Liars Garden

Chapter 7

I had a headache. It was making homework with Chris difficult. It was something about numbers and letters...algebra. I was good at that but not right in this second.My eyes kept flicking to Leslie. She was across the table, her head tilted down to her phone, her long hair swept across the English text book she wasn't reading.

Her eyes flicked to my face fora moment before looking back down. She didn't seem concerned at allthat I knew.

What did I know?

Fuck.

I looked back down at the text book.Chris had flipped to the back and was copying the answers off the back few pages. For once, I didn't stop him.

"I'll just put some crap in so it looks like I did it," Chris said when he was finished. "I heard you don't even need algebra once you graduate." He gave a little smile even though it didn't reach his blue eyes.

"That's for damn sure," Leslie muttered.

"How would you know that?" I found myself saying.

Leslie shrugged.

I felt my anger bubble in my stomach.

Chris, sensing an explosion about to happen, grabbed his books and his backpack and started heading to his room. "Call me out when we have dinner, I don't want to be part of this cat fight," his voice called as he snapped his bedroom door shut.

We sat in silence for a long stretch of time. I just kept staring at her, waiting for an explanation. Or an argument. Or anything.

Instead she stood from the table and headed upstairs. I followed. I don't know why. Maybe it was because I just didn't understand. Leslie stopped at the banister and her thumb ran over the chip in the wood. She looked at me and I knew where thiswas going.

"Leslie, don't."

"Don't what?"

I sighed. "What was that in the bathroom? You're running away? You think that is a good decision tomake?"

Leslie shrugged. "Compared to staying here? Yes, it is good."

"So what are you going to do? Get a job? Get an apartment? Spoiler: you need to graduate for that. And not be a child," I exploded. Leslie blinked at me.

"What are you going to do once you graduate?"

This time I just stared at her. "Get a job. Help out around the house, you know, the things that I should be doing."

For some reason Leslie just looked sad. "Why?"

I opened my mouth and shut it. This was the million dollar question: why?

"Mom is awful. She....she's awful to you, she's awful to me, and to Chris," Leslie pointed out sternly. "I'm tired of it. She's toxic. And...I won't be trapped here in this house with her and her lies."

I winced.

"Leslie!"

"NO!" She screamed the word and punctuated it by slamming her foot down on the top stair. It made a sickening thud. "You know about it! You lied for her, I lied for her, and I won't be stuck here in it. I won't stay here in this. And I won't wait till I'm eighteen to see what she does."

I took a step back at her anger. My head was spinning, memories trying to come forward, and I shook them violently out of my head. I couldn't do this now.

"We know what happened, Annie." Leslie continued in a softer voice. "What will stop her for turning on us? Turning on you? I don't want to be here to see it."