Crash. Boom. Broken Arms

March 11th

"Hailey honey, you're gonna be late for your art show if you don't get up" my mom said as she came barging in my room.

"Yeah yeah, I'm up," I replied

"That's not a 'tude I hear is it?" mom asked.

"No mom I didn't fart," I responded laughing

"Not a toot, a tu...."

"Yeah I know mom, you're trying to be cool and young using abbrevs but it doesn't work for old people," I said.

"Get your butt up and get dressed!" she said in a pissed off tone. "And take a shower before all the hot water is gone." I hated showers. I didn't know what it was, but I dreaded them every time I had to take one.

I fell out of bed and stubbed my toe, so I crawled back into bed. My sister Khloe (the one I share a room with) threw water at me, reminding me that she's getting in the shower. I threw my body out of bed and raced her to the door, I told her I had to get in the bathroom because I had to leave in 20 minutes. She didn't care.

I didn't have enough time to shower, so I changed, rolled Khloe's deoderant under my pitts and headed downstairs to leave.

"You ready dude?" my dad asked.

"Yeah, let me grab my painting".

Before I was shamefully inspected by my mom to make sure I bathed and combed my hair, my brother came running through the door and ripped a hole in my painting. "KAYDEN!!" I screamed "I'm going to a show right now, look what you did!"

"Hailey Elizabeth!!" my mom shouted. "There is no reason to scream bloody murder!"

"I'm sorry Hails, I had no clue..." Kayden said.

"FREAKING LOOK WHERE YOU'RE GOING NEXT TIME, YOU JERK!" I kept shouting. I don't know what came over me, I was so mad. Mom and dad didn't do anything but ground me.

"Hailey, I'm sorry, just chill!" Kayden said.

"Hailey Elizabeth, come here," my mom said. I walked over to her with my head down.

"Sweetheart, accidents happen," she started to explain.

"Yeah, I know mom, but he..."

"He shouldn't have been running, I get it," she interrupted. "Sweetheart," my mom lifted my head. Grease rubbed off on her hand from my forehead. "Honey, did you wash your face?" I rolled my eyes. I didn't have time for this. "Hailey, we've talked about this, you know the whole puberty thing, you can't just pick and choose which days you want to take care of yourself, and which days..." I grabbed the rest of my painting and walked out on my mom. I was tripping over myself because my eyes filled with tears. I got in the car and my dad gave me a lecture about how accidents happen and how I needed to mind my mother, because after all she was teaching me how to become a lady. Thanks dad, great speech.

I finally calmed down by the time I got to the art showing. I setup my display, and I presented my disaster of a piece. I originally painted hands interlocking one another even though different bonds try to break them apart. But by the time it was all setup it just looked like a couple of wrists. When the judges asked what inspired me to paint the painting, I couldn't tell them the truth. The painting didn't match up with what I felt. Instead I said a bowl of cheerios on a cold spring day. I liked to make people laugh but nobody understood my humor, except my dad. So what happened next? My dad stood up cheering and applauding after I presented. I felt on top of the world knowing he cared so much and loved me. He could see past my smart alec comments and weird sense of humor. He was my hero in a totally woman dominated family. When Kayden was gone, I felt like his "pal", the dude he always did stuff with. It's nice because to be honest I didn't know how to be a girl. It was easier clinging to my dad.