The Experiments of a Lifetime

The Memory Game

I sat down beside Markus, brushing my hair behind my ears. "Life's a bitch," he said looking at me. His clear blue eyes contrasted the dark hair that was longer than it usually was. "Mhm," I agreed pulling out my homework. I had a few math homework problems, while Markus had a page overdue.

My brother Vernon walked into my room, a girl around his torso. Her name was Cristi, and her blonde hair was in tight curls. "You two make sure to knock," he said scurrying off to his room, not bothering to close the door. "He's a slut, you know that right?" Markus said starting to write an essay. "What are you doing that essay on?" I asked dismissing the comment.

"It's for my mythology class. I'm going to write about how ancient torture methods link to the gods." I nodded slowly, trying to scan over the books he had brought. "Interesting," I said going back to the math problems. It didn't take me long to finish them, as math was easy in my year. Distant memories of learning to multiply popped into my head.

It was fourth grade and Markus went to public school this year. I sat beside him in class and watched the teacher show us the multiplication table. She explained that multiplication was just quick adding. I understood quickly but Markus was having trouble. I noticed the small doodles of notes on his paper.

"Do you remember our fourth grade teacher?" I asked out of the blue. He was on his last paragraph now, and he looked up at me. "That bitch? The one that did nothing when I was made fun of for being homeschooled? Yeah I remember her." I bit my lip and the memories did flood back in. I would always stick up for him and explain that he wasn't weird, or his mom wasn't weird. Sometimes it worked, because some kids weren't bullies, but the bullies did always come through and ruin his school days.

I shut my eyes and laid back on my pillow. "Do you remember Tammy?" He asked me, closing the books he brought. "Yeah," I said feeling my heart sink a little bit. She was one of the first people I fought. I was young, fifth grade or so, but I still managed to find her alone outside of school grounds. I can remember her cries, but she never did tell a soul that Eleanor Rose Turner beat her ass. "What about Vince? You remember him?" I asked, he was more recent in our lives. He nodded and started to play with his hands. "One day," he said shoving his stuff into his backpack. He proceeded to push the backpack off the bed and lay back with me.

"School is a bunch of shit. Especially when you know most of it." I nodded tapping on my legs. Our school, Gaten High, is pretty poor. Most of the teachers are old and only come to scrape up the money they can get. "Luckily I don't have it very hard," commented. I am average, I have good grades but there was one thing that saved me a few times. I am pretty. I look like one of those girls that follow each other into the bathroom and have shit for brains. My brother is the same way, except he uses it. He can get any girl.

I don't take this for granted though, it helps me through sticky situations sometimes. "Yeah you're right. You're strong though, you didn't let those popular girls scoop you up, and you help me not get it as bad," he said glancing over at me. Markus isn't eye candy like a jock, but he is attractive I have to admit. High cheekbones and a slender nose, eyes that tell a story. He was just an easy target. A thin physique, due to his past, plus a low profile.

"That babysitter is a bitch too," he said putting his hands in his hair. I remembered the day I walked in that house the second day. It was only getting worse and it would go on for weeks at a time when Mrs.Versinger was out. Yet she would always return to a perfect house but her boy was broken. She never noticed, still babying him as if she didn't know. He couldn't blame her though, she didn't know.

I could now hear yelling from my brother's room. I'm sure she found out that he was cheating on her. Vernon was always cheating, never once was he loyal. He still loved me like brothers love sisters but despite my begging he wouldn't stop finding girlfriends and cheating on them. I twirled my hair on my fingers, it was longer now, towards my back. The bangs were long grown out and now I was just a dull teenager.