “Not exactly,” he says. “It’s this.”

Then he hands me the present. It isn’t wrapped in wrapping paper. It is wrapped in a white-and-green bag that says Barnes & Noble on it instead. I take the bag in my hands and look at it closely. I shake it. It doesn’t make any sounds. I can’t guess what it is. But I know that I need to look excited so I open my mouth a little bit and smile and make my eyes big round circles. “What is it?” I say.

There are special kids bouncing balls and running all over the gym. “You’ll have to open it to find out,” says Rick.

My Forever Dad looks away and his eyes look up at the ceiling.

I open the present. Inside is a set of the Star Wars movies, Parts Four and Five and Six. I do not know where Parts One and Two and Three are. I start to ask him if he’s going to give me the first three movies too when he says, “I thought you should have the complete set.”

I want to tell him that it isn’t a complete set because the first three movies are missing but he keeps talking.

“Ginny,” he says, “I have to go now. You can send me emails, though. I’ll answer every single one. I promise.”

Then he puts his hand out to shake hands and I look down and shake it and then he hugs me. I do not recoil but I don’t hug him back. Because hugging back is like saying goodbye. Rick lets me go and moves back. “Shit, this is hard,” he says. He wipes his eyes. He nods to my Forever Dad and turns around and walks out of the gym.

When he is gone I look at the place where he was standing just seven seconds ago. I want to see him there again but I know he isn’t coming back. He’s going on a trip down south to drive truck.

I want to ask him about the respite. I want to ask him if he’s still going to pick me up from school on January 7th and bring me to his house.

“Dad?” I say in a soft voice. It is so quiet I almost don’t hear the words.

“What?” says my Forever Dad.

But I am not talking to him. I am talking to the only person who could bring me to the other side of Forever. To the other side of the equal sign. He is gone.

EXACTLY 11:33 IN THE MORNING,

FRIDAY, JANUARY 7TH

The bus didn’t come to get me at approximately 6:45 because there’s no school today. There was a snowstorm so school was cancelled which means no one goes there, not even the principal. I don’t know if the bells still ring when there’s no school. I don’t like it when school is cancelled.