Broken Clocks

Go! Part 2

(3)

I realized that I was crying. "Damn it George why are you crying? You don't deserve to cry," I said to myself.

Ever deeply sighed as she layed there. I slipped out of the room to make sure I wouldn't wake her up. She needed her sleep, she needed something she could rely on that brought her some peace, and right now the thing was sleep. In the hall I leaned back against the wall by Ever's door. I didn't want to move from that spot, I wanted to stay there and make sure that no one could go in to hurt her. But if dinner wasn't done before father got home I would be in for it. The thought of my father outraged me. The thought of how I would have to act like I was clueless. Like I didn't know a thing, I would have to play along with a terrible man's game. While he's probably out enjoying a drink Ever is in her room sleeping away all the pain he caused! I've always hated playing life's little games, the games everyone at some point plays. It's the game of pretending everything is fine even if you're whole life may be falling apart. It's the game of you know that there's something bad going on but don't speak up for it because you know it will only make things worse. When you speak up especially against the game maker himself that is when you lose, that is when you're thrown off the board and you shatter into a million little pieces as you hit the floor. So you have to be careful and aware before you act, because in these games no one knows the end, not even the game maker.

I slowly walk down the dusty worn staircase and into the dull kitchen. The whole downstairs was like a huge loft. There wasn't any doors just huge gapes in the walls for the rooms that had walls anyway. Downstairs there was the study, the kitchen, and dining room. Also the living room which is where everyone would stand around laughing and shouting if father were to invite his version of friends over. He didn't really have friends, business partners you could call then perhaps. These are people he keeps connected with so on a rainy day he can take advantage of them by conning them out of their money, or what he likes to tell them 'making an investment'. Because that's all that matters in his world. In his screwed up mind he thinks friendship leads to weakness and we can't have that now can we.

All the walls throughout the house there a bland beige except in Ever's room of course. In the kitchen there's a fridge, oven, some cabinets, and a sink. I walked over to the oven and turned it on so it would start heating. It would take at least 20 minutes to heat so until then I would clean house and maybe read. I have to dust the bookshelf in the living room and sweep the floors. Then after the floors are swept they need to be mopped. I need to do all of this plus dinner before father gets home. He would be outraged to see me, a man, doing what he say to be 'women's work.' So I guess it's good he's out drinking and things after all. But I don't understand why women are supposedly made to stay home, clean, cook, and do whatever else to keep themselves busy while the men are out and about working and that's supposed to be there life. It's an asinine belief that most have become accustomed to. And on top of all of this women aren't made to be educated either? And our father agrees with all these statements.

I walked to the living room and opened the closet that was both the were cleaning supplies were kept and coat closet. I grabbed all the things I needed from the small wooden box carved into the wall and started cleaning. First I dusted the huge bookshelf that I needed a ladder for to dust the top. The wood was dark and smooth, it had huge glass doors with round gold handles holding back maybe a dozen messy rows of books. As I dusted it I could see the little hair like objects fly off the top of the bookshelf and dance in the sun beams coming in from the window. This house is so big, so full with things most could only dream of having. We didn't deserve any of it. The only reason we have all this money is because our father inherited four railroads from his grandfather when he passed. That is the only reason, because our father becomes rich working others to death and giving his workers absurdly small pay just like his grandfather. He even had this house built. He knocked down a small house that once stood here and built this one because he was far to good to slope down to anyone else's level and live in a normal sized home.