053, 𝗡𝗔𝗥𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗩𝗘.
Mackayla had a smile on her face the whole drive back to her house. The day hadn't started off well, but then, once she talked to Mattia and cleared everything up, she felt a weight lift off her shoulders. When she got back to New Jersey, everything just got better.
As the car strolled up Mackayla's street, Mackayla's heart dropped. She backed into the driveway, her heart pounding in her chest. Mattia looked from Mackayla to the car parked beside them. "Baby, breathe."
"Can I catch a fucking break, damn," the girl muttered. "We can go to my house; see if she's gone in the morning."
"I have to check on Ashton. Hopefully she's asleep or something," the girl spoke quietly. No matter how loud she wanted to speak, her voice was quiet and soft.
Mackayla grabbed her bag from the back before waiting for Mattia at her front door. He stood beside her, holding her Victoria's Secret bag in one hand and the Build-A-Bear bag in the other. He flashed her a reassuring glance. Mackayla took a deep breath.
Mackayla quietly opened the door. Ashton ran up to her, jumping on her. Mackayla smiled down at him. He then stood on his paws again, standing beside Mackayla. Mackayla walked further into the house, seeing the light was turned on in the kitchen. "Go upstairs," Mackayla whispered, handing Mattia her duffel bag.
"Mac, let's just take Ashton and go. Pa won't mind if you stay with us," Mattia told the girl. She shook her head. "I haven't been home in days, and I just want to sleep in my own bed. Everything will be fine, and... yeah," Mackayla concluded.
Mattia nodded, heading up the stairs. Mackayla looked down at Ashton. She then turned on her heel, slowly walking toward the kitchen. When Mackayla entered the kitchen, she wished she hadn't.
She stood at the arched doorway, watching her mother pour herself another glass of whiskey.
Linda Montanez was hardly ever home, and, additionally, she was hardly ever in the country. She traveled like she was some kind of groupie for herself. The year Mackayla's dad got diagnosed with prostate cancer, everything went wrong. Mackayla was twelve, and while she understood was going on, she didn't think everything would change.
And when Mackayla's dad passed away, things got worse. Mackayla was notified that she inherited her father's business once she graduated college, she inherited a lump sum of money. Then, she noticed a slight change in her mother. Linda had always been uptight, slightly crazy, but she kind of shut down after her husband's death. She quit her job, deciding the money her husband left would be all she needed. Then, she was diagnosed with bipolar depression.
Linda was the stereotype for every book or movie where the mom becomes abusive after losing her husband. The first time Linda ever left Mackayla for an extensive amount of time was when the girl was thirteen. She dropped her off at Mattia's house, and wasn't seen in New Jersey for a month. She'd gone to Bermuda that time.
And things just continuously got worse from there. Mackayla was also twelve when her mother had hit her with an object, and hit her ever, for the first time.
