The small house, barely standing on wood legs, smells of sharp paint and weed. Pillows, cushions, everything is pushed into the middle of the living room as my mother's boyfriend, Tony, looks for loose change and his car keys. "Carol, where the fuck did you put them?" He has it in his mind that she had hidden them from him so he would be forced to stay home with her. They had ended the puppy love a couple weeks into meeting each other. I wipe down the windows in the kitchen, a clear view into the living room. I can see his dirty jeans sticking out behind the big pile of furniture. "Carol!" He screams again, and I'm scared the house is going to cave in. She walks into the kitchen, her swollen belly the first thing I see. "Jesus, Tony, I didn't take your damn keys," She digs into the cabinets and pulls out a big bag of potato chips. She rips them open and shoves a handful in her mouth. She sees me watching her and she glares at me. I turn back and try to finish the windows without cowering under her stare. I can see her reflection in the window and watch her pop open a beer and guzzle it. "Babe," Tony swoops in and grabs her hips. She giggles like she's a schoolgirl, and lets him kiss her neck. "So, we're out again," I hear him whisper to her, and she replies, "I know. But he won't give any to me. He knows my game now." "So now what are we gonna do?" His voice quivers; he's getting anxious. I turn around and put the bottle under the sink. I throw the paper towels into the trash and stand up, noticing that both of them are staring at me "Honey," She smiles at me, and my stomach churns. She waddles over to me and squeezes my cheek. "You want to do something for me?" I shake my head, and her smile falls into anger. She pinches harder on my cheek and pulls me closer to her. "Don't give me that. Go to the doctor. Tell him you need a new prescription." She says sharply, her nails digging into my cheek, drawing blood. She releases and huffs away, handing Tony the keys that were on the table. She motions to him and he hands her his wallet. She pulls out a crumpled twenty and throws it at me. "Buy groceries. Don't forget the beer." She walks out of the house with Tony following close behind. I hear the tires squeal on the road as they leave me alone. I put the dollar bill into my pocket and start to clean up the mess Tony had created in the ten minutes that he had been here. A drop of red falls onto the grey carpet, and my hand goes to where she had marked me. I walk calmly to the bathroom and see my reflection in the dusty mirror. Two crescent marks are imprinted into my right cheek, blood dripping down to my chin. I splash water on my face, and my tears mix in with the pink water. I sniff, and just let the tears pour down. They burn my cuts, but I can't stop. My breath starts to break and I fling open the mirror, revealing bottles of pills and makeup, razors, tampons. I find the small baggie of pills I have to take. Zoloft. It's so far into the big mess that they won't look. I swallow two pills and wipe my tears away. I walk out of the bathroom and to the kitchen. I open the fridge, and inspect what we have. A jar of pickles, mustard, a half empty bottle of Vodka, and a carton of eggs. I break out a pad and pencil and start to write down the necessities. I pull on a heavy sweatshirt and start the walk to the nearby Stop and Shop.
"Hey! You dropped this," A box of Lucky Charms is held out to me. "I'm sorry, that's not mine." I mumble, knowing for sure I didn't put that into my cart. "Oh, then never mind." The man says, and I nod, trying to get my way by. "You look oddly familiar. Have we ever met before?" I look up and just see a stranger. "You must have me confused with someone else." I state, and he strokes his stubble. "No, I defiantly know you. I never forget a face." He winks at me when he says that, like it's a big secret. "Come on, give me a hint at least." This grown man pleads to me. I stay silent, hoping he'll just get bored. He snaps his fingers. "Your mom! She's that nurse who got knocked up by one of the patients, right? God, what was her name? She was a looker... You look just like her." My face turns red and I excuse myself by turning my cart around, almost taking his toes with me. I scurry away, the man laughing and still holding the box of cereal. I hide in the alcohol section, the last part I need to get. I find the cheapest beer on the last row in the back, covered by expensive wines. I grab a case and lug it into my cart. "I highly doubt you're twenty one." The man is standing over me, and he has more laughter in his eyes. He was right. They'll never let me buy it. I sigh and he starts to speak. "How about I buy this for you if you tell me your name. Simple as that. I just want to know your name." My mother used to warn me about strangers, but then she turned into one. "Brea." I say, and he beams. "That's a nice name," He says as he grabs the beer out of my carriage. "I'll meet you outside, okay?" He calls over his shoulder as he walks up to the front of the store. I have no choice but to follow him, going to a different register. "Hey, hon, how are ya?" A woman, red hair tumbling down her back, tattoos covering her arms, smiles at me and starts to check out my food. "She raises her pierced eyebrow as I hand her an envelope of coupons. She starts to add those to my total, and says to me, "You seem young to be doing your own shopping." It's a simple statement, but my palms still start to sweat. I don't say anything, and she glances away from the screen to look at me. "Are your parents in the store?" I shake my head, and she frowns. "That's just messed up," She mutters to herself. She says my total and I hand her my money. She places my bags into me cart and tells me to enjoy the rest of my day. I can't get out of there fast enough.
"Here ya go," The man smiles at me and hands me the heavy bag. I can see things I didn't purchase in the bag but I don't have time to question it. I spit out thanks and start to jog to the pharmacy. I place all my bags at the front of the store and start to go up and down the aisles. I don't have any money left, and what I do next is something that makes me get sick. I stand in the hygiene section, looking at all of the tooth pastes and mouthwashes. I grab one of the family sized tubes of toothpaste and slide it up my sleeve. I walk casually to the next aisle and do the same with razors, tooth brushes, and body wash. I get to the corner where there are no cameras and no one to watch. I open my small backpack and slide all of my findings into the pouch. I put the backpack back on my shoulders, push out a smile, and walk to the meds place. "Hello, what can I help you with?" Arleen, the nurse who's always there when I am smiles at me. I hand her the paper with my prescription on it. "Alrighty. Your dose went up on all your meds so do you just want all of the new pills?" I nod and she hands me three bags with medications in them. "Have a great day," She waves me out. When I get home, she's already back, passed out on the couch in her underwear. I walk around her carefully, making sure I don't wake her up again. I put all the food away, putting a beer on the table in front of her. I go to the back of the house to my room, but instead of walking into that door, I walk into the other. The ground has white sheets all over it, the walls still wet with blue paint. A tiny cradle is empty by the bay window, and the changing area is holed up with hand me down stuffed animals. I sit down, leaning against the cradle, and start to sing to the brother I'll have, the brother I'll protect.
YOU ARE READING
Heart Burns
Teen Fiction"Your perspective on life comes from the cage you were held captive in."
