Ripped [TO BE PUBLISHED 2016]

5

"You're home early." Cigarette smoke bounces off of the walls towards me. "Don't you still have school or something?" A large pile of unpaid bills lays on the kitchen table beside her.

"No." Monosyllabic words are ideal, always. Especially here. Especially now.

"Whatever," she says, propping her feet up on the table. That's the end of that. I throw my bag on the bottom step. "Remember when you used to be such a good little girl? Did all your homework, never talked back, always had your hair in little bows?" she says nonchalantly.

"That was back when you didn't have to suck guys cocks to pay the rent. Or to not pay the rent, from what I see," I say.

"Can you please just not do this today?" She sighs.

I look at her for a second, really look at her. Her stringy brown hair, her premature wrinkles, her flat brown eyes; stained jeans and a T-shirt three sizes too small. She is nothing. A mere shadow of who she used to be, of who she's supposed to be.

Without saying another word I turn to go up the stairs.