Between the Bars

Chapter 7

       Kora's perspective

             Her voice rang in my ears. I looked at Suzanne, not daring to speak. She ranted on about how horrible of a sister I was. She looked broken and abnormally puffy. Her nose was red and the birthmark on her forehead was making an unattractive appearance. "Garroth wouldn't do this to me. He wouldn't. It was you! It was all you! It always had been!" Suzzane was hysterical. "Who? Wait, how dare you call Kora a B-I-T-C-H?" Mom spelled out the word, as if she was scolding a third grader. My face was warm, I could feel it. "Me? You're lecturing ME?! Do you know what she did, mom?" Before mom answered, Suzanne continued. "She and Garroth had been seeing eachother behind my back. You're such a skank, Kora! You lied to me, you made me look so stupid! I'm used to it anyway!" She ran down our small hallway and slammed the door. Where was she going? Without a car, she couldn't go far. "Kora, what's this all about? Who's "Garroth"? Where does she think she's going?" "I don't know mom." I snapped. It came out harsher than I meant it to, especially since I'm the one at fault. She had met him first, and to be realistic, I didn't like him the way she did. I wanted to keep him away from her, he was too old. He'd get her pregnant and the little strands of hope holding our small, failing, and tired family together would be cut. Before I could apologize or explain, I ran out the door to find Suzzane.

         "SUZZANNE? WHERE ARE YOU?" I helplessly called out to her, yet I knew she wouldn't respond even if she was just sitting in her favorite tree. I looked up the tree, but couldn't find her. Just when I was about to give up, I happened to pass by the car. Suzzane was sitting in there sobbing. I knocked on the window, but she wouldn't unlock it. I slid down the the car door so my back was facing her. "Suzzie, I did it for you. I knew he would hurt you, I didn-" "Shut up. You knew exactly what you were doing. You didn't want him to hurt me? Well he did. And so did you. Why couldn't you be a normal sister and shoo him away if you wanted to keep him away from me so bad? I loved him. I saw him differently than the other people he's been with. I wish you'd understand that, but you dont. Nobody does, and now it doesn't even matter." Everthing was silent for a good three minutes or so, and I kick myself for not feeling bad about this. Suzzane shoves the door open so it lurches me forward. My back is pulsing, but she just walks over me and into the house.

        I have to break things off with Garroth, so I text him. I don't care if it's a shitty way to dump someone. After what I realized what he did, I decided that's how he should be torn off. Look at me, talking as if I were some hero. Who am I to talk like this?

      Fixing things with Suzzie might be hard, but not as hard as finding dad. I guess one step at a time, what's the point if the whole family isn't together, anyway?