Burned [ Ruby Rose ]

2

"Love has no measure, it travels despite the largest amounts of time."

"Charnae, why does mama treat us badly?" Kimora asks me, looking at me with so much sadness. I sit up right on the couch to face her.

"I don't know pooh, mama just might be going through things and doesn't know how to deal with it." I tell her my voice sounding genuine, although I was being everything but that. Mama was a drunk and I can't just move and take Kimora with me without having the money to take care of us.

Mama doesn't care about us, me and Kimora were accidents. We weren't suppose to be here and mama made sure we knew that. The real reason we're here is because she couldn't afford an abortion. I basically raised myself and am now raising my sister. Im going to move us out of this excuse for an apartment one day. "I wish she loved us." She whispers, and I can see her eyes start to water.

I pull her into a hug and hold her close. I don't know what to say. I don't want to lie to her and tell her things that aren't true. "Don't cry, everything's going to be okay." I start to wipe her tears away with the hem of my long sleeve shirt. Feeling my sleeve become damp. "Shhhh, everything is going to be fine."

A few moments later Kimora is asleep. I lay her down gently on the couch before laying a cover over her. Then I hear the house phone start to ring and rush to it, knowing it could only be one person. "Justin," I breath through the phone.

"Hey baby, how is your day going?" He asks me as I start to twiddle with the phone cord.

"It's going okay, my little sister just fell asleep." I inform him. "How about you, how is your day turning out?" I wish I could be laying in his arms right now.

"It'd be turning out better if you were here." I smile into the phone at what Justin has just said. We've been seeing each other for 3 months now, and things were perfect.

"I bet." I say biting my lip feeling like a young school girl. It's then a bang on the door and I tell Justin to hold on a minute while I answer it. I open the door and see mama with some man. He's dirty looking and appears to be in his late thirties. I move out of the way and let them in without saying a word.

"Take your choice." Mama says to the man pointing to me and Kimora. This women could not be anymore disgusting. He looks at me with devilish blue eyes, and I start to back away. There was no way to fight off this man.

"This one." He says pointing at me, and coming closer. "Come on little princess, I'll make it quick." He yanks my arm and I yelp in pain.

"Stop! Let go of me!" I scream trying to loosen this unknown man's grip on me. Oh god, this is not happening, this is not happening. The next thing I know Kimora is thrashing at the man trying to get him to let me go also, but her face is met with mama's back hand and now she's on the floor. Oh mama, why? I try to scream to Kimora to tell her run, but the words are caught in my throat.

JUSTIN

"It'd be turning out better if you were here." I say to Charnae, hoping she'll take the bait and ask me to come pick her up like she usually does.

"I bet." She says, and I already know she's biting her lip. Oh how'd I'd love to bite that lip for her. She suddenly tells me to hold on, that there's someone at the door. I wait for her to come back to the phone for several minutes before I hear a scream, and then someone hitting the floor with a hard thud. I start to panic and quickly grab my keys and rush to my car.

"Oh Char, please be okay." I say to myself, "Please be okay."

~

I run into the apartment building making my way to third floor. Apt. 309. I twist the knob and the door creeks opens. I see a small girl tucked away in the corner of the wall crying. I walk up to her, knowing it's her little sister. "Kimora? Hey, look listen to me I'm going to get you and your sister out of here okay?" She doesn't respond, and I don't know if it's because she doesn't know me or because she's to scared to speak.