Poisonous (Wattys2019)

Chapter 2

             "What would you like for breakfast?" I ask my brother. It's Friday and this whole week I've been anxiously waiting for today. Now I'm anxiously waiting for what I need to be a positive phone call.

"What do we have?" He asks as he takes a seat at our small scratched up table. I rummage around trying to scrounge up something for him to eat. After quitting my job I've only been able to afford the bare minimum and even that has been difficult. Somedays I don't have a meal to ensure my brother has been fed. It's more important for him to have three meals a day than for me to have them.

"How does oatmeal sound?" I pull out the green box that has two packets left in it.

"Yummy." He grins. I'm sure he's tired of it but he doesn't complain. I mix in the milk, pop it in the microwave, and when its done set the warm bowl in front of him.

"Make sure you blow on it, it's hot," I warn him.

"Want to split it with me? I never finish the whole thing." He says as he nudges the grains around to blow on them.

"I'm okay Marshmallow. Go ahead and eat and I'll have whatever you don't finish." He nods in agreement and digs in. This is not the life I want for him but I'm trying my best to get us out of this situation. He's a smart kid and knows that we are in a tough spot, but I try my best to have him not worry. He shouldn't have to worry. He should be playing with other kids and worrying about scraping his knee not when he'll have his next meal.

Frowning, I clean up the dirty dishes in the sink. Most of them are from when my mother decided to leave her room and have a meal. If I don't clean them then they'll just sit here making the whole kitchen stink.

My phone buzzes across the kitchen table. Startled, I jump from the noise. When I see who's calling I take a deep breath in and out before answering.

"Hello." I try to say evenly.

"Hi, this is Mr. Steele calling to speak with Oleander Lucado." His accented voice says smoothly.

"This is Oleander." I squeeze my eyes shut, cross my fingers, and send up a silent prayer to whoever may be up there listening.

"I've called to tell you that you've been hired. You'll be starting this Monday at nine o'clock sharp." My eyes shoot open and my arm shoots up in the air as a silent cheer.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Steele. I'll see you tomorrow at nine o'clock." I say happily.

"I'll see you then. You can park in the employee parking lot. I'll leave a temporary badge for you down there for you that will give you access until we can get you a company ID. Enjoy your weekend."

"Thank you. You too." The line dies and I finally do a little happy dance.

"You got the job?" My brother asks with a big smile.

"I got the job." I grin as I shake my head.

"I knew you would. They'd be crazy not to hire you." Laughing, I give him a hug then ruffle his blonde curly hair.

"Thanks, marshmallow. Finish up your breakfast. As soon as you're done we'll head over to grandma's house to tell her the good news." He dives back into his meal while I finish up the dishes. As I'm putting the last clean pan in the drying rack the front door opens.

Our mother stumbles through the door. She leans against the wall momentarily to regain her balance. Her makeup is smeared and her hair a mess. Strands fall out of the loose ponytail she's attempted to put her hair in. Her clothes are crinkled and hang off of her wiry figure. She doesn't even glance in our direction as she makes her way to her bedroom. We silently watch her and only once we hear the slam of her bedroom door do we release our breath.

"Pack a bag for grandmas. We're going to spend the night." He nods eagerly and hops off the chair before dashing into his room. I dry my hands on our tattered dishtowel then toss it on the counter.

I go to my bedroom and grab my small prepacked duffel bag.

"I'm ready." My brother says from the doorway from my bedroom.

"Then let's go." My brother races out the front door our mother left open and goes down to the car. I grab my keys and close the door behind me. Leaving our mother to sleep off whatever is running through her system.