Call Me Blade✔

Seventeen: Coffee Stains

This house is suffocating me.

Ever since Melissa's outburst, the tension has thickened so much it can be cut with a knife. The eggshells I have been walking on feel more brittle. I've been on edge; holding my breath as I wait for the other foot to drop.

With Melissa acting different, I have no idea what to expect. I can't put my finger on what's different with her, but something is up. Fortunately, she has been ignoring me. Mostly foused on her next vice to get high.

In a weird way, I prefer her when she isn't sober. At least I know what to expect and more or less when to expect it. I hate when she is sober because it's never a question of if she'll fall off again, but when. And when she falls, she falls hard. I can handle consistency but I hate not knowing what's next.

School is easier knowing Faith is safely in the hands of the daycare. There's still everything else but at least I'm not driving myself crazy with worry.

Of course, my almost pleasant thoughts about school don't last long. I sigh deeply when I see Alice round the corner of the hallway. It's almost as if my silver lining summoned her.

Can't enjoy anything for too long.

"You know," Alice starts, an evil glint in her eye. "I almost forgot about you. I mean, you are pretty forgettable, but then I remembered you existed, and it ruined my day. So, I'm here to ruin yours." She smiles sweetly, flipping her coffee cup over, the contents emptying out over my head.

I inhaled sharply, wanting to scream.

On the not so bright side, it's iced coffee, but I wouldn't put it past her to try to burn my face off.

"That'll wake you up." She says as she walks off, laughing.

The strong coffee stench makes my stomach churn. I really hate coffee. I trudge over to the bathroom, ignoring the looks from students when I pass.

Of course she had to get it in my hair. Couldn't she have just spilled on my clothes. I free my wild mane from the hair tie, my curls matted together in gross looking clumps.

I rinse my hair in the sink ins attempt to get some of the smell out. It helps only a little bit, and now I have sopping wet hair that smells like coffee.

When my hair is under control, I move into my shirt that's still wet and reeking of coffee.

I sigh, taking off my long sleeve. I'm wearing a tank rop underneath that didn't get contaminated but I wouldn't be caught dead in a tank top at school. Or anywhere. I run the coffee stained parts under the water, managing to get some of the smell out. Now it's damp and smells like coffee rather than wet smelling a lot like coffee.

What a lovely start to the day.

****

"You look miserable," Dustin helpfully points out as he walks beside me.

I am. I sign.

"I don't know what that means but I swear I've been trying to learn sign language."

I shrug. I don't care if he learns or not. I don't care if he understands or not. I don't care about anything about him at all.

"Why do you smell like coffee?"

I stop, taking a deep breath. Fine. I think to myself. If you want to be my friend so badly. I pull out my phone to type since it's obvious he's not going anywhere. If you can't beat 'em join 'em. Or something ridiculous like that.

Alice spilled coffee on me. I type into my phone.

"Bitch."

I laugh, which catches both of us off guard.

Understatement of the year. I type into my phone.

Dustin smirks. "Who knew there was a sense of humor hidden under all that brooding?"

I can't help but roll my eyes.

"Wanna get ice cream after school amend your shitty day?"

It sometimes surprises me how forward Dustin can be. He's very vocal about how he feels when he wants to be, which is a lot of the time. Not worried about letting his thoughts out. I'm not unfamiliar with people being blunt towards me but it's new when they're nice about it.

Why he would still want anything to with me after ditching him when he invited me over then turning into the rudest version of myself is beyond me. I wouldn't say I trust his intentions. I don't even know what they are, but he hasn't let me down yet.

Still, it's not the best idea. Not coming home will give Melissa a reason to be upset which I'd prefer to avoid. There's too much tension in the house to do anything out of the ordinary. I shake my head. Maybe next time. I type into my phone.

"I figured you'd decline. Next time indeed. Can I at least give you a ride home?"

I shake my head, deciding not to bother him by making him go out of his way.

He sighs. "Alright. See you around, Blade." he throws up a peace sign before walking to his car.

****
Drunk Melissa couldn't last a week without having Todd back in her life. I thought after beating her so badly the last time, she'd at least have enough sense to stay away from him, but clearly I was wrong.

What's crazier is that they're already fighting.

Why do they put up with each other?

It's hard to concentrate when their muffled shouts can be heard through the wall. I have a load of homework and studying to do, but I can't relax enough to focus.

Faith is crabby and it's probably because she feels the same way I do. Instead of trying to continue with schoolwork that I know I won't get done, I pick up the whiny baby and hold her close. She seems to relax more now that she's being held and I give her little pecks on her face which make her giggle.

Finally, Todd and Melissa seem to have stopped fighting and the house is quiet again. Faith falls asleep fairly easily when I out her down, and now I can finally focus on my homework.

It's past midnight when I'm finished with my assignments and I groan when I finally stretch my body out of the hunched position it was in.

There's no reason I should have this level of back pain at seventeen. Luckily, a hot shower eases my muscle pain and I'm able to fall asleep easily.

What a long and exhausting day.

******