Mina

Just Another Long Day

I never knew if this was the last time.

The last time I'd get the call.

The last time I'd have to drop everything and go to her.

I still had the pink slip Mrs. Peterson had written for me clutched in my hand as I burst through the emergency room doors. I already knew I'd have to wait, not once had I ever been allowed straight back. But that never stopped me from rushing to where ever she had been taken.

"How can I help you?" The woman behind the counter said.

"Penny Hewitt, she's my mom, she's a patient." I blurted, my chest tight, all of my anxiety from the unknown crushing down on it.

"If you'll take a seat, I'll let them know her family has arrived." The woman said with a smile. "It may be a few minutes before they come for you."

I knew the drill. This wasn't my first time. It wasn't even my second or third. But there was always a chance it could be my last. I sat down in a chair with a view of the double doors, dropping my book bag to the floor. I picked nervously at the edges of my nail polish that was starting to chip.

I hated days like this. For more than just the obvious reasons. But I hated today more than most. Why did he have to be in the office when I found out?

I shifted my gaze to the clock on the wall, watching the second hand tick by. Knowing it'd be hours before I'd leave this building. I'd miss another class but at least it was just a lecture. I could borrow someone's notes.

I pulled my flash cards out of the front pocket of my bag, settling back as I tried to distract myself while I waited. I had an exam coming up and I was determined to keep my perfect record going. I didn't have much left to go and as soon as I graduated high school, I'd be able to focus all my time on my internship and the remainder of the college courses I needed. After that came a job and getting the hell away from this town and everyone in it. Even my mom. Hopefully.

The only two people I really truly cared about were Chelsea and Max. And I'd make sure miles didn't come between us. They were my family.

                                ————————

Penny let out a groan, it was dramatic and overdone, like everything she did. Not that she did much, other than bitch at me from her bed.

"Mina?" She mumbled, her swollen, fat hand reaching for me. "Mina, honey."

"I'm here mom." I said. I was always there.

"I'm hungry." She was always hungry. "They're trying to starve me. I haven't ate anything since I've been here." She whined.

"The doctor said they want you on a strict diet mom." We always had the same conversation.

"1500 calories a day!" She exploded. "How can I survive on that?"

I knew better by now than to say what I was thinking. That 1500 calories was plenty for an average person. But Penny wasn't average. She was morbidly obese. And she still hadn't found the problem with that.

"I'm sorry mom." I wasn't.

She started crying. It was fake. She'd flip between the two emotions, anger and tears, waiting until one of them would get her her way. If my aunt showed up, she'd sneak her in some food. I could always tell because Penny wasn't as mean on those days.

                                ———————

My eyes were heavy as I drove home hours later. It was close to four in the morning, I'd left the hospital around ten. I went to a 24 hour coffee shop where I studied and worked on homework until two, knowing that if I went home I'd collapse in bed. Then I swung by the grocery store, something that had been on my to do list for the day.

I definitely wasn't going to make it to school in three hours.

I pulled into the driveway, all the lights off in the house except for the electrical glow of the tv that Penny never shut off. I climbed out, pulling my book bag onto my back before filling my arms with grocery bags. I was determined to make the trip inside once. Using the heel of my shoe I kicked the front door closed behind me, the circulation in my hands getting cut off from the plastic bags piled on them. I carefully lowered the bags to the ground, turning around to lock the door and discard my shoes on the shoe rack. I slipped out of my book bag, locating the remote in the middle of the hospital bed Penny slept on that had overtaken the living room.

I let out a yawn, thankful for the quiet the house provided when I was truly alone in it. I wished it happened more than it did. I started putting away the grocery and cleaning up the mess that Penny had left. Thankfully, the mess was on the smaller side.

Forty five minutes later, I finally made it to my room. Stripping out of my clothes I'd been in all day, I pulled on one of Max's shirt and climbed under the covers. I set an alarm on my phone for ten, giving me roughly five hours of sleep and closed my eyes.

I wished I could say sleep had never come so fast but I went through life sleep deprived and running off fumes. My body and my mind never hesitated to shut down when the opportunity presented itself. And tonight was no exception.

                                  ————————

Thanks for the cover art Rensk3N !

I know it's the first chapter but how do you guys feel about hearing things from Mina's perspective?