Death

Chapter 4

  Ever since the argument life has been rough for Clara and her mom. They lost almost everything. They had to move to a tiny house, it was hardly a house it was so tiny. It was on the outskirts of town because they couldn't afford to stay at their old one, it was way too expensive. Her parents got a divorce because her dad cheated on her mom with some hotshot model from California. He moved in with his new girlfriend so Clara was left with her mom in South Carolina. Clara was very sad when he left, but it was for the best.

  It was just Clara and her mom so they each got their own bedroom. They both had to share a bathroom though, so getting ready in the morning hard sometimes. There was a kitchen and a living room. There wasn't a dining room so they had to eat in their bedrooms most of the time, but they had family dinners on the couch in the living room. Clara's bedroom window didn't lock so if she wanted she could sneak out and take walks at night to clear her mind. That was the only good part, Clara could get away from her mom if she needed to.

As if the house wasn't bad enough, the new job Clara's mom got didn't pay very much and she didn't get many hours anyway. To help pay for extra things like clothes and food Clara was forced to get a job of her own because her mom could barely afford anything more than the house payment. She worked at a little diner at the edge of town called Donna's Diner and only got paid only $4.65 an hour. The diner was near a ghetto so most of the customers scared Clara. Only some of the customers were decent enough to leave tips so Clara only got about $15 a day.

Clara had to walk almost everywhere because they couldn't afford very much gas in the car. Sometimes she could take the bus, but only if her mom got enough hours in. Mrs. Litzer car pooled with their neighbor Patty Goodenhow and only had to drive to work on Mondays and Wednesdays to save gas.

Although they didn't make much money, they both took the weekend off to go do something fun. They would rent a movie or two, buy some microwave popcorn and hang out at home or play a game of minigolf if there was a coupon in the newspaper. Sometimes they would even go out for ice cream at the park. Things will never be like before the argument and even though they never talked about it they knew it deep down in their hearts that it was true.

But, despite the money problems, Clara and her mom are doing a lot better now than before the incident. They actually have to do stuff to get what they want. They both have jobs and responsibilities that they didn't have before. They can control what they do instead of doing what everyone else did. They were free and that's all they ever wanted.