Light at the End of the Tunnel | A Short Story

4. Mother Dearest

Nikki waved at Skylar as she walked up the street to her house. She told Skylar that she'd change into something more comfortable and bring along some things such as her charger, toothbrush, etc.

Once Nikki arrived at her doorstep, she hesitated to open the door. She stared at the door handle as her hand hovered above it, then she whispered to herself, "C'mon, you can do it! Just run in and run out."

Nikki grabbed the door handle and swung the door wide open and closed it softly behind her. She took off her shoes and held them in her left hand so her shoes wouldn't make noise against the hard wooden floor and stairs. Then she began making her way up the stairs silently. When she reached the top of the stairs, she headed straight for her bedroom. She opened her door quietly and closed it softly behind her. She sighed in relief and let her backpack and shoes fall to the floor.

"Going somewhere?" a calm yet menacing voice called out behind her.

Nikki turned around so fast to find her mother sitting on her bed with a smug expression on her face. Nikki's cinnamon orbs were dreaded with fear and repulse. She turned away immediately and put her hand on the doorknob in an attempt to escape. However, things just weren't going the way Nikki hoped.

The tall, pale, intimidating woman stood up from the bed and the loud, rapid clicking of her heels was heard throughout the entire house. Nikki knew it wasn't a good idea to try to run out of this one, so she stayed as still as she could. She flinched when her mother's cold hand ran up her neck. Her skinny, long, bony white fingers wrapped around her jaw and gripped it firmly, also making Nikki slightly yelp. Her mother picked Nikki's head upward as her head towered above Nikki's. Her mother had a sinister glint in her deep, mahogany-colored eyes as her smug expression distorted into a devilish grin stained on her face.

"Not this time, darling," her mother's baleful voice intoned.

"I'm s-sorry--!" Nikki croaked as her mother squeezed her jaw tighter, making it difficult for Nikki to speak.

"Now tell me, where did you plan on going?" her mother calmly interrogated.

"I...I..." Nikki tried to speak, but her mother's powerful grip on her jaw hurt her each time she spoke. "N...n-no..."

"You're wasting my time."

In a matter of seconds, Nikki was flung across the room when her mother yanked her face close, swung her around, and threw Nikki with all her strength to her bed. When Nikki landed at the foot of her bed, her back was stricken with pain and an urge to scream overcame Nikki. Her mother came over and dug her heel into Nikki's leg, putting Nikki's leg in excruciating pain.

"I'll ask you again: where did you plan on going?"

When Nikki didn't respond to her mother's question, the heel was only driven deeper into her leg like a drill and Nikki cried out in agony.

"Nngh--I wasn't planning on going anywhere! Now get off me, you lunatic!" Nikki forcefully pushed her mother off of her and she staggered backward. Nikki stood up and froze--she couldn't believe what she had just done. But it felt good. It felt empowering. Her mother was stepping forward with fury printed on her face, getting ready to throw a nasty insult at her daughter. However, she revolted and refrained from saying anything when Nikki glared at her, clearly telling her mother to back off and that she wasn't afraid.

"Get out..." Nikki began, but midway felt a lump in her throat. She wasn't used to talking back to either of her parents like this. But she knew it had to come to an end, and she wasn't going to wait for a way out of this to magically appear. "Get out of my room," Nikki stated firmly. "Please," she squeaked.

Her mother wasn't having any of this at all. She didn't feel anything but anger and disrespect. She calmed herself down and thought about what to do next now that she is dealing with a rebel. She then thought of an idea--she planned to call Nikki's father over to the scene immediately.

"You wait here, you stupid girl. You'll regret it all."

Her mother stormed out of Nikki's room and the clicking sound of her heels thundered down the stairs. Nikki didn't feel scared nor did she feel worried in the slightest. She was determined to leave the place and nothing was going to stop her this time. Nikki packed up all of her belongings in a suitcase that she had under her bed. She had filled it with all of her clothes, shoes, socks, brushes, accessories, and everything else she needed. Nikki had to make difficult decisions on what things she should take and what she shouldn't. She knew this was going to be the last time she would step foot into this room. When she cleared out most of her room, she slipped on her shoes and ran down the hallway only to find both of her parents standing there absolutely furious. And from there, Nikki knew she had to run.