Mental

Being home - ch 1

When we got to the house it looked a lot different. Instead of the siding being its dull white like it was 6 years ago, it's now a pretty light blue color, the new glass door open with Ian standing in the doorway.

"I got into gardening." Mom said as she pulled into the driveway. I could tell. The path leading up to the house was lined with beautifully colored flowers and there was a tree to the left with pink flowers blooming from it.

"The house looks really lovely." I smiled, reaching into the back and grabbing my bag. It's amazing how much everything has changed in the last 6 years and how much I wasn't apart of it.

As soon as I slammed the door shut, the door to the house was opened and Ian was flying down the stairs barreling toward me. "Madeline!" He grinned jumping up on me and wrapping his legs around my waist. "I missed you!"

"I missed you too bub." I mumbled squeezing him tightly. "You've got to catch me up on everything."

"I will!" I put him down and he pulled my hand, tugging me after him. "I have to show you something." I followed him into the house and it looked completely different, oh my god. The walls were now tan and no longer that disgusting green color. There was all new nice furniture and pictures hung up on the walls. It looked like a house people would live in.... it sure as hell didn't before.

I ran up the stairs behind him looking at everything and how different and pretty it was. When we got to the end of the hall we went up the stairs to the attic where my room was. It wasn't really an attic, it was fixed up well enough for someone to live in but from what I remember it still wasn't great. "Okay me and mom did something for you." He smiled widely, his missing teeth showing.

I nodded and walked up the stairs.... my room. The orange matted carpet was now replaced by nice hardwood floors and my frail bed frame was gone and had a nice new bed in it's place with one of those canopys over it like I had always wanted.

"Do you like it?" I heard my moms voice ask from behind me. I turned around and nodded, hugging her. "I'm glad, it took a while. Ian picked out the color. I wanted to do pink but he said you would much rather like 'lavender.'" My mom laughed and Ian nodded proudly from next to her.

"And look at this!" He walked over to the window and opened up the little chest that was under it that was now a bay window seat. He pulled out a record player. As I walked over I looked and all my records were stacked neatly inside the little chest.

"Wow." I whispered taking it from him and placing it on the desk. It was gorgeous and I couldn't wait to use it. After a few minutes of exploring my newly decorated room mom left to go start dinner. "So where is Cameron?" I asked putting my bag down on the bed.

"Oh he never leaves his room but sometimes he plays soccer with me when I ask."' Ian grinned sitting on the bed beside me. Cameron was our older brother, only by a year for me. He was 17 now so it doesn't surprise me when Ian says he never leaves his room. He lived with my dad for a while and only came back to live with mom a month before I left so we weren't too close.

Mom and Dad split up right after Ian was born when I was 8 and Cameron was 9. Cameron went with Dad and mom got me and Ian. Then a year later she met Marvin and that's when I started going downhill and left for Long Branch.
Marvin and her got married a few months before I had left and he filled the douchbag step dad role just fine.

Ian told me about everything that happened while I was gone and all the school drama that happens in 3rd grade.

Mom rarely brought the boys to visit me. On holidays and some birthdays they came to see me but besides that we mostly just sent letters to each other. Ian would send me pictures he'd drawn and I'd send him back funny comics I'd make.