Someone Like Me

Chapter Eleven: Yup This Happened...

A screech erupted through the house and I instinctively covered my ears from the noise. It would stop for a good twenty seconds and then there was shouting and screaming from Peaches and she ran out of her room and down the stairs.

            "MOM! OH MY GOD! LOOK WHAT HAPPENED!"

            I sat my laptop on the side table and made my way down the stairs to find out what she was crying about now. She was still screaming and my mother was trying to calm her down as I rounded the corner into the living room. I stood at the doorway and saw Peaches wearing her royal red ball gown. My mother and Peaches were looking at gash in the skirt of the puffy gown near the bodice. I actually learned that word, bodice, from Jasmin.

            "This cannot be happening!" Peaches cried, "The dance is this Friday! There is no way I could get this fixed in time!" Tears were streaming down her cheeks and I wanted to slap her. She was over reacting about such a little thing. It was not worth watching.

            "How did this happen?"

            "I don't know!" I watched as her gaze turned to me as I was about to leave. "YOU!"

            "I didn't do it," I replied calmly.

            "Bull shit! You were the last one to handle my dress! You must have caught it on something in that stupid truck of yours and now my ten thousand dollar dress it ruined! It's ruined because of YOU!" She was beyond pissed, "Do you know how much it's going to cost to fix this!?"            

            "Did you do this?!" My mother stood up from her seat shouting at me. I could feel myself becoming small because of them. My heart was racing in fear and I could feel my cheeks redden in embarrassment. Why did I feel like this even though I didn't do anything? Why did they always have to make me feel this way? Like I was guilty about every little thing that conflicts their lives? "Answer me!"

            "No, what reason would I have to ruin it?"

            "So I look pathetic at the ball. That's what!" Peaches wiped her eyes.

            Such a cry baby, gosh.

            "You're going to be paying for this," My mother pointed at the gash.

            "I didn't even do it!"

            "I don't care! You were the last to handle it! How else would it happen!? Huh, explain that to me?!" I shrunk back and slowly shrugged my shoulders. Peaches could have done it. "I thought so," She folded her arms across her chest. "It's not cheap to fix, at least five hundred dollars to get it done before the dance Friday."

            "But!" I cried.            

            "No buts! You're paying for the damn rip YOU caused! Pay up now!"

            "Mom! That's all my savings!" I argued but it wouldn't work. Peaches let out another cry and ran up to her room in the dress. Leaving me with my mother in the living room. I was about to cry myself. I knew that they had more than enough money to pay for the rip that I did not cause.

"NOW CHERRY!"

I couldn't hold it in anymore and I felt myself start to shake. I was about to cry and my vision blurred as I went up to my room to get all the money I have stashed away in a shoebox. I got onto my knees and grabbed the box out from under my bed and grabbed the stack of bills in the corner. I always kept this in case of an emergency. I went back down stairs while rubbing my eyes of tears. This was my luck right here.

My mother snatched the bills out of my hand without even looking at me and went up the stairs to comfort Peaches. I gave up and started to sob uncontrollably. I tried to think of better things, something that would take my mind off of what had just happened, but couldn't come up with anything that could help me.

Peaches must have caused that rip somehow. I knew I left that dress in perfect condition after laying it on her bed. I wasn't stupid enough to ruin it otherwise something like this would happen.

            I didn't do it.

            "Dalton?" My voice sounded raw and hoarse from the crying. My mother and Peaches left the house after taking my money. They took the dress with them to bring down to some professional seamstress two hours away. Apparently she wasn't cheap and hard to get ahold of. Which meant I was left alone in the house alone for the rest of the night. 

            "Angel?" His voice held worry, "Is everything alright?"

            "No," It came out in a whisper.

            There was silence.

            "May I come over?"

            "Please," My voice became shaky as I started to cry again. The call ended and I curled up into a ball in my bed. Wishing for the darkness just to take me into a deep sleep but it wouldn't let me.