'Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable
And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table
No one can find the rewind button girl,
So cradle your head in you hands
And breathe, just breathe,
Whoa breathe, just breathe
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My fingers trailed up and down my forearm, tracing my scars through the fabric of my shirt sleeve. I wasn't oblivious to the way my father kept glancing my way every now and then, not failing to take notice of my actions. It had been this way for months, he and my mother over-analyzing every little thing that I did. Even to the point where he had started insisting on giving me rides places when he wasn't working instead of letting Tony do it.
"Are you sure you don't want me to just drive you straight to school?" He asked for the third time that morning. As soon as he had arrived at the house for breakfast, another new and awkward routine that they'd started, I had asked him to give me a ride to Zach's house before school, claiming that Mrs. Dempsey had invited me over for breakfast.
"I'm sure," I nodded as he turned onto Zach's street.
"And you and Zach are going straight to school?" He questioned as I pressed my lips together, knowing just where this was going. "You're not gonna skip and go to court again, are you?"
"School call?" I guessed.
"Clay Jensen's mother," he corrected me. "She said that she saw you and Clay there while court was at recess. Care to share what you were doing there? You're not supposed to hear the other witnesses."
"I was worried about Tyler and figured being there would provide him with some moral support," I offered the half assed lie, not bothering to come up with a better one as he pulled up in front of the Dempsey home.
"Just promise me that you'll actually go to school today," he said before I could escape the confines of his car.
"I will," I nodded, unsure if I could keep the promise or not. I leaned over the console and pressed a kiss to his cheek before hurrying out of the car before he could stop me again. "See you later, love you."
I hurried up the driveway and to the front door, well aware that my father wouldn't drive away until he saw me actually go inside the house. Lucky for me, Zach only took a few seconds to open the door, having been expecting me.
"Hey," I greeted him with a smile as he let me inside, setting my backpack by the door with his.
"Oh, Penny, I didn't know you were coming over this morning." Ms. Dempsey spoke in surprise when Zach and I joined her in the kitchen. "Would you like anything to eat?"
