All Yours [Z.M.]

1

Mother still mourns over their father leaving. It's been five years since father left them and Giana still blames her children, they're no longer the innocent children she gave birthed to. Mother wasn't the type to really forgive easily nor understand of the circumstances of situations. Nova didn't really recall what happened to her father although she was seventeen, she wanted to blockout her past. And mother doesn't really talk about the situation a lot. As she knew that him leaving them hurt her badly.

She began to ostracize herself from family events and became extremely distant. But Nova understood mother's distance, father was the sole provider and mother didn't have to lift a finger when it came to bills or cleaning the house. He was a lucrative businessman who was very well known. Since father's income stop coming in, they've been struggling to stay afloat for a while now.

Giana began to stay out for longer periods of time and dabbling in drugs again. Nova's older sister, Janelle, decided to move out and do her own thing. Her two youngest siblings, Tyler and Vivian, are enrolled in school trying their best not become distracted/influenced by mother's bad habits.

Which left Nova to participate in majority of the motherly duties, from getting the kids ready to preparing dinner at night- everything in between. Now being twenty-two and starting her last semester at community college brings on new challenges in her life. She was barely able to juggle home and school life, let alone able to take care of herself and her two younger siblings. But who else will take care of them?

Nova had grandparents on mother's side but because of mother's substance abuse and with them living in Arizona, they weren't around much. They didn't want to be involved with the rollercoaster ride that their daughter brought along. Giana's parents provided by sending money every couple of months, a portion went to groceries and household necessities but only God knew what Giana spent the remaining on.

"Happy birthday baby," Giana, kisses her daughters cheek leaving a sloppy mess. The smell of her cigarettes embedded Nova's clothes a smell that everyone hated. Mother's brown, boney, chilly fingers tightly squeeze her shoulders. "tonight I'm going out but I'll be back."

Although Nova did go out sometimes, she started to dread becoming solely responsible for her siblings. Even though they relied on her a lot.

"Cool." She mutter, her siblings already finding utensils to dig into the sweet dessert. Their faces brighten up immediately, their sweet tooth aching for the dessert to enter into their mouth. Already sensing that Tyler and Vivian would be up for the rest of the night.

Hearing the front door slam shut, Janelle saunters into the kitchen catching everyone's attention. Nova looks at her older sister, disappointed. Immediately noticing by the sly smile plastered on her lips and barely able to stand...she's completely intoxicated. Her red blood shotted eyes connect to her sisters, "Happy birthday," she giggles, stumbling in her newly brought stilettos.

"I wanted...I came home to tell you happy birthday. Nov-Nova hap." Another giggle escapes from her lips followed by a drunken burp.

"Thanks."

"You have to go Janelle!" Giana screams at her eldest daughter, pushing the twenty-five year old. Janelle stumbles backward, Giana not having enough energy to knock her off balance. "You're not welcomed here anymore! You wanted to leave, stay out."

"Don't do this, not in front of the kids." Nova attempts to soothe the tension between the two women, this definitely wouldn't be the last physical altercation between Giana and Janelle. Which is one of the many reasons she decided to pack her bags and leave for good. Deciding that she couldn't handle the stress and pain her mother always inflicted on her.

She's been gone for about a couple months now, staying with a friend from the strip club. Of course they missed her terribly, but mother couldn't stand her daughter practically looking like her father. Giana hated him and her own child, she was jealous of her. . . .Janelle was absolutely beautiful from her personality to her appearance.

Everywhere she went she attracted people, the way her loose, wavy, chocolate curls cascaded down her back. . . .effortlessly. Her bright caramel eyes always shimmered in the sunlight, even when there wasn't any lighting. And her olive skin tone was naturally tanned, Giana envied her daughters fair skin tone. Janelle and her other siblings had different fathers.

"I just wanted to see my sister." She swallows harshly, tears threaten to fall, down her rosy cheeks.

"I don't care, I don't want you here! Tell Zayn to come to get you," mother looks at her, her dark brown eyes examining the skimpy black dress Janelle is wearing. "oh is he selling you out too?"

"No, it's not even like that. He treats me very well. . ." Janelle seductively mutters looking into mother's eyes before processing the words that fall out of her mouth, "like mother like daughter."

Giana charges towards her, her right hand immediately connects with her left cheek. The violent sound of the slap leaves everyone in the room astounded- it wasn't the first time. Leaving a vibrant red hand imprint on Janelle's light, olive, skin which she barely felt the pain that was inflicted onto her cheek.

"Everything that I've done for my children was a sacrifice," Giana yells feeling infuriated by the insulting comment her daughter threw at her.

Janelle ignores mother, a statement that's been repeated times before. "Sorry, sis. If you need me, you know where to find me." She sloppily bends over in front of Nova, gripping her shoulder blades.

After hearing the door slam shut, moments of silence resonates throughout the two bedroom apartment. "I'm leaving, I'll be back...Monday." Mother hurriedly grabs her purse and winter coat, not even caring to show any affection towards her children. Hearing the front door slam shut for what seemed like the hundredth time tonight, Nova lets out a deep sigh of relief.

Alone again but this time on her twenty-second birthday. Of course, this wasn't the first birthday and it definitely won't be last. Obviously, her two younger siblings were here but it's not the same without mother and sister here.

"Go get cleaned up, please?" Nova's fragile voice questions Tyler and Vivian instead of demanding the two. Watching the two climb down from the kitchen table, heading towards the direction of the bathroom. Leaving her to clean up the mess that everyone has made. But at least the birthday cake was half-eaten so nothing was left to waste.