I woke up, feeling groggy, not sure where I was. Bright fluorescent lights shown on my face, and I had to blink to adjust my eyes. That's when I realized where I was.
"Lily? Honey, she's awake." I heard my mom say.
"Why am I in the hospital, Mom? What happened? Am I okay?"
The last thing I remember was running out of the principal's office after revealing my secret to you-know-who and running all the way home. My stomach hurt so bad. So how did I end up here? Did I have cancer?? Or was I secretly pregnant??? There were endless possibilities.
My dad spoke up. "You're gonna be fine. You just had an ulcer. You're gonna have to take a lot of meds for the next couple of weeks."
Oh, so I wasn't pregnant. Phew. "Oh. Okay. Well, can we go back then? I feel fine now."
"The doctors wanna keep you overnight just to keep an eye on you."
Well, the hospital bed was comfier than my sad little cot at the apartment anyways. It felt like a vacation if you ask me!
My mom cleared her throat. "We're glad you're feeling better. Um, in other news, we have something to tell you. I had a job interview the other day. I didn't wanna tell you so you wouldn't get your hopes up. It's for a big corporation downtown. And, I got it. I got the job! And your dad has an interview with the company next week!"
Oh. My. Gosh. No way I was hearing this. I could get my old life back. Once they got enough money, I could convince them to get us the hell away from that roach-infested school with all the girls who are ugly and look like rats. Well, maybe not in Colin's eyes.
"Can we move as soon as possible?? Back home???"
"Well, honey, as I said, the job is here. We'll get out of the apartment, of course, but we can't move back to your hometown. Not until we get back on our feet, at least."
I rolled my eyes. Which was probably the wrong reaction, because obviously, I was super grateful, but I just wanted to get away from Colin and Mia and Claire and everyone.
"I'm excited to get some of our old lives back, guys."
"Us too, Lily."
And they said it gently, just like the people back home would.
YOU ARE READING
The Meaning of Life
General FictionI hate this school. This middle school is for rejects, people with families who are broke. Everyone is so rude, and this school is so trashy. But not many people like me. I wish I was a normal kid, like everyone else. Well, most people are weir...
