"Amy? Amy, wake up." I half surfaced from the ocean of sleep. My eyes fluttered open, revealing the light room and Finn's worried face peering down at mine. "Amy, listen." He paused and looked away slightly, listening. Then there came a faint voice up the stairs.
"Amy, I'm off to work, you'd better get up for school now, or you'll be late." There was a pause and I tried to take the information into my dulled brain.
"Amy?" Then there was a tap, tap, tap, which I couldn't place until it was too late. She was coming up the stairs. To see me. And Finn was in my room.
"Sorry, mum," I called quickly while wrestling myself out of the sleeping bag.
"Oh, good morning darling. I'm just off to work now," came the reply as I heard her reach the landing.
Dammit, dammit, dammit.
"Get in the cupboard or something!" I hissed frantically at Finn, who's bewildered eyes searched madly around for the place I was talking about. "Or the wardrobe!" He located it as around the same time I managed to get out of the sleeping bag, and the same time my mum reached my door.
The handle of the door turned just as Finn climbed, no, jumped, inside the wardrobe. My bedroom door opened and I pretended to be calmly shutting the wardrobe doors, but inside my heart was jumping. I closed the stow-away inside, the only thing visible now was the the bottom of his trousers and a single bare foot, but I quickly shut him inside before my mum could see it.
"Sorry I didn't hear you call me. I was still asleep," I smiled and firmly made sure the doors were shut before I joined my mum in the doorway and put my arms around her before she could ask why I was looking in the wardrobe.
"No, I'm sorry," She returned my hug, "I should've listened to the radio before I got onto the motorway. I'm sorry I wasn't there after school too. Wait," she pulled back and looked at my hair. "What," she trailed off and touched her hand to the blackened hair on the side of my face.
Oh, I'd forgotten about that.
"Yeah, I..." My head spun for a decent lie, and I spouted the first one that worked. "I leaned to far over the Bunsen burner in science yesterday." I shrugged. "I'm stupid."
"Hmm..." She mumbled, still stroking my hair. She didn't have to know that I didn't even have science yesterday.
"Well, it doesn't look like your hurt too badly," she brushed her fingers over my burned skin and I tried to make no reaction, but it stung. "And I've got an important meeting. So I will see you later." She leaned down and kissed my forehead. "Bye hunny."
"Bye, mum," I smiled as she waved from the top of the stairs, then descended. She had no idea that I had just lied. But it was better that way. Sometimes a little lie was better than the truth, right?
I waited until I heard the front door shut, and then turned back to Finn in the wardrobe.
"Can I come out now?" I barely heard his whisper, but it made me laugh as I walked over to the doors and pulled them open. Finn slipped out and looked up at me with a big grin on his face. "That was close!" He laughed. "Can we do it again?"
* * *
"Bye!" Finn called from the front door, waving his hand like crazy.
I smiled despite the whole prospect of leaving seemed like another life. I much liked my life with Finn better. Never the less, I walked to the bus and climbed on, and watched as Finn shut the front door from the window I was sat by.
YOU ARE READING
No More Lies, I Promise - The Watty Awards 2011
Short Story'What would happen today then? What would they do to me today to make me feel even more worthless then they did on Friday? Same old same old.' Amy's life is torn apart by the rumors Jessica spreads. They pick on her. They hurt her. What can she do...
