Hearts of trouble (under development)

Disappointment as always

Lily pushed the front door open, dropping her bag by the entryway. The sound of laughter floated from the living room, and her stomach sank. She already knew what she'd see before she turned the corner.

Sure enough, her dad and Karen were sitting on the couch, far too close for her liking. Her dad's arm was draped casually around Karen's shoulders as they looked through a magazine together.

"Lily!" her dad called, noticing her. "You're home early."

Karen turned to smile at her, a little too brightly. "Hi, sweetie."

Lily stiffened at the word. Sweetie? They weren't close-Karen barely knew her. She didn't even know how Lily liked her coffee, let alone have the right to call her "sweetie."

"Yeah, well, school was fun," Lily replied sarcastically, shrugging out of her coat. "Glad to see you're both so comfortable."

Her dad frowned. "Lily, come on. You don't have to be like that."

"Be like what?" she snapped, glaring at both of them. "I come home to find you two acting like newlyweds, as if this is normal."

Karen opened her mouth to respond, but Lily cut her off. "Don't bother. I'm not in the mood for whatever stepmom speech you've got ready."

"Lily!" her dad scolded, standing up.

"No, it's fine," Karen said, standing as well. Her voice was calm, but Lily could see the tension in her smile. "I'll give you two some space to talk."

Karen grabbed her purse and walked toward the kitchen, leaving Lily and her dad alone.

Her dad crossed his arms, his expression stern. "You need to stop being so rude to her."

"Maybe I wouldn't have to be rude if you didn't shove her into my life like this," Lily retorted.

"You know I care about her," he said firmly. "And you're going to have to accept that she's part of this family now."

"Family?" Lily laughed bitterly. "She's not my family. She's just someone you decided to replace Mom with."

"That's not fair," her dad said, his voice rising slightly. "Your mom and I-"

"Don't," Lily interrupted, holding up a hand. "I don't want to hear how it wasn't working out, or how Karen makes you happy. I've heard it all before."

Her dad sighed, rubbing his temples. "I'm trying here, Lily. I really am."

"Yeah, well, try harder," she muttered, grabbing her bag and storming upstairs.

Once in her room, Lily slammed the door and sank onto her bed, her emotions swirling. It felt like everything in her life was unraveling, and her dad playing house with Karen was the final straw.

Lily sat on the edge of her bed, her mind buzzing with the argument she'd just had with her dad. The laughter of her dad and Karen echoed faintly downstairs, each sound tightening the knot in her chest.

She glanced at her nightstand, where a small, inconspicuous bottle sat. She'd taken it from Shawn that night at the apartment, on impulse, just to keep it away from him. She had shoved it into her bag and forgotten about it-until now.

Her fingers hesitated as she reached for it. Her mom's voice echoed in her head, slurred and angry, from the nights she'd watched Andrea spiral out of control.

"You're better than this," she whispered to herself, but her hand didn't stop moving.

With a flick of her wrist, the cap was off, and the sharp smell hit her. She stared at the bottle, its contents swirling as if taunting her.