Heredity

Chapter 1

Sophie crept across the wet grass feeling the dew-soaked blades poke between her toes. When she made it to the window she held tight to the wooden casing and placed her hot cheek against the cool glass. "Shhhh. Shut up!" She whispered before remembering she was all alone.

She giggled at her lapse in sanity and her breath made small foggy circles on the glass which only hindered her effort to see inside. With a large swipe of her hand, she rubbed the condensation away and squinted. Inside, the house looked still. Someone, presumably her mother, had left a corner lamp on and the room had a soft yellow glow. The coast looked clear. It was now or never.

It took two wobbly tries and a death grip on the cool porch handrail, but she finally made it to the door. Fishing around in her pocket produced her house key and after only a few stabs in the vicinity, she finally felt it sink into the keyhole. "Yessss!" She raised her hand in victory before remembering she was supposed to be sneaking.

Her fingers clenched the doorknob and she used her weight to push the against heavy door.  In her current state, she'd forgotten to let go and felt herself swing into the room. Planting her feet heavily to compensate the sway she steadied herself, proud she hadn't made any noise.

With the ninja-like stealth of a drunk panther, she made it to the stairway trying to give herself the courage to climb. She glanced toward the couch, it's large puffy cushions almost willing her to flop there and sleep. "Noopee" She slurred. "I am going upstairs. I am not getting up at the butt crack of dawn to hear a lecture on how I'm wasting my life." With her decision made she lifted her left foot and placed it carefully on the edge of the step closest to the wall to avoid the center that squeaked like a circus seal.

Her wet feet slid across the smooth hardwood and the tilting forced her shoulder painfully into the wall which seemed to be in motion like a funhouse tunnel. "Shit. Nice going, Sophie." She whispered. The room fell back in line and she counted to ten before making another attempt to climb. She was late and semi-drunk, but it wasn't her fault. She blamed the tumbler of Red Bull and vodka that seemed to magically refill itself every time she turned around.

Her hand gripped the stair rail and she veered her footing wide to avoid the squeakiest board of all, step six. It was a trap she was sure her parents had purposely placed for this moment. Her toes missed the edge and her left ankle twisted hard to the side. Trying to save her balance she overcompensated and hit the handrail with her right hip resulting in her bouncing backwards down the stairs.

The thump of her landing was silent enough. That is, until the jarring of her bones knocked the keys from her grip and sent them clattering across the ceramic floor. From upstairs in her parent's room, noise exploded. Her mother's guard dog extraordinaire, Pinkie the toy poodle, began setting off her infamous shrill bark. It's pitch loud enough to alert everyone from the elderly to the dogs on Main Street that someone was intruding.

"Shit" she yelled as she whacked her head against the floor and then pulled herself back to a semi standing position. She raced to get back up the stairs not caring at this point about the noise and making sure to shush and scream expletives at the four legged nark.

When she reached the top of the stairway happy at her ability to scale steps despite gravity and the room working against her, she found the victory short lived. There, smack in the center of the hallway stood her mother. Curlers strategically placed around her head like a grotesque crown; her hands firmly planted on her hips and a facial expression mimicking a bear being woken from hibernation too soon.

"Are you aware of the time young lady?" Her mother rumbled while maintaining the stance of a first string linebacker and preventing Sophie from crossing the hallway to her room.

"Yesss mother. I'm not an idiot. I can tell time. I'm a little late." She leaned her wobbly body to the side using the wall for support. Now was not the time to sway. "Maybe," she hissed. "if you hadn't taken my phone away I could have called to let you know! Instead, I got ditched at a party and had to catch a ride home with a potential serial killer. And that—- was my best option. Thanks for coming through again Mrs. PTA chairwoman." She glared smugly waiting for a reaction.

Her mother raised her hand instinctively. Palm facing out and her expression a mask of rage. Sophie was ready for it. She leaned the entire weight of her body on her wall supported shoulder and lifted her chin to welcome it.

Instead, her Mother's arm floated in back down to her side and her expression slid back into neutral so quick that Sophie had to blink to make sure she wasn't seeing things. She stared at her mother feeling the tiniest joy at getting a reaction and smiled.

Her mother closed the space between them with two quick steps and leaned in close. Sophie clenched her fists to keep herself steady and waited. She cringed as her mother crinkled her nose with disgust sniffing the air around Sophie like an animal.

"Have you been drinking?" She snarled. The bottom of her left eye twitching from rage. "God Sophia, you are two hours past curfew and you've been drinking? Do you have any idea what you are putting your father and I through? You are sixteen years old! What will the neighbors say? Stumbling home drunk in the middle of the night. This is the last straw!"

Sophie stayed silent letting her mother get it all out so she could finally get to her bed. The rant continued, streams of words blowing hot puffs across her cheeks in toothpaste scented waves.

"Your free loading days are over. Starting tomorrow you will get a job and start making something of your summer. No job means no new clothes. No spending cash, no driving, and no phone privileges. We will not support you when you make these kinds of horrible choices."

Her mother took a step back and Sophie blew out the breath she'd been holding only to be assaulted by more shrill words. "It's time to grow up and realize that this family has a reputation to uphold in this community and you..." She spewed, wagging a finger in Sophie's face. "are dragging it through the mud!"

Sophie rolled her eyes and swaggered to her bedroom slamming the door behind her. Without the energy or balance to do anything else, she threw herself down on her bed and the layer of leftover clothes on top of it.

"I am so sick of all of this!" She shouted, knowing the words would go unheard. Her head swam and the silence banged against her ears. She hated this new life. Curfews, micromanaging and nagging were at an all time high.

She closed her eyes and put her foot on the wall to slow the spinning room. Tomorrow she would look for a job. Not because her mom was being a bitch, but because she wanted enough cash to ride off into the sunset and never look back. She wanted to go back home.

What felt like just minutes later Sophie was ripped from sleep by blinding light as her mother pulled back the curtains muttering under her breath about the state of Sophie's messy room. Covering her pounding head with the blanket to avoid the glaring sun, Sophie growled.

"You're in luck Sophia." Her mother announced in a too chipper sing-song voice. "Kelly Strogolian's regular sitter broke her leg yesterday. She needs someone full time for the rest of the Summer. You start tonight at seven. Four nights a week, a single child and a pool. You hit the jackpot."

Sophie groaned loudly. "That kid is a freak mom. I'm not doing it. I'll get a job, but not that one. That whole family gives me the creeps. And who needs a nighttime babysitter? No."

Her mother placed her face just above Sophie's and ripped down the blanket. They were so close Sophie could see her mother's temple pulsating.

"You will get out of bed, wash the smell of drunken stupor off, put on something that doesn't look like you're a groupie for the grim reaper, and be the best damn babysitter that Charlie Strogolian has ever had. Because if you don't, you are moving to Nevada with your uncle Neal."

Sophie threw her head back and laughed. "You wouldn't dare!"

Her mother pulled an envelope out of her pocket and shook it above Sophie's face before tossing it on the corner of the dresser. She practically skipped back to the door and sweetly blew Sophie a kiss before softly closing it.

Sophie stormed out of bed and grabbed the mysterious envelope to find it contained a one-way plane ticket to Nevada. "Bitch!" She screamed throwing the envelope across the room.