MATILDA, eddie munson.

012.

FEBRUARY 7TH, 1986
📍cunningham house
16:13 PM

stepping out of her car, matilda had to mentally prepare herself for her mother's wrath. principal higgins had called her after the incident that morning, and boy was she in deep shit.

walking up her driveway, she took deep breaths, reminding herself that no matter what her mother's punishment was, punching myles was completely and utterly worth it. eddie's proud face popped into her head, and now she was certain there were no regrets in her mind.

she opened the door and stepped inside the house, slipping of her converse and putting them on the shoe rack. she headed into the kitchen where her mother stood cooking, and her father and chrissy sat at the table, the former reading a newspaper and the latter doing her homework.

"oh, look who's home," her mother exclaimed. "my little shit of a daughter."

matilda looked down at her feet. "mother, you don't understand.."

"don't tell me what i understand!" samantha snapped. "i understand that you are a deranged, selfish brat! you are ruining not only yourself, but this family."

"he groped me!" tillie exclaimed in defense.

with an eye roll, samantha scoffed. "not another one of these silly little stories. there's a reason no one believes you, matilda. you're a liar. you're making all these little tales up!"

"that is not true," matilda replied, her voice breaking slightly.

"oh, don't bring on the tears, matilda. i won't fall for it," the older woman hissed.

"i'm not—" she stopped to swallow the ball in the back of her throat and take a deep breath. "i'm very sorry i'm ruining your reputation, mother. but maybe, if you cared less about that and more about your daughters, then i wouldn't be as fucked up as i am."

her father choked on his sip of coffee, coughing, as chrissy looked up between the two women awkwardly.

"matilda, don't speak to your mother like that," robert said.

"how should i speak to her? with respect? do i have to treat her like that too? because you clearly don't. you're fucking a new woman every week!" she exclaimed. "you know, you can say that i'm the messed up one. the black sheep of the family. but i think we're all fucked up. how did you put it, mother? deranged? and selfish? see, i'm not like that because i was raped, or because i 'lied about it for attention', or because i punched someone at school. it's because i'm a cunningham."

a high pitched slap echoed throughout the house, making chrissy jump as samantha's hand came into contact with tillie's cheek.

tillie let out a harsh breath, turning her head to face her mother, whose face was red with fury. she expected the older woman to say something, yet nothing was spoken.

"what? don't have the guts to call me a liar now, do you?" she taunted, turning on her heels and exiting the kitchen, leaving an unsettling silence behind.

— 📻🪐🏹 —

FEBRUARY 8TH, 1986
📍 cunningham house
8:02 AM