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Chapter 2 Melancholic Mondays

Monday Morning.

"Pepper! Darling, come down for breakfast!"

I stood in the middle of my room.

White.

Just how I like it.

Blank.

Like how I was feeling.

With a few black accents.
My bed and bookshelf.

Cold and minimal.

Like my parents' hatred for each other and the number of times they spent time with me.

Behind me, my dog, Bunny, an English bulldog - my constant and loyal companion through everything, sat patiently at the foot of my bed looking at me like I was the most interesting thing the world.

But that's how most of the people look at me now.

Interesting.

The girl with the broken family.

They treat me like I was very fragile. And that being friends with me would bring them bad luck too.

Pathetic.

I try my best to ignore them. They just don't understand what it feels like to be me.

I've always been a good girl. So why us?

I took one final breath and walked back towards my bed to pick Bunny up.
Turning my doorknob, I counted to 3 before I walked down the carpeted stairs to join my Mother for breakfast.

You must know, I love my Mother more than anything. But ever since the divorce, she turned into this neurotic, too chirpy super-Mom who is always there, but never really there for you.

To be honest, I would've preferred if she even cried, even just for a day.
I wanted to feel that I wasn't really alone in this right?

I wanted to know that she had my back, emotionally too.

But she'd rather have me "toughen up" and "be a big girl" cause apparently "its just you and me now".
She definitely didn't say "us". Just "you" and "me" two separate words.

In separate worlds.

It's either that, or I'm reading too much into it.

I finally spot her, heart monitor still attached to her arm, in front of the TV drinking her protein shake while watching the news, with her left ear on her mobile phone.

"Yes, just put the report on my desk...I'll take care of it as soon as- Oh hey sweetie!" She waved me over and placed a kiss on my hair. "Go get some breakfast darling." Ushering me to the breakfast bar.
"Yes, yes, I know but..."

Drowning her business chatter with my iPod, I proceeded on eating my daily dose of eggs, bacon and toasts to the tune of my feel good indie rock playlist.

And of course, coffee.
I feel the renewing jolt of energy as I devour the black liquid to the drop.

I look up at my Mom's approaching figure and pull out my earphones as she did this thing with her fingers miming - pulling something off her ears.

"Hey darling! Had a great night's sleep?" She asked, gulping down the last of her shake.

"Yes, Mom. I did. It was rather windy last night, so I had a lot of fresh air coming in my room.
Speaking of which, I was thinking of taking a stroll tonight, if I may? It seems like a good night to-

...Mom?"

I looked over at my Mom only to find her tapping on her phone, already uninterested in what I was saying.
As if sensing me staring at her, she suddenly snapped back up, smiling?