Secondhand Life

Chapter 29, Section Two.

Maria's P.O.V.

I picked up my bruised body and wiped blood off of my face. Ash just kicked me out of her room, and now I didn't know what to do. I would feel awkward to sleep in the guest bedroom they let me use for years because Ash, the one I was living here for now hated me. I was covered in blood, upset, and angry at myself for doing this to Ash because I love her. 

I walked to my car and drove to Isa's house. I knew it was stupid but I had no where else to go besides college, and I'm sure Ellis would tell some people I was a lesbian, I just wasn't ready to deal with that right now. I drove silently down the quiet four in the morning roads that were dead quiet. The only people who were awake this early were the kids who had minds that couldn't rest, and for this point in my life, I was one of them.

I got out of my car reaching the destination to Isa's house and knocked on the door waiting for her to answer. Isa answered the door in pajamas with long flowing dark brown hair and wide green eyes as she saw my appearance. 

"What in the world..." Isa lost her train of thought. "Come inside, we can talk about what happened and get you cleaned up before you start bleeding more." 

"Thank you." I said walking into the small townhouse that Ash used to live in. Isa tried to direct me to the bathroom to wash the blood off of my body, but of course I already knew where it was.

"Here." She said giving me a wash cloth for my face. "Now tell me what happened?" 

"Well, I arrived in Ash's house by sneaking through the broken back door and walked into her room quietly to make things up to her, but when I walked in the room I saw her wearing my sweater, along with listening to music that we listened to on our one year anniversary, and she was sorting through pictures that we had taken together for the last couple years. I hugged her from behind, and told her I was sorry, I told her I dated Ellis because I felt bad for him and that I didn't really love him, which only made her more mad. I kissed her without her permission. She told me she hated me and I laughed because I thought she was kidding, but then she punched me in the face and I knew then that she wasn't joking. I told her she was hurting me but she said she didn't care. I told her to stop and she said no. Eventually she took so many hits to my body that I ended up like this." I winced in pain as I cleaned my body with the wash cloth.

"She really took that seriously didn't she?" Isa said wrapping her arms into a fold by her stomach.

"What do you mean?" I asked her.

Isa took a deep breath and sighed. She looked sad and upset, even though, this relationship had nothing to do with her. "Ash really took that relationship seriously, meanwhile, you took it for granted." Isa said looking at me.  

Reality struck me as she was right. I washed out the cloth and put in in the laundry bin and walked into her kitchen with her. She opened the fridge and got out yogurt and fruit to prepare a fruit parfait. 

"You want one?" Isa asked me.

"Sure, thank you." I said taking in the sight around me. I remember spending times in this house with Ash and the fun we had. This place had multiple bedrooms and was fairly expensive. I remember her parents got jobs right away in order to afford this place. I wonder what Isa's parents did.

"How did you and your parents afford this place?" I asked sitting on a stool besides the counter where Isa was making food.

Isa stopped in her tracks and smiled at the counter. "I don't have parents." She said dropping her gaze.

"What do you mean?" I asked confused. "Aren't you around Ash's age?" 

Isa laughed and took a breath while she continued slicing strawberries. "Yes, I am seventeen. But my parents dropped me off at a foster home when I was ten." She said. "We moved to America for a better life, but that only made us more poor. They both had low paying jobs and couldn't afford to keep me. They said when I was fifteen they would come back to get me, but after my sixteenth birthday rolled around and they still didn't come. I knew they forgot about me. So, I went to court to become an emancipated minor and sent the papers to my parents address. My mom signed the papers and sent them back to me, so I guess they just didn't want to come back to get me but they still lived in the same apartment. I was devastated, but I got two jobs and worked seven days a week to get this nice place to prove that me as one person can do better than both of them had done in years." She smiled as she was proud of herself, I'd be proud of myself too if I was able to do what she did.

"That's amazing." I remarked watching her expression not change. She didn't seem sad or upset about her parents basically leaving and lying to her. Isa carried on pouring yogurt, blueberries and strawberries into two separate bowls for us, it seemed like the strangest thing to me how she seemed completely content with her life without any adult figure in it. I guess her and I weren't much different. I technically had parents, but haven't spoken with them since I was sixteen. I haven't gotten a call from them in over three years and to this day, I don't even know if they still live in the same place, or if they moved. It hurts that they hate me, but I can't change who I am.

"So, you're going to go back to college soon?" Isa asked me.

"I mean yeah, I have to. I'm taking out loans from the bank now, and I'm in serious debt so I need to get a good job. I started college a year late and still need to figure out my major." I really had no idea what I was supposed to do with my life. I didn't want some boring high paying job, I wanted something I actually liked.

"Are you sure you want to leave this town with Ash like this?" She looked at my face for my response. 

I thought about it, and honestly, I didn't know what I should do. Or even what I could do since she kicked me out. "How do I leave, but also how do I talk to her when she won't let me?" I asked Isa out loud.

"Make it up to her. Just make sure you do it in time, before someone takes that sweet girl away from you." She winked and I knew I was in trouble.