Fall Again [H. S]

1

Scarlett White

My eyes snap open when I hear a plate shatter on the first floor of the house. It's early in the morning, and as always, there are noises at this hour due to my mom and David's fights. My stomach churns with hunger, so I take it as a sign that I need to get out of bed.

I have a long day ahead of me. It's my last year of school, and I've decided to work hard on my grades this year since I've veered off track a bit in the past. I've been working at a coffee for a few months, which has been a distraction, but it's been helpful because I've been able to save enough money to help my mom pay for the future university I'm going to. My goal is to attend the University of Maine and study Art.

"I haven't been paid, David. I don't have any money, please understand," I hear my mom telling David.

David has been my stepfather for as long as I can remember, but he's been a nightmare for my mom and me. I don't wait for the day to come when my mom gives up, he will never change. His drug addiction is something you decide whether to recover from or not. For years, my mom has been manipulated by my stepfather to give up almost all of her salary for his addiction. She doesn't want to accept that he doesn't love her. If he truly loved her, he would accept help, but he doesn't. He loves her for his own needs, the drugs. My mom always knew about his drug addiction since she met him, but as they started dating, it got worse. He became more aggressive over the years, and I even got involved in their fights since I was little.

I step barefoot onto the floor and head towards the bathroom. I go through my skincare routine and brush my teeth. I'm wearing blue pants paired with a white tank top and my gray sweater, along with my white Converse sneakers.

I gently comb through my straight brown hair until it's all untangled. I grab my backpack and leave the room.

"You told me they were going to pay you today!" David yells, his voice echoing through the walls.

"Leave her alone, David," I intervene, my voice noticeably annoyed.

I walk over to a basket of fruits. Miraculously, there are some fruits left, as there's usually nothing to eat in this house since most of the money my mom earns goes to David. Unfortunately, sometimes my mom and I don't have enough to eat.

I've tried to make her realize how useless he is in her life, but she just doesn't pay attention to me.

As they say, love is blind.

We have the typical argument, I tell her she deserves better, and her response is that I know nothing about her relationship with David. Sometimes she forgets that I've grown up and seen everything that has happened because of David. I'm eighteen years old, finishing high school in a few months, and she tells me I know nothing about relationships. Well, her excuse is that I've never had a boyfriend. But what I want to say here is that you don't need to be deaf or blind to see the problem here. All that man has done is ruin her life, and he doesn't want to step out and accept that everything I've said over the past four years is true.

"You better keep that damn mouth shut." David rushes to speak when I defend my mother.

I bring the apple to my lips and look at him without a hint of resentment despite the threat he just threw at me. My ears are accustomed to hearing the same threat.

I decide to turn around and look at my mother. "I'm going to school," I tell her, and she nods gently. I approach her and press my lips against her cheek. She smiles slightly.

As I'm about to leave the kitchen, David's voice is not news about going out again. "Go, do something useful instead of just hanging out with that boy like the damn bitch you are."