rubbed her hands over her face,
wiping away the look of pain that clouded her features. “Don’t count on it.
But if you want to delude yourself, go right ahead. But I won’t be here to
pick up the pieces when she proves me right.” She turned quickly and left the
room, the sound of the front door slamming moments later.
The chirping of my cell
phone was a welcome distraction from the shit storm that had just walked out of
my house. I looked down and found Katy’s smiling face staring back at me. I
answered quickly, tucking the phone between my ear and shoulder.
“Hey, I was just-“
“I need your help.” Her
voice was shaking and her breath was coming in spurts.
“Where are you?” I grabbed
my keys off the coffee table and stormed out of the house.
“I’m at home.
Mom’s...she’s...shit. She’s drunk out of her mind, again. I found her in the
kitchen, playing with the damn stove. Can you come? I mean, I understand if
you’re-“
“I’m on my way. Keep an
eye on her. And don’t leave the house.”
I hung up as I opened the
door to my truck. I climbed in and cranked the engine, quickly throwing the gear-shift
in reverse. The panic in her voice was enough to light a fire under my ass. The
beater hadn’t been pushed this hard in a long time, but for Katy, I was willing
to push it to the brink. This was my chance. If I blew it...who knew where I
would end up.
Chapter Thirteen
Katy
Why had I called him?
Suddenly he was the first, and only, person I wanted to call. I wanted to
question it more. Dissect it under a microscope. But that would have to
wait. I had bigger shit to deal with at that moment. Like the phone call I
made before I called Brian. Could I really send my mother to rehab? Would I?
As I sat on our faded
couch, I surveyed the room. It had been a long time since I had taken a close
look at our home. When had things started to fall apart? When I was a child,
the house had always sparkled. There had been no dirt on the floor, no stains
on the stairs, no dents in the walls. But now? The house was falling down
around us and I hadn’t even bothered to notice. It was depressing.
It was a sign.
Our downhill spiral had
started slowly, eventually picking up its pace and slamming us down. Here we
found ourselves. Our house no longer a home, only a shell. I wondered if Dad
had even noticed. I doubted it. He had been around even less lately, almost
never coming home after work. I had a feeling that he was only sticking around
for me, which made me question whether or not he would be here once I left.
Who would take care of Mom? A chill ran through my body as I thought about
what could have happened if I hadn’t been there earlier. It was frightening,
but also eye-opening.
I heard the crunch of the
gravel before I heard the roar of his engine. Brian. It hadn’t taken him long
to get here, which brought a small smile to my face. Roxie was right. He did
care about me. Would he feel the same way once he saw the life that I led?
The constant bullshit I had to deal with on a daily basis? He had called me
Ms. Perfect, but he had no clue just how screwed up my home life was. We were
two peas in a pod.
There was no knock, only
the sound of the front door opening and slamming shut. My body jumped at the
sound as it disturbed the quiet that had settled around the house. He stormed
in, his hair tousled and his eyes wild. When he saw me on the couch, he ran
over and scooped me up in his arms, squeezing my body to his. I nestled my
face in his neck, breathing in his scent. It was a smell that would be forever
seared into my brain. Always reminding me of the comfort and security he
offered.
He pulled back, keeping
his arms around me, and looked down at my face. “Are you okay?”
I shook my head and pulled
us together once again. I didn’t want the feeling to end. He made
wiping away the look of pain that clouded her features. “Don’t count on it.
But if you want to delude yourself, go right ahead. But I won’t be here to
pick up the pieces when she proves me right.” She turned quickly and left the
room, the sound of the front door slamming moments later.
The chirping of my cell
phone was a welcome distraction from the shit storm that had just walked out of
my house. I looked down and found Katy’s smiling face staring back at me. I
answered quickly, tucking the phone between my ear and shoulder.
“Hey, I was just-“
“I need your help.” Her
voice was shaking and her breath was coming in spurts.
“Where are you?” I grabbed
my keys off the coffee table and stormed out of the house.
“I’m at home.
Mom’s...she’s...shit. She’s drunk out of her mind, again. I found her in the
kitchen, playing with the damn stove. Can you come? I mean, I understand if
you’re-“
“I’m on my way. Keep an
eye on her. And don’t leave the house.”
I hung up as I opened the
door to my truck. I climbed in and cranked the engine, quickly throwing the gear-shift
in reverse. The panic in her voice was enough to light a fire under my ass. The
beater hadn’t been pushed this hard in a long time, but for Katy, I was willing
to push it to the brink. This was my chance. If I blew it...who knew where I
would end up.
Chapter Thirteen
Katy
Why had I called him?
Suddenly he was the first, and only, person I wanted to call. I wanted to
question it more. Dissect it under a microscope. But that would have to
wait. I had bigger shit to deal with at that moment. Like the phone call I
made before I called Brian. Could I really send my mother to rehab? Would I?
As I sat on our faded
couch, I surveyed the room. It had been a long time since I had taken a close
look at our home. When had things started to fall apart? When I was a child,
the house had always sparkled. There had been no dirt on the floor, no stains
on the stairs, no dents in the walls. But now? The house was falling down
around us and I hadn’t even bothered to notice. It was depressing.
It was a sign.
Our downhill spiral had
started slowly, eventually picking up its pace and slamming us down. Here we
found ourselves. Our house no longer a home, only a shell. I wondered if Dad
had even noticed. I doubted it. He had been around even less lately, almost
never coming home after work. I had a feeling that he was only sticking around
for me, which made me question whether or not he would be here once I left.
Who would take care of Mom? A chill ran through my body as I thought about
what could have happened if I hadn’t been there earlier. It was frightening,
but also eye-opening.
I heard the crunch of the
gravel before I heard the roar of his engine. Brian. It hadn’t taken him long
to get here, which brought a small smile to my face. Roxie was right. He did
care about me. Would he feel the same way once he saw the life that I led?
The constant bullshit I had to deal with on a daily basis? He had called me
Ms. Perfect, but he had no clue just how screwed up my home life was. We were
two peas in a pod.
There was no knock, only
the sound of the front door opening and slamming shut. My body jumped at the
sound as it disturbed the quiet that had settled around the house. He stormed
in, his hair tousled and his eyes wild. When he saw me on the couch, he ran
over and scooped me up in his arms, squeezing my body to his. I nestled my
face in his neck, breathing in his scent. It was a smell that would be forever
seared into my brain. Always reminding me of the comfort and security he
offered.
He pulled back, keeping
his arms around me, and looked down at my face. “Are you okay?”
I shook my head and pulled
us together once again. I didn’t want the feeling to end. He made
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