Bad Things

Chapter 31: City to City

Luna's POV-

Billie heated up the spaghetti she made and served it, we watched some weird TV program while eating.

i tried helping her to clean up the dishes but she insisted on doing them herself and letting me sit down on the couch.

and then the doorbell rang.

"who's that?" Amber asked.

"i'm not sure." Billie replied.

"don't worry i'll get it." i said, opening the door.

"hey, Lu." they said.

"JJ."

Billie's POV-

as soon as i heard that nickname, my heart dropped. i immediately put the dishes down and washed my hands to accompany Luna.

Jennifer had shaggy black hair and brown eyes, she was a little taller than Luna but their features remained familiar with her.

the silence that stood beneath us tore me to pieces, skin to bone.

Amber turned around, looking confused about the whole thing.

Luna's POV-

"can i come in?" Jennifer asked.

i stood aside to let her in and closed the door behind her. Billie wiped the tears from my eyes momentarily before pushing my chin up and mouthing the words 'stay strong.'

"this place looks quite different." she said, cutting the knots of tension.

"you want me to go?" Amber mouthed to me, i replied with a 'yes please.'

Billie then asked too, i whispered to her to stay but she left to give me some space.

Jen sat on the couch after i did, looking through me as she always had.

she spoke, "i'm sorry, Lu. I really am. I just didn't want to-"

"no. no -you should've stayed. i was 7. 7 fucking years old Jennifer!" i yelled.

taking aback by my words, she pondered for a second.

"i know. i'm really sorry." she whispered.

"you where 14, old enough to think 'maybe i should take care of my sister and mom more because my dad's fucking abusive' or something along the lines of 'i should protect them more in case anything bad ever happens to them." i explained.

"i'm so sorry. i was young too, i didn't understand how the world worked." she argued. "when you and mom used to go shopping, he would shout and yell at me for hours, i was lucky if he didn't lock me up in cellar and beat me with a baseball bat!"

i had been defeated.

"but no. you don't know anything about that because meanwhile mom was buying you everything you wanted and spoiling you to death." Jennifer said, her words drawn on her bare teeth.

"i didn't know any of that." i said, biting my nails. "but i was only 7."

"and i was only 14." she whispered.

"you should've stayed. it was selfish of you leaving. it fucked up everything. you fucked up everything." i explained.

"how?" she asked.

"how? well first of all i waited for weeks, day and night waiting for you to come home. i used to look outside of the window everytime i heard a car, thinking it was the cops either telling me that they found you. dead or alive." i replied. the longer i waited, the more the hope in me died. dad didn't give mom a break and so he took his anger out on her. she turned to drugs and he an alcoholic. they argued most nights until she divorced him. but no, that wasn't the end. the wounds in her never healed. the damage tore her apart, she smoked her sorrows away. until the day that she swallowed it all down, it had ended. well, that part isn't true, it just passed onto me."