The Captains

Prologue

She paced back and forth in the comfort of her room in the suburbs of Pittsburgh. This day felt darker and worse than usual. Feeling the anxiety build up fighting to breathe through tears. Just when thought she gathered herself her twelve year old little sister ran into her room crying. A sight she hated to see, but in the last few months she witnessed often. She picked her young sister up comforting her at least attempting to. After brushing the brown hair out of her sister's face she told her sister not to move even though she was still sobbing.

She opened the bedroom door,closing it behind her as she headed for the staircase. Hearing words and arguments being exchanged from the living room below.

"I'm sick of this Robert. I'm done,we're through. I'm taking the girls and we're leaving. Now today. We aren't coming back, not crawling back this time." Kelly yelled at her husband

"Kel come on. We can work this out, like we always do."Robert said trying to make his irritated wife stay

Kelly felt her blood boil "That's the problem! We shouldn't always be working this stupid shit out. I'm leaving you,we're leaving you. For good this time."

Just then Kelly felt a sting on her cheek knowing this was the last straw. Her eldest daughter started crying again once she heard the noise echo through the house. Kelly's oldest daughter running back to her room where her younger sister was.

"Listen Amelia. Go get the big suitcase out of your closet and put all your favorite clothes and things in there."She said to her sister knowing what was going to happen

"But but why?"Amelia asked innocently through her tears

The older sister sighed "Listen Milly just do it. I promise Amelia."

Amelia listened to her older sister and ran across the hall to her room doing what her older sister just instructed her to do. Kelly walked into her oldest daughter's room looking into her eyes that were red from crying.

"We're leaving for good. We're going far away from here. I'm going to book a hotel far away."She said standing in the doorway

"For good?"She asked wiping her tears

Kelly nodded "I'm not putting my daughters in a toxic environment anymore and to be quite honest I feel it's time for a new start."

She nodded understanding what her mother was saying, ignoring the hand mark on her cheek. "What do I bring?"

"Clothes. All of them or the ones that fit. I have enough put aside to buy us a house, some new furniture, and some new clothes. I'll explain later we just got to get out of here. I'm going to pack too. I'm guessing you told Amelia?"

She nodded as she walked to her closet throwing clothes in there even dirty ones.

"I'm so sorry I did this to you. I'm so sorry."Her mother said before she left before she went to pack her own things

She fought through the tears. She didn't care she wasn't going to see her dad, to be honest she was happy. It was the fact she had to leave cheer that was her escaped for the last ten years of her life when things weren't right. All her coaches told her she had a super high chance of getting a scholarship with cheer that she knew she wanted so badly.

After emptying all the drawers full of clothes and shoes into three different bags, she took a glance around her room. Leaving a bed and some other things that seemed almost worthless now. She shut her closet shut dragging her bags to her sister's room. Amelia had three bags as while. One of them was a huge duffel bag filled completely with stuffed animals and shoes.

"Come on Milly. We're going to the car."She said grabbing a heavy bag her sister couldn't carry

As her sister and her reached the bottom of the stairs, she grabbed her mom's key's to her car. After unlocking the doors to my mom's SUV. She placed the bags in the trunks and helped her younger sister calm down. She then realized she forgot an important jar in her room. She promised her sister she would be right back and darted into the house. After reaching at the very top of her closet she grabbed the jar full of money. A jar that contained almost $10,000 dollars for a car of her own after saving since she was fourteen years old. She threw the jar in an old purse that hung from her closet door handle. When she walked out her room she met her mom at the bottom of the stairs.

"I'm so sorry forgive me Kelly. Don't take the girls,don't leave." Robert pleaded

"You lead yourself to this!"Kelly cried carrying her bags

"Sweetie tell her you don't want to leave."Robert said looking at his oldest daughter that looked equally like both of her parents. She had long blonde hair that she gotten from her dad and blue eyes from her mom.

"I-I can't say that."She said shaking her head "I'm so sick of you hurting us. I'm so so so done. You said you would stop it, but you didn't. You don't love us,simple as that."

"Baby don't say that."Robert said walking towards his older daughter as she walked back away from him

"Don't you've had way too many chances. We're leaving." My mom said defending me

"Sweetie just give me one more hug."Robert said opening his arms walking to her, but yet again she dodged him "Penny please."

Kelly instantly took her daughter by the wrist pulling her away "Don't touch Aspen. Goodbye Robert"

"Penny just take this letter. Read it when you're ready. I'll mail you more."Robert said taking a white even-lope out of his back pocket handing it to his daughter

Aspen took the letter without a word crumbling it into her bag. Kelly and Aspen walked through the front doors. Throwing Kelly's bags into trunk along with the purse full of Aspen's savings. They drove away from their Pittsburgh house for the last time with Robert slamming the door shut not even coming after them.

In that moment Aspen decided she could never trust anyone again especially a boy. Aspen thought about all those years of promises that her dad said, but she began to wonder if they were true. Like the ones he said he'd never let harm come her way. But he caused the harm. The pain that would cause her to be broken to be afraid to let somebody love her again. She would never be able to let go of all the pain he caused her. As they drove into the distance Aspen prayed for a better start and she prayed that she'd never get too close to anyone again.