The Final Seven

Chapter 1

June 11th, 2014 7:30 A.M.

“Jess!  We’re gonna’ be late for school!  Hurry up!”  I heard my sister calling for me from downstairs.  I had yet to dry and straighten my hair, but I don’t even bother lately.  Like most days before, I threw it up in a pony tail, and then I was done with it.  It’s not like I have anyone to impress anyways, or the time to do it.

I rushed out of my room as fast as I could, and flew down the stairs two at a time.  Once again, I was running late for school.  I only had five minutes to fix my sister her lunch, eat my own breakfast, and leave for school.  As I got down the stairs, I saw my sister had already made her lunch.  I smiled at her as she finished her cereal.  While she ate, I took a peek inside the brown paper bag.

“Kate, what did I tell you yesterday, and the day before, and the day before.”  I reached in and pulled out a small bag of Oreos, and then, a second bag of Oreos.

“Seriously.  You can’t have two desserts.”  I put one of the bags of cookies back in the pantry and replaced it with an apple.  “Now, finish your breakfast and tell Mother goodbye.”

“Ugghh,” my seven year old sister replied with an eye roll.  She hopped off the stool and ran into the other room.  After a few seconds, she skipped back into the kitchen with her backpack in hand.

“Thank you.”  I handed over her lunch.  “Now, wait for me in the car while I say goodbye.”

She ran out the door, and I walked into the living room.  On the couch, staring aimlessly at the television, was Mother.  It was only eight in the morning, and she already had a glass of wine in her hand.  The dark rings under her eyes showed that she didn’t sleep well last night.  The dirt and stench covering her body proved that she hadn’t showered either.

“We’re leaving, Mother.  It’s Friday, so we won’t be home until after I get off work,” I said to her.

Mother continued to stare at the flickering images in front of her.  Sometimes I wondered if she even focused on what was going on, or if she was fantasizing herself in one of the roles in the show.  She could be someone with a happier life; someone without her children to burden her.

I turned on my heels and walked out the door.  I met my sister in the car and drove toward her school.  As I pulled up, my sister opened the door to get out.

“I’ll pick you up here after school, okay?” I asked as always.

“Okay, see ya’ then,” she answered.

“Better than yesterday, okay?”

She grinned back at me.  “Better than yesterday…today.”

I watched as she made her way into the school.  Once I saw that she was safely inside, I drove two blocks down to my high school.

“Better than yesterday,” I muttered to myself.  It was a saying my sister and I started using when Mother first showed signs of her sickness.  We promised each other that today would be better than yesterday.  Some days it felt like its meaning would fall apart, but my sister and I always stuck together and made it through the day.  I looked at my watch.  8:15 A.M. 

“Crap!”  I sped into the school parking lot and found the closest spot available.  I could hear the bell ringing for my first period.  I had four minutes to reach my classroom, or I would be tardy.

I ran through the front door and sprinted down the hallway to my first period class.  As I rounded the last turn, I slammed into a brick wall of flesh.  Off balance, I fell to the side and landed flat on my butt.  My backpack cushioned my fall, and I could feel my lunch crumble underneath me.