Like Before (Niall Horan)

Chapter Ten: Sorry

Work was exhausting after school. It was like out of every day to possibly come into the store for grocery shopping, everyone in town decided they would go on Monday to make me miserable. I was in a bad mood from school already, and this wasn't making it any better.I had gotten into a fight today because someone brought up my parents. You just don't do that.

I got home and the boys were all in the living room. Their bags were packed since they were leaving in the morning. "Alix, is that you?" I heard Sarah call from the kitchen.

"Yes." 

"Can you come here? We need to talk." Great, what did I do this time? I walked into the kitchen standing at the doorway. Sarah was making dinner. "I got a call from your school today."

"And?" I asked crossing my arms over my chest.

"And you got into a fight today." Sarah turned and glared at me. That was not a question, but why was she bringing it up?

"Whats your point?"

"My point is, you could have been suspended."

"They wouldn't have suspended me, I didn't do anything. I just got a detention. Its fine, no big deal." I told her turning to leave.

"Alix!" Sarah actually yelled my name, causing me to turn wide eyed to her. "That is not okay! I'm going to have to ground you for getting in a fight." Was she joking? She hasn't been a part of my life for how long? She just came back a bit ago. Seriously.

"Sarah, you have no right to discipline me." I told her.

"I have every right. I'm your guardian."

"Only be default." 

"Alix, you have no right to talk to me like that. You will listen to me because I am your acting guardian."

"For less than two months! Then you can go back to your own life."

"And leave Tia here? I don't think so."

"You aren't taking Tia. You left us Sarah. You don't get to come back and be the good big sister anymore! You lost your chance when you left us with Dad as soon as you could! You knew what he was like without Mom!" I yelled at her. This was not how I wanted this conversation to go. "Sarah you knew. Mom left all of us and you were here for a year. You knew Dad was a jerk. You knew it!" I couldn't stop myself. "Do you even know what happened? Do you remember at all?" I asked. She gave me a blank look.

"Alix, why are you doing this?" She asked.

"Because Sarah, you seem to think you know everything and you don't!" I yelled again. "Tia was two when Mom left and I was thirteen. And then you left and Tia was only three! I was fourteen and had to be a parent to her because Dad couldn't! Do you know what thats like? You knew that Dad was violent when he was drunk. I had to hide Tia in her room when Dad came home drunk because I didn't want her to see it!" 

"Alix, I didn't know that."

"Because you left us."

"I didn't leave you! I was making a life for myself!"

"Right after Mom left us. You knew Sarah. You knew he couldn't handle it. He hit me a couple of times. Wanna know how we found out he was dead?" I was vaguely aware that I had gotten closer to Sarah and that there were four boys behind me. I vaguely recall seeing Harry pull Tia up to her room and I gave myself a mental note to thank him. Sarah was just staring at me. "He didn't come home one night and the next morning his body was on the news and I had to identify it. We didn't even have a funeral. I didn't want to draw attention and have them take Tia from me. I thought maybe Mom would come back since she would know he was dead. But she never did!"