Linger (h.s)

Broken Shards

"Kelsey? Is that you?" I heard my dad yell from inside the house. I made my way through to the kitchen, hearing pots clattering and clashing together.

"Yeah, I'm home." I muttered, looking at the state of the room. Glass plates aligned the floors, broken and shattered. The broken pieces crunched under my shoes as I walked slowly into the room. My eyes drifted to my father, resting his head on his hands as he sat at the dinning table. My mother is stood at the sink, looking aimlessly out of the window.

"What's happened here?" I ask, still staring at the floor. My mother turns to look at me, scoffing in my direction.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" She spoke. Sarcasm filled her words as she stared at me, her gaze intense.

"Well, yeah. That's why I asked you?"

"Would you like to tell her, or should I?" My father muttered under his breath, lifting his head from the table.

"Oh shut up, you should've known it would've happened sooner rather then later." My mother spoke angrily, spitting her words towards my father.

"Don't speak to him like that." I raised my voice.

My mother lent towards me, impacting the back of her hand across my cheek. I yelped in pain. My heads found their way to my cheek, gently touching the now sore skin.

"Don't speak to your mother like that." My mother blurted.

My father lifted himself from the table, standing in between my mother and I. He spun around to me.

"Go get some ice." He ushered, pushing my body to the right to walk around the table. I did as such. I made my way to the fridge, opening the freezer section and taking out an ice pack. I sat down at the table, wincing as I placed the ice pack on my cheek.

"You had no right to hit your daughter. She has caused you no harm. If you should be hitting anyone, it should be yourself. You have brought pain and violence into this family by your stupid and pathetic decisions."

My mother watched as my father spoke. Analysing his words for a moment before trying to decipher a reply.

"I'm not the one who's destroying this family, you're always away working and you're never home!" The slur became present in my mothers voice, like someone who had been drinking.

My mother slammed her fist down in the table where I sat, staring into my eyes. I looked towards her, dead, emotionless eyes starred back at me. I hadn't been home in just under a week but I felt like so much had changed. Mum looked as though she hasn't slept in days, like she had been popping pills to stay away and drinking to ease some sort of pain she was feeling. Dad looked like he was the same, except just as though he hadn't been sleeping. I dropped the ice pack from my face, letting it slip onto the table. I stood from the table, interrupting my mother and fathers staring match.

"What aren't you both telling me?" I asked, still in my place on the other side of the table.

"Your mother cheated on me." My father blurted, slumping hardly onto the chair beside me.

I watched as mums expression faded, her smirked attitude and posture dropped. Mum soon joined us at the table, moving her chair away from dad as she sat down. We sat in silence for a few minutes, swapping awkward glances as we sat.

"Why?" I asked, directing my attention to my mother.

"What do you mean why?" She spat.

"Why the fuck would you do that?" I stared at my mother. Her expression fuelled with anger. She stared at me for a moment before flipping the table to the right, smashing it into the cupboards.

She leaped across and tackled me. The chair underneath me broke, shattering to the floor along with the broken plates and glass. My back clashed with shards of broken glass, protruding through my clothing. My mother began hitting me repeatedly, squishing my body against the glass each time she pressed her fists against my face. I held my hands up in defence to cover my face, the action being useless. I managed to hit her across the face as she took a breathe before hitting me again.

"Get off me!" I yelled. My father yanked back my mother, ripping her body off of mine.

I let out a cough, clearing my throat. A huge wave of pain rushed over me as I pulled by body to a sitting position. I watched aimlessly as my father and mother stood in a screaming match. I stood in my position, my feet just being able to hold my body upright. Pain coursed through my veins and my head began to spin. I left their argument and wandered out of the room, walking down the hallway to the downstairs bathroom.

I shut the door behind me, the wooden frame creating a sound barrier between me and the outside. My face was red with blood as I looked in the mirror, my lip was swollen and busted, my nose looked as though it was broken and my forehead and cheeks both containing large gashes. I looked studying myself in the mirror, my face bloody and bashed. Tears began to trickle down my face as I continued looking at myself. The tears stung at the open wounds. I wiped them away, calming my breathing to normal paced again.

I turned and faces my back towards the large mirror, small shards of glass glistened in the sunlight; which was shining through the open blinds. My back was covered in small shards of broken glass, all stuck into my skin.

I turned away from the mirror closing my eyes for a second, thinking that if I just opened them again this wouldn't all be happening, and for a moment it worked. I smiled at the bathroom door, opening it to head to my room. However, reality set in when the door opened and I could still hear the arguing coming from the kitchen.

I quickly diverted up the stairs as fast as I could, my body aching with each step I ascended up. I reached my room, walking in and shutting the door to the outside world, locking it.

I felt around my pockets for my phone, pulling it out and opening the screen. The screen has became cracked by my fall but the screen was still usual able. I knew who I needed to see. I dialled the number, pressing call and waiting for the other end to pick up.

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ME AND MY FRIEND JUST ENTERED A COMPETITION TO WIN TICKETS TO SEE ONE DIRECTION AND I'VE NEVER BEEN MORE EXCITED IN MY ENTIRE LIFE. They've helped me through the past 5 years and I wouldn't have made it without them. Even if we don't win, we at least gave it a go.