Behind Closed Doors: My Life As Ke'Ladriah Wallace

16.

I walk down aisles looking for stuff that we really need. I put more and more stuff in the buggy as I walk around the store with my sister in it. I couldn't possibly steal a buggy full of food but I could steal a food stamp card I found in my house. "We need ice cream, and snacks too!" I laughed at Trenton and shook my head no. "Boy who you think gonna walk home with ice cream? It's going to melt!" He laughed at me and we kept walking. We crashed into a cart. "Hey watch where you're-" I looked up and seen Ms. Crenshaw. "Are you following me?" I asked. "No, but I could ask you the same thing miss Wallace." I huffed and walked away. "That's that white lady KeKe. The one that came to our house that time." I nodded still not talking. I paid for the groceries and we went home.

Later that night I decided to cook us something to eat.They came in drunk again and began yelling at us. "Hey what did you do to my food stamps stupid little girl!" I ignored her but she kept asking. "I spent them on food!" She laughed at me hysterically and came and grabbed my throat. "I told you before not to touch my stuff!" She started to grip my throat and I kicked at her. "What do you want us to do!? Starve!?" She laughed at me. "I could care less what you do. Ive got Que and he's all I need! I don't need you. Nobody does." Right then I wish she would've kept choking me. I grabbed my jacket and left. I didn't take my brother and sister this time. Nobody needs me. I ran about four blocks before stopping and thinking. Where am I going? I reached my hands in my pocket as I walked and felt something. It was paper. I was about to toss it but I opened it. I had this card in my pocket a long time. I walked to the address and knocked on the door. "Hello? Ke'Ladriah! What are you doing here at this time of the night!" I hugged her. I can't believe it but I hugged her. "They told me they don't need me. She said nobody did!" She instantly knew who I was talking about. "Ke'Ladriah come in sweetheart." I sat and talked to her for a while before she took me home. I told her about my struggle and she said she would try to help. Even though I told her not to she said she would. She gave me a emergency phone and told me to call her if anything happened. If only she knew that she was telling me to always call her she wouldn't have gave that phone to me. I got out of the car with her and she walked me up and when I walked in my brother was crying. Badly and my sister was too. "KeKe!" He ran to me with his arms out and tears streaming down his face. "They whooped me after you left." I looked at him and he had bad bruising on his legs and arms. "Oh my Gosh! Ke'Ladriah how long has this been going on!" was all that Ms. Crenshaw could say. She knew we were getting beat she just ain't know how bad we were getting beat.