Living Lies

Chapter 2

~ The picture above is of Peyton List aka Stephanie West ~

I tried to open my eyes but the light directly above me was making me heavilly regret it.

I shut them tightly and attempted to ignore the pounding in my head.

The pounding seemed to get worse with each second  I was awake. I felt a searing pain running through my ribs and into my arms and legs. But then it was gone. As suddenly  as the pain came it was gone, only awakening when I moved too fast or tried  to sit up.

I opened my eyes with struggle and for a second everything was blurry. Then, when things started to clear I saw two women in medical coats staring at me with confused expressions. I took note of them but continued to look around.

I moved my gaze from the women in the coats to the room I was in.

The drab wall and curtain were a sad old gray color that I thought only the clouds of a rainy day could achieve.

The floor was grimy and sticky with tiles halfway out of the floor. Just the sight was making me nauseous and for a second the room started to spin.

I slumped forward and clutched my head.

Someone rushed over to me and started to speak softly into my ear.

She was way too close.

I swatted her away from me and attempted to stand on my own two feet when the pain subsided.

As soon as my feet hit the cold floor, everything hit me hard. Thoughts and memories of that night. I stumbled but quickly caught my balance before anyone had to steady me.

Wait.

"How long was I out?" I asked, my voice strained and croaky. It was hard for me to even recognize.

The woman gave me a confused and slightly annoyed look and before  replying.

"About two and a half weeks." She answered in a slightly bitter tone.

I still couldn't hear anything from her mind.

What if I was stuck like this forever.

My thoughts reeled and never stopped moving as I thought about a life with me unable to read minds. I started to panic and worry about my future.

A doctor came in and left a little while later after telling me I was fine.

I don't feel fine.

I was more than ready to leave when a man that looked more like a bodyguard passed me a heavy suitcase.

Obviously the guy had news for me and based on his expression, it wasn't good.

I watched as his expression changed from one of pity to a blank slate in seconds.

"I'm sorry to be the one to inform you of this, but your mother has passed away due to a gunshot wound to the head."

My heart dropped. My mom is dead.

I heard the man droning on about what her injuries were before she was killed, but by that point his voice had blended into the background of my mind.

My face fell. I felt the warm tears rolling down my face as reality hit me hard.

She may have been far from the best mother in the world. She may have gotten drunk or high and hit me a few times. But she was all I had left. Now I had nothing.

I was empty.

"You will be living with your grandmother until a suitable home is found." He finished.

I did a double take as I fell back into the conversation.