Lying on my bed I stared blankly at the ceiling ignoring the throbbing in my head. It wasn't uncommon for me to have a headache; actually it was uncommon for me to not have one.
Dr. Jacks said it was a symptom from my built up stress and if I just spoke to her about what was bothering me the headaches would dissipate. I didn't believe her though. It was a trick to get me to talk. I wasn't stupid.
The creak of the office door opening downstairs filled the house, signaling that Leigh was done with her conversation on the phone with my dad. The sound of her pacing across the old desk floors set a beat for the throbbing in my head. Oh how I wanted to yell at her to sit down and let me enjoy silence for once.
Closing my eyes I hoped sleep would overtake me and the pain would ebb away. Luck wasn't on my side though. The sound of Leigh stomping up the stairs filled my ears and I rolled over hiding my face and steadying my breathing, hoping she'd leave if she thought I was sleeping.
The knocking on my doorframe indicated she didn't seem to care I was sleeping - or maybe she knew I was faking. Not stirring, I gave a silent prayer she would leave.
It was silent for quite some time, before she took a few deep breaths and proceeded into my room. Sitting down on the edge of my bed, making my body move unintentionally she sat there for a few moments. Then she started running her fingers through my hair; that's when I lost it.
Shooting straight up into a sitting position, knocking Leigh's hands off in the process, I glared at her menacingly. If I could talk, I would have yelled at her. I would have told her to stop pretending she was my mother. I would have told her how much I really hated her. I would have told her to leave.
"Odette, hon, your father thinks that we need some bonding time together. You can't not be with me if we live under the same roof." She gave a small laugh obviously trying to make light of the situation, but failed. It only made her sound nervous. "So what do you say? We go make dinner together, whatever you want, and that'll be fun, right?"
She gave me a small smile. A hopefully smile. One that read "please, I'm really trying here." But I didn't play along. I never would.
Giving her a critical look I laid my head back down on my pillows and closed my eyes, hoping my headache and Leigh would go away.
"Neal said you would be like this," Leigh said petered.
Slowly I opened my eyes and narrowed them, showing how agitated I was by her comment. What right did she have to treat me as if I was her own child? She did nothing to help with my upbringing she was the shoulder to cry on for my dad.
She gave me a desperate look. "Please, Odette. Just this once, hon. I'm not here to replace your mom, or even be your mom. I'm here because I love Neal and you. I'm here to help you out. I just want to make everything better, hon. You know things haven't been good since you-" she stopped herself there.
I raised my eyebrows and pursed my lips at her, daring her to finish the sentence. No one ever wanted to talk about what happened four months ago. My dad couldn't even bring himself to mention that there was ever an incident. Leigh couldn't even treat me like a normal teenager. I was like a five year old to her, or maybe someone who always seemed like they were going to break down and were near the end.
That's what annoyed me the most about Leigh. She didn't treat me like a lot of other people were treating me. She wasn't acting how everyone else was. They acted like I was an outcast. Leigh didn't do this though.
She treated me as if she were sorry for me, but like a friend would feel sorry for another friend. She acted like she cared. But I didn't believe her caring feelings were real. The only reason Leigh acted that way was to show my dad she could live here with me and help him through this "difficult time" as she kept calling it.
"Just cook one meal with me, hon. We don't even have to talk. You can do your thing in the kitchen and I'll do mine. How does that sound?" She searched my eyes hoping for a glint of understanding or communication. I kept my gaze blank though, staring at the ceiling as if no one was there in the room with me.
Sighing, Leigh got up from my bed, and left my room. Before she was out the door she cast one last look behind her, a hopeful look like maybe I'd change my mind and jump off the bed and come downstairs with her to cook dinner.
Like I would ever cook dinner with her, I scoffed.
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Dedicated to Star for her amazing support and kindness to this story <3
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Falling Colors
Teen Fiction"The unfixable; the shattered; the torn; the broken. They all come here. It's my job to remake them, because once its broken there is no going back to the way it was. It must be remade." Six individuals. Six unique stories. Five exercises. One...
