Listen Lucky

32. Ten Minutes

This is Gospel - Panic! At The Disco

***

"Ma Li Li, its wakey wakey time. Rise and shine. Get your butt out of bed," I recognised her voice immediately and I didn't even have to open my eyes to hit her with my pillow.

"Ow!" Willow exclaimed, so I opened my eyes to see the satisfying look of pain on her face. "You are mean in the morning. Is it because you didn't sleep very well? You and Will got back pretty late," she grinned at me suggestively.

"He was helping me ... pass a test," it wasn't technically lie, it just implied we were studying.

"Sure sure," she rolled her eyes. "Either way mom is not happy that you stayed out with a boy so she wants you dressed and downstairs," Willow struggled to hide her amusement.

Once my delightful sister left I dragged myself over to my wardrobe and stared blankly at all of my clothes. In recent times I had been dressing to blend it with all of the other students, which included bright colours and floral patterns. Instead of opting for the pleasing mediocrity, I picked out my favourite Nirvana shirt and ripped black jeans. I couldn't deny that Will's influence was bringing back some of the old me.

I walked down stairs to meet my doom, slightly afraid as my mother has been known to punish pretty harshly in the past.

She was sat at the kitchen table, stirring her coffee with an almost manic calmness. She placed the spoon down when she saw me and forced a completely false smile.

"Good morning Malia, how did you sleep?" She asked calmly.

"Not great, as you know." It's a bit of a silly question to ask someone with severe insomnia. I was very on edge, like she was going to snap at any minute.

"I don't suppose it has anything to do with the fact you were out with Will Memory all night?" She posed it as a question, but I knew it was her way of getting into the subject.

"I was home at ten, on a Friday night. That's not particularly late. Besides, you like Will," I argued.

"That is not the point!" She exclaimed as her anger finally surfaced. I braced myself for the lecture to follow.

"The point is I need to know where you are at all times! It's not because I'm a controlling mother, it's because every time you step out of that house you are in danger. You may take it lightly, but I do not. We agreed that we weren't going to radically change your life because of the possibility that he is still out there, but there still have to be some boundaries Malia! I need to know where you are at all times, and I need to know how long you will be gone and when to expect you home, otherwise how am I supposed to know if something has happened to you?"

"I'm sorry mom, I really am. It's just that when I'm with Will I don't feel constantly on edge like I normally do. I feel safe around him," I told her. It was the truth, somehow Will managed to make me forget my past and the present looming danger.

"My point still stands Malia. You never know what could happen and we have to be cautious. This isn't about Will," she said firmly.

"I'm guessing you've already thought of a punishment?" I sighed.

"Oh no Malia, I'm not going to punish you," for a second I was relieved, until her face contorted into an evil grin. "I'm going to show you what your life will be like if I can't trust you to be cautious," she stood up and walked over to the fridge.

"Here's the shopping list and here are your brothers keys he left here yesterday. First you're going to pick up the shopping for us, and then you're going to drop these keys to your brother down at the station," she placed the list and the keys on the table.