Hospital for Souls

Chapter 2

I get home right on time. Jake drove me back pretty quickly. I go into the house fairly quickly. I try to shut the door quietly, but instead slam it a little bit too loud. I jolt at the sound, and then run up the stairs to my room as fast as I can.

"Raven." I freeze. My backpack falls off my shoulder. My mom called my name. She never calls my name. I close my eyes, tears slipping out of them. I take a deep breath, trying to make my voice sound as normal as possible.

"Yes?" My voice is low, a whisper.

"I need you to come down stairs." Her voice is stern, demanding. I know if I don't listen she'll come up here and just start beating the living Hell out of me. I wipe my tears, blow my nose, and slowly walk down the steps. Once I get down the stairs, she's sitting on the couch with her arms folded on her chest. Her face looks like it has anger. I stand paralyzed looking at her. "Sit down please." She points to the chair opposite of the couch. I slowly walk over to it and sit down. She can tell that I'm shaking all over, I have fear going through my veins. I look at her and force myself to smile.

"How was school today?" She asks me in a serious voice. She knows I ditched today. She knows I didn't go.

"Great." I try to say in a convincing voice, but by the look in her eyes it doesn't look like I convinced her well enough.

"Really?" She raises an eye brow up at me.

"Yes. I had a great day at school today." She gets up, an evil smile forming on her face. She slowly gets off the couch and begins walking around the chair slowly.

"Well, according to me, it seemed like today you didn't get on the bus. Along with that, didn't Jake bring you home today? I saw his car, and I heard you shut the door this morning." I swear my heart skips a beat. The breath was taken right out of my lungs and wouldn't go back in. How could she possibly know all of this? How could she have seen Jakes car? How did she hear the door shut when she was crying her eyes out a good distance from it?

"Now then, are you going to be truthful or continue your lies?" I feel the chills coming over me. I don't know what decision to make yet. I look at my mother dead in the eyes. I see anger, revenge. She wants to beat me for seeing my father beat her. I can sense she has some fear, but anger is the emotion that maks it.

"Mother," I say in a rude tone. "How would you know whether or not I went to school? I mean, clearly I got on the bus and last time I checked if I were to have gotten a ride home from Jake his car wasn't even on this street."

"So you admit to ditching school then?"

"I never said that. I asked how would you know and just gave some evidence in how there's no official proof I didn't go." A smile formed on my face, but I quickly wiped it away. My mother began to grow angry. Not just mad like she was, but her face was turning red and she began to clench her fists. I felt tears straining to come out of my eyes, but I wouldn't let them. I can't let her see me completely crash down. She can't see how weak I really am.

The first blow hits my face. I was just sitting in the chair and she was circling around me, but began to slow down her pace. I didn't even see the first blow coming. It literally came out of no where. I felt my body fall out of my chair and my head bashing into the floor. A cool liquid began going down my face. Blood. I couldn't hold them back anymore, the tears quickly began coming out of my eyes. I hoped my mother didn't notice, but she did.

"You worthless piece of shit." She said these words through clenched teeth. After she said those words, she kicked me directly in the stomach. I screamed out in pain. She kicked me again. "SHUT THE FUCK UP! YOU FUCKIN PUSSY!" She kicked me again, and again, and again, and again until I was kicked in the stomach at least ten times. If that wasn't bad enough, she left the room and came back with an empty bottle of alcohol. I closed my eyes, tears now streaming out of them. I couldn't help but to shake all over my body. I felt terror and fear. This women who brought me into this world was literally about to kill me.