Duet • t.m [personal] (completed)

Chapter 12

Once again, I was out of the hospital, it was currently June 23, my sister's birthday. She was eleven today. Since we all lived with our dad now, I could wish her happy birthday when I reach home from walking...

They gave me some pain killers for all the pain throughout my body. They didn't see the bruises on my arms, sadly.

After I was out of the hospital, I started walking down the edge of the highway. I realized that there are many people I could pull over and I could tell them about the abuse. So, I put my hands up in the air, and wave them. I started jumping and yelling.

Finally, someone pulled over. This was my chance. . ! A girl about twenty years old was in the driver's seat.

"Something wrong?" she asked.

"My sexually abusive dad made me walk home from the hospital, I cannot take it anymore!" I said as I began to cry. She came out of her car and hugged me. She put me into the passenger seat.

"Well, I'm Karen. I am an employee for an orphanage," she said once she was in the driver's seat. "I could register you up and have you adopted in no time," she said as she began to drive.

"Please?" I asked her.

"Sure," she said. Then after a long pause, she spoke up, "what's your name by the way?"

"Joy Zitney," I said with a slight smile. She looked at me funny.

"You sound familiar," Karen said.

"Do you have kids?" I question.

"Yeah, a daughter," she replied.

"Does she like Before You Exit?" I ask.

"Yes actually," Karen answered.

"Well, she must've told you about me. I used to be Toby's girlfriend. I broke up with him because I couldn't take the distance anymore," I inform her.

"Oh yeah! That's right," Karen said.

"Yeah. Do you have a husband?" I say, trying to make a conversation.

"Yep. We've been together for ten years, our daughter is nine. She's the cutest little thing in the world," Karen said. "What about you? Got any siblings?" Karen asked. "Two younger sisters actually, but I'm the only one who gets the sexually abused. My mom -before she went to jail- physically abused me," I said slowly.

"Oh dear," Karen said sadly.

"Not to be selfish or anything, but I probably have the hardest life," I huffed.

"It's understandable, being sexually and physically abused is hard," Karen explained to me. "True," I sigh. I press my head up against the window.

"Joy... beautiful Joy," Karen whispers before clearing her throat. "You'll love it at the orphanage," Karen ended. I look over to her with a toothless grin and she shows one back.

"I hope," I whisper before I ask louder, "can I meet your daughter?"

"Sure sweet pea," Karen smiles as she pulls beside an apartment. "Home sweet home," she laughed.

We walked into her house and she yelled for her daughter, "Kendall!"

A girl about ten years old smiled at us as she ran towards us with her brown lock bouncing. "Mom! Is that..." she started smiling. "JOY!"

"Yeah, that's me," I smiled at her.

"Where's Toby??" she asked confused.

"We broke up, he's in Florida," I said and tried to keep my tears in my eyes.