MadMax

HomeBound.

Hopper drops me off at my stingy trailer park and I go in. My mom is sitting on the couch blacked out. "Yeah, she sure was worried about me." I mutter to myself walking to my room. I throw my stuff on my bed and plop down. I grab a roll of tape and try to finally fix my skateboard from Neil's tantrum he threw. I just need to distract myself from everything.

I'm finishing up my skateboard when I hear a knock at my window. I turn around and see Robin standing at my window with a bag. I walk over and slide open the window and she climbs in.

   "Hey!" Robin says plopping onto my bed. "Cool room."

    "Thanks.." I answer completely confused.

Robin must've noticed I was confused, "Oh yeah, Nancy sent me here. She had to go do some boring newspaper stuff and she wanted me to come and give you your medicine and clean your cuts." She says, unpacking the bag she brought.

  "This again? I'm fine, the cuts are clean and wrapped. I cleaned them myself. I will take the medicine though." I argue, so annoyed with all this babying stuff.

"Nancy said you'd resist. Look i'm not any good with this heart to heart stuff but we're worried about you and are just trying to protect you." Robin says, trying to reason.

  "It's not happening." I sternly state. Just then the door swings open.

   My mom is swaying side to side with a bottle of only god knows what in her hand.

  "Aww Maxie-poo, is this your new girlfriend?" She says, slurring on her words.

   "Hi, Mrs. Mayfield. It's nice to meet you, I was just checking in on Max here." Robin reaches out her hand.

  "It's Hargrove, not Mayfield. And I don't want you or any of your other little dyke friends hanging out with Max. Now leave before I call the cops." My mom yells at Robin.

Without saying a word, Robin climbs back out the window she came through. She left her bag on my bed.

"Did you really have to do that?! You are constantly ruining my life!" I shout storming past her.

"You get your ass back here Maxine! You just disappeared for weeks and then return with that dyke and expect everything to be fine."

"STOP CALLING HER THAT!" I turn screaming at her.

"Protecting your little girlfriend? I didn't raise you like this. You are to never see her again, you only can leave for school. That is it! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?" She grabs my arm.

I look away so she doesn't see the tears in my eyes and nod.

"Now get your ass back to your room!"

I rush to my room slamming the door. I break down and start sobbing. I destroy my room looking for something sharp, anything. I find my pencil box from school with an old dingy pencil sharpener, I get the blade out and slide against my door. I pull down my pants and rip off the stupid bandage work Nance did. I cut over the old healed scars with each cut stinging more than the last. Blood oozed down my legs but I didn't stop. I hear a ruffle outside my window and I jump pulling my pants up. I walk over and open the window and Robin is crouched below my window like a stalker.

  "What are you doing?! I thought you left!" I yell at her.

  "Well I was just going to wait for your mom to leave and then I was gonna sneak back in but then you started doing that and I wasn't sure what to do." She says, pointing to my blood drenched jeans.

I slam my window not knowing what to say, leaving Robin there in shock. I sneak to the bathroom and start the bath. I strip down exposing my bony body. I didn't realize how much weight I had lost, I stare at myself in the mirror with my exposed scars and the god-awful wound on my shoulder. I look dreadful. I step into the bath and lay back in the warm water. My legs burn as they are exposed to the water, I wince and rest my head back. I don't know what to do anymore, Robin is going to tell Nancy. She is going to go ballistic. I don't worry about any of that right now though, I just attempt to relax in the bath.