Lilly

Chapter 2

Fourth Grade

Momma promised to buy me clothes for school, but I know she won't. She yelled at me for asking, and she didn't get me school stuff either. My old clothes don't fit, and they have holes and stuff. She's not buying much food anymore, so I stole money from her. I feel bad, but I need food. Am I horrible to steal from my momma?

"Momma, I'm going to school," Lilly called out. She knew her mom didn't hear, though. She was out cold. Her and her latest boyfriend stayed up late, and made lots of noise, which kept her up. She didn't know what it was they did, and she didn't want to.

A bowl of cereal was all she had for breakfast before she left. Hunger pains would attack well before lunch, but there wasn't much else to eat. She was lucky there was milk for the cereal.

Lilly walked to school, with her iPod going and the earbuds planted in her ears, humming along with the music while she walked. With an unexpected lurch forward, she almost dropped it. The shove annoyed her, until she saw her best friend.

"What'd you do that for?"

"You looked like you needed to be woken up." Sarah then gave her trademark sadistic smile.

"It's only the first day of school, and I'm already tired."

"Why're you so tired?"

"Momma and her new boyfriend made noise all night long."

"Eww," Sarah mouthed. "Lilly, I hate to tell you this, but your pants are a little short, and I don't think they're supposed to be." Lilly had hoped it didn't look as bad as she thought, but Sarah had dispelled that, first thing.

"Momma didn't take me to get new clothes yet, and I guess I grew some. We'll go this weekend."

"You don't sound like you believe it."

"Since she dated Randy, she stopped buying much food, and she doesn't seem to care about buying me school clothes, or supplies."

"She's not dating Randy anymore?"

"No, she's dating Matt now, but he's a lot like Randy was, and all of her other boyfriends."

"Do you have stuff?" Sarah ignored the mention of other boyfriends, which made Lilly happy. She shouldn't have said it in the first place, but her fatigue made her mind sluggish.

"Yeah. I don't like it, but I stole money from her purse to get school supplies," she told Sarah, but neglected to tell her she didn't have everything she needed.

"What's up with your mom?"

"I don't know, but since she dated Randy, it's like I'm the grownup, and she's the kid. Maybe it's the medicine she started taking when she was dating Randy."

"What kind of medicine is she taking?"

"I don't know, but she takes shots all the time and she's very sleepy and weird when she does."

"Maybe she'll get better soon." Sarah's meant to reassure Lilly, but Lilly could tell she didn't believe it.

When the weekend arrived, she went to her mother's room, and knocked. As usual, there was no reply.

"Momma, when are we going to get school clothes?" Lilly asked, raising her voice so her momma would hear.

"Ye ungrateful wee mink," her mother said, opening the door.

"Momma, you promised!"

"Ye dornt appreciate anythin'. Ah born ye an' buy scran fur ye, an' thes is whit Ah gie!" Her mother's brogue was thicker than usual.