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「 Maevie 」
"Henry! Can you come down here please?" there's a pause. "And Mae can you get the girls up too?"
A groan comes from my bed, my bed the idiot kicked – actually kicked – me out of it last night from our impromptu sleep over. Ava and Scarlett lie next to me on the pull-out and when I say next to me I mean I was on the floor, and they are still sleeping comfortably on a bed together.
I don't mind though, after last night they needed the comfort.
My mind creeps back to the night before, the broken glass, the screaming, the fresh bruise forming on my side, the other on my stomach. Twisting around away from my open sketch book on my desk I walk over to the pull-out, and gently tap the girls awake – I've learnt not to shake them awake over the years – both open their eyes fear clouding them for a few seconds before seeing me and calming down.
I smile down at them, "time to get up girls. You've got school today."
Scarlett all but launches out of bed and – quietly – rushes to her and Ava's room, excited for school, to see her little group of friends. Ava sits up and looks at me with sleepy eyes and notices the uniform I'm wearing. "Are you going to go to that fancy school today?" I nod and she looks down. "Who's gonna pick us up from school then?"
Goldridge is a fifteen-minute walk from the state school, which is a five-minute walk to the elementary, which is a ten-minute walk to home. It's safe to say we walk to school every day. I cringe at her small timid voice. This fucking Switch. "Henry is gonna get you, he's big enough and ugly enough to do it." I stand up and kick the body in my bed. "Did you hear that, you big lump? You're picking the girls up from school, don't forget." A groan is all I get in response.
"Do you still have work after school too?" Ava's question makes me turn back around to her.
I smile at her swallowing down my guilt, "yeah, Aves, I do."
"What about the lump?" Ava giggles.
"No that thing has three little girls to take care of." I extend my hands to her, and she takes them. "Come on let's get you dressed."
Thirty minutes later, after I've made sure Henry is good to get the girls to and from school, I'm out the door and walking to Brighton state an hour early. Just so we can get a ride with the two teachers who are coming with us to head to Goldridge so we're there an extra thirty mins early. After today it's up to us to find transportation to get to school on time. Another fun thing.
I walk through the gates of school and am instantly hounded by a flurry of purple.
"Oh thank god you're here. I actually worrying that you'd booked it and bailed on me."
I laugh, "I was tempted to, but I could never leave your needy ass—" I glance at Annika and then do a double take. Her usually dark hair is now streaked with purple. The light color standing out.
