In The End

1: The Eye-rapist

     Since this chapter takes place where she makes a different choice, and so it's going to be a little bit the same.

"That's it," I state.
"What, sweetie?" my mom asks in a raw, raspy voice.
I looked into my mother's eyes and give her my this-isn't-for-bargain-you're-going-to-listen-to-me look. "we're leaving today."

*. *. *. *. *

Mom is yelling at me all the way to my first shift, Hot Topic. I tune her out though, my heart beat ringing through my entire body. What happens now? Sure I grabbed all of my wallets, but all of my clothes and valuables are at Dad's. I know! We'll go back when he isn't home. With no more time to ponder, I walk into the mall, with Mom in tow.
    As we walk into Hot Topic, my mom starts to panic. I face palm myself. I'm such an idiot: I forgot my mother hasn't set foot outside the house in six years. I turn to face her and see her bruised face full of shock, her eyes snapping frantically from side to side, watching for signs of danger.
I quickly hustle her to the dressing rooms and lightly push her inside. "Stay here," I demand softly but firmly. Breathing louder than the store's air conditioners, which due to the store being sort of old, are very loud, she slightly nods her head.
I close the door and trudge over to the checkout counter. I tap on my friend's, Dakota's, shoulder. She turns around and grins brightly at me. Dakota, and her twin, Elijah, are new to town, yet they've already been placed as outcasts.  
    Normal people wouldn't go thirty feet near Dakota, which is mainly the reason that She, Elijah, and I are normally the only people that work this shift.
Dakota is the living definition of beautiful. Her almond shape hazel eyes, which are always lined in thick black eyeliner that wings at the corners, lift at the corners, but not enough to look Asian, though her mom is. Her right eyebrow always has a different piercing in it, and her nose, which is small and narrow, but not pointed, is pierced. Even with the piercing, which she never changes because her gave it to her on our seventeenth birthday last year, the year the twins moved here, her nose looks very elegant. Her lips, which are small but full and plump, are always painted black. Dakota has neon green scene style hair that goes down to her mind back and is dyed black at the ends.
Now I know you're all probably thinking, "Well, Blade, what do you mean our birthday?" Well, Elijah, Dakota, and I all have the same birthday. In fact as luck would have it, Elijah was born at 1:21 p.m., Dakota at 1:22 p.m., and I at 1:23 p.m. on June twentieth. Yeah, I'm the baby, which means I've been teased the most since the moment we all found out.
"Hey, Blade! When we get off, I just put new Famous Last Words merch on the shelf, so let's-- what's wrong?" she asks when she sees my face.
I open my mouth to respond, but am cut off to: "Look at Blade like that again, Pretty boy. I dare you. You'll loose your eyes!" Dakota and I spin around in awe, searching for the boy who spoke. Sure enough, Elijah has a Prep boy pinned to the wall, which has unfortunately knocked off Dakota's newly stocked Famous Last Words merch. Rage was clear in Elijah's eyes.
"Dang it! I just finished that!" Dakota whisper-yells. I look at Dakota and we share a look before turning back to the boy's.
"Elijah!" Dakota and I exclaim, and the boys' heads snap to face us. The Prep boy catches sight of me and smirks, looking me up and down: Eye-raping me. Oh. That's what this is about. Um, no thanks.
I look down and shift from foot to foot, obviously uncomfortable under the creep's gaze. I slowly look up at Elijah to see him watching me worriedly. My gaze snaps from Elijah to the Prep, who's still eye-raping me, before snapping back to Elijah, shivers running down my spine. Elijah glances at the Eye-rapist, who is still pinned to the wall, and catches him red-handed.
He takes in a sharp breath before Pulling Creeper McCreepers off the wall before slamming him back into it.
Right as Elijah's fist flies up, Dakota and I rip him off. "I'm sorry, Sir, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave," Dakota states coldly in the Eye-rapist's direction. He starts to protest, and the limp Elijah, who is currently being held up by Dakota, tenses up and flings himself at the kid again.
I sigh and walk over to the checkout counter, clock in and grab my work badge, slipping it on.
I jog back over to the little scene, that's starting to draw attention, and touch my friend's arm, relaxing him. we aren't super close, but I'm the only one who's talked to them since they moved to LA.
I turn to the kid with hard eyes. "Sir, don't make us call security."
After a few minutes of standing here,
he leaves, muttering, "whatever, stupid idiot." Elijah's super hearing picks up the words and suddenly I'm having to help drag him into the dressing room. Right as we reach the doors, I hear a gasp. I freeze and slowly shut my eyes. Crap! Mom!
I slowly turn to her and walk he out while Dakota locks her brother in the dressing room. I lead mom over to the check out counter and have her sit behind it.
"Blade, who's that?" I freeze at Dakota's question. What do I tell her? Oh, you know: Hm? Who's this? Why, this is my mother, who everyone had thought was dead. Why? Well, you know, because my dad, who's a druggie and an abusive father and husband, doesn't want to go to prison for the rest of his life. Go figure right?
"I-I'll explain later. Can you do me a favor and grab the new sugarpill makeup kit we're selling?" I reach in my pocket, pulling out thirty. Dakota nods hesitantly, and goes off to grab me the kit. Meanwhile, I start to help the customers who've been waiting in line for the past ten minutes.
By the time I've finished, Dakota comes back. "Sorry I took so long, I had to get a kid to stop licking the new Gerard Way Pop! Figurine," Dakota says, and I scrunch up my nose.
As I'm paying for the item, I shake my head and say, "Ew, I hope the little punk is planning on buying that."
"Um, if he isn't, I'm giving it to him for free," Dakota reasons, and I nod in agreement."
I hand Mom the kit, before saying, "Do you think Elijah is calm yet?"
"Can you check while I hold down the fort? I might kill him because I had to restock all of that hard work." This makes me laugh.
I head over to the dressing room, my mother in tow. I knock on the dressing room door and call out, "Elijah, are you ready to come out? we've got--" I pause to look at my mother, who is standing right behind me clinging to the make up box, "-- customers who need the dressing room."
After a few moments, I hear a weak, "Yes." I slowly open the door and motion for my mother to come in behind me. She does as I ask with her head bent down low. On the floor, curled up in a ball, is Elijah. I close the door quickly and rush to my new friend's side. As soon as I kneel down, Elijah engulfs me in a bear hug. All I can do is gently wrap my arms around him and comfort him silently.
After a few moments, he pulls away, rubbing a hand down his face.
"I'm sorry, Blade, but you're too nice to be treated like that, and I just got so mad! You've been nothing but kind to my sister and I, and not because you found out about my parents. You didn't know until later." Elijah and Dakota's Dad died at war, and their mother recently died from Dementia. They moved here a year and a half ago, in the beginning of summer, to live with their Aunt.
"Don't apologize, you didn't do anything wrong. Dakota and I wouldn't have pulled you off of him if you could keep your job after hitting him."
He laughs. "Yeah, thanks for that. I guess you're already kind of like another little sister to me, even though I've own you all of 18 months." I smile and nod, understanding what he means.
We sit in comfortable silence before I say, "well, you better go find your sister, she's pretty pissed that she had to re-shelf all the merch you knocked down." Elijah laughs, but does as he's told, and I lock the door as soon as he's gone.
I turn to Mom, to see that she's beaming at me while saying, "I'm so glad you have friends that care about you so much. Was that one of the Michelson twins you're always telling me about? Wow, they both are so kind to you! Elijah looks similar to that boy you like, the lead singer. Andy, was it?" I blush and nod my head.
   I have to admit: I have a crush on Andy Biersack from Black Veil Brides. I can see where Mom thinks Elijah looks like him: he practically has the same nose, and cheek bone placing that resembles Andy's. His mouth is also close, including the lip ring, even if it is located on the opposite corner of his lip. "Well, he kind of looks like him. Not completely, but if your daughter's obsessed with him, you can see it." my mom babbles with a wink.
   I laugh and shake my head, saying, "You really are something, Mom."

*. *. *. *

"Done!" I exclaim with happiness. I look as my work with eyes full of adoration. All of my mom's facial, neck, and arm bruises are expertly slathered in concealer, and her lips, after being coated in stinging Carmex for five minutes, are painted in dark red lipstick and clear lip gloss. Her eyes are lined with black eyeliner that flows up into a wing at the corner of each socket, and her eyeshadow is a light nude smokey eye. She also has a small amount of blush, but not enough to make people cringe. I quickly pack up the supplies and tell my mom to stay in the dressing room as I walk out of it. Before closing the door, I look my mom up head to toe, analyzing the next step. I shut the door and walk over to the band tees, picking out a Ramones muscle tee before grabbing a red tank top to match. I grab a pair of music clef heart print tights, and blood red shorts from the pants section, and make a U turn for the shoes. I then grab a pair of lace up booty heels, making sure that they're Mom's size, and make my way to the sweaters. I grab a Slytherin sweater and finally head back to the dressing room, so she could try it all on. I close the door, putting the mountain of clothes next to Mom on the bench, and motion for her to change before turning around to give her privacy.

Mom taps me on the shoulder once she's done, making me turn to face her. I look over her and smile, nodding g in approval.
   You're probably thinking, "Ew! She can't dress like that! she's old!" and blah blah blah. Well, here's a fun fact that adds to the many reasons of why I hate my father. When My mom was 13,
my 17-year-old father knocked my mom up. When Mason and I were born, her parents kicked Mom out of their house and my dad, who'd lived in his own apartment, had allowed her to live with him.
   According to my mom, Daddy dearest used to be a saint: he would cry if he killed a fly. Literally. He'd been really sweet and caring. Anyway, my dad finished high school and went on to college, while my mom finished her last year in junior high and advanced on to high school. Throughout the years, Mom said Dad began to change. He became colder, but never laid a hand on her.
   After high school, Mom got a job at Spencer's, and my father became a lawyer. By that time, the beatings on my mother had started. She was 26, and Mason and I were thirteen, in our last year of middle school, because we skipped Kindergarten.
   I remember walking in on them once. Dad came home and stormed onto Mom and his' room. He started yelling, and Mason and I shared a look. Believe it or not, Mason used to actually love me. He used to be my older twin brother,, but then he'd changed. Anyway, I'd heard Mom scream and I'd made beeline towards their room. I'd burst through the door just in time to see my dad punch Mom across the face. I'd let out a blood-curling scream and both of their heads had snapped towards me. That was the day my father had started hitting me.
   Now my mom is 31, not even mid thirties. She's pretty young, and is still in the grunge age. I shake my thoughts away and grab my mom's hands leading her out of the dressing room after throwing her old clothes in my beach bag I had retrieved earlier. I drop her hand to put my bag bag in the employee room and walk over to the checkout counter. I grab the portable bar scanner and motion for my mom to come here, which she hesitantly does. I scan the tags on her clothes, ripping them off after I scan them, before walking around the counter and disposing of the tags. I walk over to the computer that holds the balance for Mom's new clothing and quickly type in my employee discount, making the total come out to be $103.86. I open one of the many wallets, the one that was in my back pocket, and pull out two hundred, and type the amount it to open the cash drawer. I take my change from the register and stuff it into my wallet before putting the piece of BVB merch back into my Jean pocket. I walk back around to my mother with a smile.
"Okay, I only have a few more minutes until my shift is over. Why don't you go look around? Maybe you'll find something you like." Mom nods, and goes off into the abyss. Just kidding, she really just walked over to the jeans. With that, I slide back into the employees only counter, and help the customers.

Hey guys! So chapter 1!! There are a few differences, and not just choices Blade makes. I decided to just start from the beginning again. Seemed right.
Okay guys! See you next update! Byes!!