Read Online After the Before by Jessica Gomez - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Jessica Gomez
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and I’m not sure how much longer he’ll be able to talk with you.”
I smile at Jenna, my father’s nurse for the last nine months. We’d gone through about six before we found Jenna, and she’s been a Godsend. “Thank you, Jenna.”
“Well dad, it looks like I should leave ya to it.”
My dad blinks twice rapidly ; His stubbornness makes me laugh.
“Now who’s the stubborn one? It used to be Jace and I who wouldn’t go to bed on time.” The smile on my face fades slightly, realizing I mentioned Jace by name for the first time out loud, but then the smile slowly creeps back onto my face. I remember when we used to hide in each other’s blankets to stay awake all night. I meet my father’s shining eyes, a few tears forming in the corners.
I wipe away his tears before they can fall. “None of that now . They’re happy times to remember. I love you, Dad.”
He blinks one long blink, longer than normal, signaling his meds are kicking in for the night. I slide off his mattress after kissing his forehead and walk out the door, closing it quietly behind me. I head to the kitchen to see if there’s something to munch on. When I round the corner, I walk right into a clawed hand that’s waiting for me.
My mom grabs my wrist, the bad one again, and tosses me to the ground. I smash my hands on the floor to keep from landing on my face. A shooting pain, like long splinters being shoved under my skin, consumes my entire wrist and forearm. I turn and reach for my left wrist instantly, when my mom saunters over to me, as if she hadn’t just thrown me to the floor.
“I told you to stay away from him!” She yell-slurs the best she can.
“You were listening to my conversation?” I ask her accusingly. Who does she think she is?
“I will do what I please!” She stomps over to me and grabs my hair in her talons, with all her strength.
She drags me through the kitchen toward the hall, throwing her glass of whatever alcohol she’s been drinking today on the floor, shattering it. She continues to drag me, grinding me through the broken glass, not caring that the fragments are ripping through my clothes and slicing up my side and my limp arm, while the other is holding onto the hand in my hair for dear life.
“Mom! Stop!” I scream at her. Pain is burning everywhere from the cuts blending with the alcohol. “Mom! You’re hurting me!”
She lets go of my hair, so I jump up as fast as I can, but I’m blocked into a corner. She looks at me with so much hate. Any love she may have felt for me was only out of pity to please Jace and Dad. Now that Jace is gone, and Dad is slowly getting there, pretending is a moot point. To prove her hate for me, she pulls back and slaps me as hard as she can, snapping my head back and to the side. She has never hit me before. My fingers find their way to my stinging cheek as tears form in my eyes. I look at my mother, hands shaking.
She regards me with an expression of shock. It’s not regret, let’s get that straight right now − only shock that she actually hit me. I watch as she staggers back a couple of drunken paces.
Her hands begin to swing around about a minute before her words catch up to her gestures. “Clean up this mess. I meant what I said; you stay away from that boy.” I can hear the “Or else” in her tone.
I scoot along the wall away from her, even as I feel sharp glass digging into me. All I want to do is break down and cry. I’m even more stunned to see that there is actually blood on the floor. I’m bleeding and cut to hell, and my mother is the cause. I put my face in my hands to breathe and try to collect myself. I will not give that witch of a women the satisfaction of watching me cry.
After I clean the glass up, I head upstairs to take a bath. I stand , concentrating in the bathroom mirror, naked, pulling out glass shards from my side and arm as blood continues to drip down my skin. I wince with every extraction of glass, the tweezers my worst
I smile at Jenna, my father’s nurse for the last nine months. We’d gone through about six before we found Jenna, and she’s been a Godsend. “Thank you, Jenna.”
“Well dad, it looks like I should leave ya to it.”
My dad blinks twice rapidly ; His stubbornness makes me laugh.
“Now who’s the stubborn one? It used to be Jace and I who wouldn’t go to bed on time.” The smile on my face fades slightly, realizing I mentioned Jace by name for the first time out loud, but then the smile slowly creeps back onto my face. I remember when we used to hide in each other’s blankets to stay awake all night. I meet my father’s shining eyes, a few tears forming in the corners.
I wipe away his tears before they can fall. “None of that now . They’re happy times to remember. I love you, Dad.”
He blinks one long blink, longer than normal, signaling his meds are kicking in for the night. I slide off his mattress after kissing his forehead and walk out the door, closing it quietly behind me. I head to the kitchen to see if there’s something to munch on. When I round the corner, I walk right into a clawed hand that’s waiting for me.
My mom grabs my wrist, the bad one again, and tosses me to the ground. I smash my hands on the floor to keep from landing on my face. A shooting pain, like long splinters being shoved under my skin, consumes my entire wrist and forearm. I turn and reach for my left wrist instantly, when my mom saunters over to me, as if she hadn’t just thrown me to the floor.
“I told you to stay away from him!” She yell-slurs the best she can.
“You were listening to my conversation?” I ask her accusingly. Who does she think she is?
“I will do what I please!” She stomps over to me and grabs my hair in her talons, with all her strength.
She drags me through the kitchen toward the hall, throwing her glass of whatever alcohol she’s been drinking today on the floor, shattering it. She continues to drag me, grinding me through the broken glass, not caring that the fragments are ripping through my clothes and slicing up my side and my limp arm, while the other is holding onto the hand in my hair for dear life.
“Mom! Stop!” I scream at her. Pain is burning everywhere from the cuts blending with the alcohol. “Mom! You’re hurting me!”
She lets go of my hair, so I jump up as fast as I can, but I’m blocked into a corner. She looks at me with so much hate. Any love she may have felt for me was only out of pity to please Jace and Dad. Now that Jace is gone, and Dad is slowly getting there, pretending is a moot point. To prove her hate for me, she pulls back and slaps me as hard as she can, snapping my head back and to the side. She has never hit me before. My fingers find their way to my stinging cheek as tears form in my eyes. I look at my mother, hands shaking.
She regards me with an expression of shock. It’s not regret, let’s get that straight right now − only shock that she actually hit me. I watch as she staggers back a couple of drunken paces.
Her hands begin to swing around about a minute before her words catch up to her gestures. “Clean up this mess. I meant what I said; you stay away from that boy.” I can hear the “Or else” in her tone.
I scoot along the wall away from her, even as I feel sharp glass digging into me. All I want to do is break down and cry. I’m even more stunned to see that there is actually blood on the floor. I’m bleeding and cut to hell, and my mother is the cause. I put my face in my hands to breathe and try to collect myself. I will not give that witch of a women the satisfaction of watching me cry.
After I clean the glass up, I head upstairs to take a bath. I stand , concentrating in the bathroom mirror, naked, pulling out glass shards from my side and arm as blood continues to drip down my skin. I wince with every extraction of glass, the tweezers my worst
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