Falling for the player

07

The next day at school, I didn't see Theo at his locker where he usually was. I pushed my thoughts to the back of my head and focused on my schoolwork, it wasn't until we were heading to lunch, when I saw him walking with Delaney, poking her and tickling her with her the way he would always do to me. He put his arms around her waist, pulling her into a bear hug as she laughed. I tore my eyes away from the sight and ran into the lunch line before he could spot me. I stood on my toes and looked over people's heads, Angel and Drew were already laughing at their table, and I saw Theo walking over and sitting in his usual spot. I sighed, bought my lunch and walked over to where my other friends sat, I glanced at Angel and she waved me over pleadingly, grudgingly, I sat next to her.

"Why were you over there?" She asked me quietly so Theo and Drew wouldn't hear.

"I wanted to sit there," I mumbled.

"Why? It's so much more fun here." She smiled at the boys, tossing her long brown hair behind her shoulder. I shrugged and decided acting miserable wouldn't help my case. I smiled and nodded, joining in on their conversation, but the image of Theo and Delaney kept tugging in the back of my mind. I shouldn't feel this way, he's not my boyfriend, never was. So why do I feel so bad?

* * *

I parked my car in the driveway and Zach and I both got out.

"You okay Blaire? You look kinda...miserable." Zach commented, I shrugged and shook my head. Zach let it go and we unlocked the front door. Our dad left when we were both seven without any warning, we never heard from him or anything. As of then, mom and dad were technically still married considering they never bothered with a divorce. It's not like mom would date anyways. After our dad left, mom fell apart, she went out to bars most nights and went out sometimes in the day, but today she was locked in her room, blaring her Billy Joel CD. Zach and I gave each other the same look we always gave each other when mom was home, here we go again.

Every time mom was home, something bad would happen. She'd throw a fit and cry or come out of her room drunk. Zach and I tried to avoid it, but it just didn't work that way. Zach went upstairs and I followed him, stepping into my room which was across from Zach's. "See you when mom comes crying?" Zach said before shutting his door, I sighed and pushed my door shut. I fell onto my bed and drifted off to sleep.

"No! He can't do this!" I woke up to screams and sounds of glass shattering. I sighed and pulled myself out of bed. I trudged downstairs to see a frantic mom, and Zach trying to calm her down but she seemed hysteric. I had never seen her this bad, her hands were shaking and tears were streaming down her face, her screams her raspy and she kept pulling at her hair. The smell of liquor hit me strong, and I coughed, she was obviously drunk. I caught Zach's eye and he jerked he thumb toward the mail table. I walked over to see an envelope torn, and scattered across were divorce papers, I sucked in my breath and turned around to face them. Zach was a head taller than mom, but in her madness she was able to overpower him. She hurried past me to the table, almost knocking me off my feet, she flipped the mail table over and I tried holding her arms back but she shook me off and pushed me into the wall. I felt tears stinging at my eyes and I tried helping Zach pin her against the wall.

"Just calm down!" I shouted, she looked at me with insanity in her wide eyes.

"Calm...down?" She asked, almost calmly. "You're trying to tell me to...calm down?" Her eye twitched, she was definitely crazy. I nodded, scared.

"You know, that fact that he didn't send those papers before, that was the only hope I had that our marriage would be saved. That was all I had to keep me sane!" She shouted at me, spitting in my face, anger bubbled inside me;

"You had us!" I shouted back. "We've put up with you for so long! Ten years we've put up with your crap, only to be given no credit at all! Do you know how hard that is? To not have that comforting mother everyone else has? To live in a broken home without you ever working? Leaving us to fend for ourselves, work for our own money, and pay for our own food and water! We've taken care of you! Fed you, bought you clothes, and you don't even care-" I choked up and couldn't go on. Instead I stormed out of the house, got in the car, and drove.