A Different Life, A Different Story

Felix - One Messy Family

I wait for the kids to race downstairs. I made breakfast. Gei and the boys come downstairs to waffles with syrup and yogurt.

"Where's Daisy?" Adrian asks looking around the kitchen to find her.

"Asleep, how was your chick last night?" Donnie says shoving his face into his waffles.

"Hey Gei, can you wake Daisy up?"

"But Luran usually wakes us up and has us put on our matching outfits. Can everyone wear red today, blue tomorrow, grey on Monday, and orange for Tuesday..."

I ignore her as I rush up the crowded steps. Maria and Ade fight for the bathroom downstairs because the one upstairs had stopped working.

"Daisy, school," I say shaking her.

She gets up as she yawns, "Okay."

I wait for her to get out of her bed, "Breakfast!"

"Okay, Felix. Megalynn's being annoying about Mommy's place. Saying what she does and her nighty routines she has us dose." She flips her hair in the mirror of her closet door as she hugs her bunny tightly.

I don't get into the conflict between them about what they do and what they don't do at their Mom's house as I repeat, "Breakfast!"

"Waffles again?"

"Yeah."

"Okay," she shrugs. I wish they'd take in Adrian and Donnie, too but at least Daisy and Gei get a nice home, especially because they're younger. They deserve a better life. I help her get dressed and stuff the waffles into her lunch bag for daycare and run her over next door to the Wilstones. I knock on their door. Mr. Wilstone comes out. "Hey Mr. Wilstone, can she brush her teeth in your bathroom, please?"

"Sure, come in," he says in a low voice.

"Thank you so much I could kiss you right now."

"Stop, you're finna make my dick hard," He laughs. He's one of Maria's friends. He's so close to the point we just call him family.

I laugh along with his contagious laughter.

After she's done brushing her teeth, I pick her up and rush her into the daycare center, I hope, and run to school.

After school, Busk and I play video games for about a few hours, then I throw my stuff on the ground next to the spare bed getting ready to throw my things onto the top bunk to sleep there for the night. Adrian's not going to like the bottom bunk.

"This your house?" He asks looking around the room.

"One of them. My siblings and I alternate between our grandparents and Maria. I usually don't go to school while living here, but my grampa had an asthma attack last week so I drove my siblings to Maria's house."

"Damn," he says getting a pipe of my cigarette.

"I know. I just texted him to see if he's okay and I also texted my gramma."

"I kinda have to tell you something."

My heart pounds along with the thunder of gunshots rallied out from far away.

"I kinda ran away from home."

"Why?"

"Family drama. Look, can I stay here?"

"Uh," I scratch my nose and lick my lips. "No, but you can stay at my grandparents' house. They have an extra room literally for guests."

"But--"

"I can drive you over there later tonight. And, besides, I need to check on them anyway. So, might as well, kill two birds with one stone," explain as I hop on the top bunk to throw Donnie's things off of the bed.