Holding On

Chapter 1

"You're going to be late...again." I take a deep breath as I use all my energy to sit up straight only to meet with the positive rays of sun peaking through my window. The smell of eggs, arroz congri (rice and beans), sausage, AND tortillas filled the air with a Hispanic welcome and there was no doubt it was a motivation to get out of bed quicker. I grab my phone and scan through the notifications I didn't check last night. "ONE NEW TEXT MESSAGE". I tapped the screen to open the unexpected message from an unknown user. "Want to lose 10 lbs in a week? Text YES to this number." I roll my eyes so far back that I swear I could see my brain and I tossed my phone on my bed and I change into my school uniform. As I slipped my skirt on I noticed how difficult it was to get it past my thighs. "God damn it," I mumble as I hop around a little bit. "Valeria, stop hopping around, you're gonna fall right through down to the kitchen!" Echoed Carlos', my brother, voice. "Shut up, idiota (idiot)! " I managed to say as I held my breath to zip up my skirt's zipper. I take a double look in the full-body mirror and frown ever so slightly. Standing in only my bra and skirt, I examined the way my stomach flopped over the waistband and as my eyes traveled up my body, I noticed the rolls that formed when I wore my bra tighter than normal. "You look good, Val," I whisper as I struggle to put on my shirt. "You look good," I repeat as I slip on my shoes. 

"Look who finally decided to come down!" My dad exclaimed as he took another bite of his buttered tortilla that was filled with eggs and sausage, wrapped so tightly that the egg began to fall out from the ends. His face was smeared with grease that the food left before entering the dark hole that would end their existence as food. "Good morning, Papí (Daddy)."I peck his forehead and take a seat beside Reina, my cat who was always welcome to sit on the kitchen chairs. "Mija (my daughter), you have to eat quickly, or else you'll have to run to school." My mom is always on my case about how I'll be late for class and explained how I'll have to work cleaning houses because of how much I miss, yet I've only been late once this week. "Ya, I know, I know." I grab a tortilla, piled on two spoonfuls of rice and beans, and successfully stuff in a fried egg without breaking the yolk. After eating three of those beautifully wrapped tortillas, I chugged down my coffee with milk and grabbed a piece of sausage. "I'm leaving! Carlos, let's go!" I call out for my brother who was nearly falling asleep on the couch waiting for me to call an Uber. 

"You know what's odd? No matter how much weight I lose, I still look like a pig!" I hear Hannah, an admired blonde athlete that every guy wants to get with at my school, cry out to her group of friends in the bathroom. I sit in the stall, trying to mind my business after having a peanut butter sandwich for lunch and two bags of takis chips but I sadly couldn't enjoy my bathroom break as I kept hearing Hannah pout about her image. "Han, you look hot! Trust me, girl, anyone would kill to have your body, especially that Mexican girl who is like super big in our chemistry class. Did you see how much she eats? She probably considered that lunch to be a snack!" Yolanda chuckles and soon after the other girls start laughing too. "Two bags of takis, who can stomach so much fat!" I hear another girl comment. My eyes begin to water but quickly I rubbed the tears off my round cheeks and exited the stall. Their faces were priceless, shocked and ashamed they, one by one, left the bathroom but Hannah stayed. As I washed my hands I stared at myself in the mirror, examining the stretch marks that ran down my upper arm to meet with my elbow. "Hey, your name's Valeria right?" Hannah asked as she leaned against a stall door. My eyes followed her voice and I give her the deadliest stare. "Don't you mean that fat Mexican girl from chemistry class? I'll have you know I'm not even Mexican, I'm from Venezuela." I reply as I dry my hands which were covered in chip crumbs earlier that day. "Hey, I'm sorry about that. My friends, they're dumb. They don't know how to keep their mouths shut. I'm Hannah, by the way." She stuck her hand in my face as if to offer a handshake but my pride was too high to even touch her. I scuff and turn on my heels. "You know what you are? Eres una tonta. (You're an idiot)." I roll my eyes, grab my bag and head down the hall waiting for the next bell to ring.