I wake up to yelling. I walk out of my room and go downstairs. I see my mom and dad arguing and screaming in each other's faces. "FUCK YOU!" My mother yelled. She was drunk, of coarse. My father was too. He takes a big bottle of alcohol and slams it against my mothers head. She falls to the floor and passes out. I run over to her and notice that her head is bleeding. "MOM!" I yelled as I shook her, trying to wake her up. She doesn't wake up. "Why do you care about her so much?" My father asked me. "Cause she's my mother." I said. He shakes his head and hits me with the bottle too.
I jump awake, realizing it was just a dream. "Hey, I'm sorry." Zach said, standing over me. I put my hand on my heart because it's beating so fast. "That's okay. You scared me." I said. "We're gonna head out." He said. I nod my head. I see that Corbyn just woke up too. I look at the time on my phone and see that it's been 3 hours. "Did you have fun today?" I asked Jenna and Svea. "Yeah! We should come back here another time." She said, happily. I smile. "What about you guys?" I asked the boys and Esther. "Yeah." They said. I look at corbyn and see that he looks better. He doesn't look like he's trying not to hurl so that's good. And I think I'm feeling better too. After that nap, my energy is restored and I can actually stay up past 9 tonight. Maybe, we'll see. The antidepressants make me tired out of nowhere.
We all get in the car, in the same spots we were in last time. It's 6:00 so the sun will be setting in an hour or two. I look over at corbyn. His eyes are closed and his head keeps falling towards me. He tries to keep it up but he's just too tired. "We have a three hour drive back home so we're just gonna get Chick-fil-A on the way home, okay?" Jonah's mom told us. "YES!" Esther said, excitedly. We all laugh. Corbyn jumps up a little and looks around. I think our loud laughter scared him awake. "Are you hungry? We're getting Chick-fil-A." I told him. He nods. "I can't stay awake." He said. "It's cause you're hungover." I said. "Yeah but I've never felt like this when I was hungover." He said. I shrug. "I guess you drank too much." I said. He nods and looks at me. "Can I use you as a pillow?" He asked. I laugh and nod. He lays his head on my shoulder and I lay my head on his. I get out my phone and see that I got a text from my mom. "Where are you taking Jenna?" She said. My heart starts pounding super fast and I start shaking. "Why do you need to know?" I answered. "Because she's my daughter." She replied. "Oh, so now you wanna be a mother?" I asked. "Fine, that's fair. I promise if you tell me where you're taking her, I won't try to steal her back." She said. Maybe she's being honest this time. "You promise?" I asked. "I promise." She said. "Okay. I'm gonna take her to her fathers house." I said. "Oh no. Please don't do that." She said. "Why not?" I asked. "Because he's not what he seems to be. Trust me. He seemed like a nice guy when I dated him but he's not." She said. "How can I trust you? You're an alcoholic who beats her children." I said. "Please just listen to me. He may have a new wife and a few kids but he is no where near a father. He's no where near a human being." She said. "Elaborate." I said. "I'm going to tell you this but you have to delete the chat after this she said. "I will." I said. "He dates woman and gets them pregnant. Then he murders them and keeps the kids as his slaves." She said. I look at my phone, confused. "That can't be true. How come he didn't kill you then?" I asked. "Because he told me about it, making me think he wasn't gonna kill me. But I knew something was off about him as soon as Jenna was born. So I set up a plan so that if he ever tried to kill me or if I thought he was, I would be prepared. I'm not gonna go into anymore details but, trust me, you don't want Jenna living with him." She said. I'm shocked. I didn't expect that at all. "Okay. I'm gonna work something out." I told her. "Just make sure jenna is safe for me, okay?" She said. That made me mad. What have I been doing for the past twelve years while you've been so drunk that, one time you out Jenna in the oven thinking it was her crib? "I will." I said. "Tell jenna I love her." She said. I sigh and turn off my phone, not bothering to reply. She can't even tell me she loves me. She hasn't told me she loved me in years. Then I start to think about where Jenna is gonna live. I don't even have enough money to pay for myself, let alone a 12 year old. I'm not worried about where I'm gonna go right now. First I have to find Jenna a permanent home. I put my head back and close my eyes. My heart starts pounding and I start shaking. I start to feel nauseous and sweaty. I start feeling like I can't breathe so I start crying. "What's the matter?" Daniel asked me. "I can't breathe." I said, taking small and quick breathes, trying to calm down and breathe but I can't. "Okay, just slow down and breathe." Daniel said, grabbing my hand. I squeeze his hand tight and try to calm down as I cry. Me and Jenna are gonna be homeless if we don't find a place to stay. How could I possibly be calm. I don't have a job or any money in my pocket. "What happened?" Jon asked. "I don't know. She just started freaking out." Daniel said. I can't stop crying and shaking. "What's the matter?" Corbyn asked, half asleep as he lifts his head off my shoulder. I try to talk but my sobbing doesn't let words come out. "Riley, Calm down." Jenna said. I lay my head back and close my eyes. I take deep and slow breathes as I slowly stop crying. "Now, tell me what's wrong." Daniel said. I shake my head and wipe my tears. "I can't right now. Not in front of everyone." I said with a shaky voice. "You mean not in front of me?" Jenna said. I don't say anything. I can't lie to her, but I can not tell her about anything. I know she's mature but I don't want her to know her father is a murderer. "I knew it. You always think I'm too little to know things but I'm not." Jenna said, getting mad. "I'm sorry." I said. "Whatever." She said. "Guys, please don't fight." Jonah said. I look over at corbyn and see that he's asleep again. I swear he's narcoleptic. I sigh as we pull into the Chick-fil-A drive through. "What do you guys want?" Jonah's mom asked. Everyone says their order one at a time. "Riley?" She said. "I'm not hungry." I said. "You gotta eat, hun. I'll get you chicken nuggets. Same with corbyn." She said. I lay my head on corbyns shoulder. I just want him to kiss me and tell me everything's gonna be okay. I want him to be my boyfriend but he still needs time to heal from christina. I take corbyns hand and hold it, intertwining our fingers. I kiss his limp hand and close my eyes. I just want all of this to be over. "I'm so sad. This is our last night together." Svea said to Jenna. "I know. I wish I could just live with you." Jenna said. Then, the idea popped into my head. What if Jonah's mom adopts Jenna?! I know that sounds crazy but it could work. You know, if Jonah's mom agrees. I really hope she does. I have to talk to her about it later.
3 hours later, I hear a door open. I open my eyes and see that the car stopped and we're back at Jonah's house. I sit up and rub my eyes. I guess I fell asleep. We all get out of the car. I look at the time and see that it's 9:00. I'm so freaking tired, I don't know why. "Everyone has to get to bed early tonight. We got an early morning of flying tomorrow." Jon said. We all walk upstairs and to our rooms. Jonah takes off his shirt and his pants, about to go to sleep. "Um...can I talk to you and your mom?" I asked. "What about?" He asked. "About Jenna." I said. "Is that why you were freaking out earlier?" He asked. I nod. "Okay. Let's go to her room." He said. "Okay." I said. My heart starts beating really fast. I'm scared Jenna won't have a permanent home and she'll have to go back to live with mom. We walk into Jonah's moms room. She's under the covers watching tv. "Hey, mom. Riley wants to talk to us." Jonah said as he lays down on her bed. She pats the bed. "Sit. What do you wanna talk about?" She asked. I take a deep breath and sit down. "I'm sure you know about my mom." I said. She nods. "Yeah, so that's why me and Jenna ran away. We were gonna go to LA to find Jenna's dad so she's in a safe place but..." I said before I get chocked up. I clear my throat and continue to talk, trying not to cry. "It turns out living with him isn't a safe place either. I don't know where Jenna's gonna live now." I said, starting to cry a little towards the end of the sentence. Jonah sits up and puts his arm around me, laying his head on my shoulder. "Sorry." I said, wiping my nose. "It's okay, hun. I understand." She said. "So, I was wondering if maybe she could stay with you for a little while I figure something out." I said with a shaky voice. "You want me to adopt Jenna?" Jonah's mom asked. "No, no. I would never ask that." I said. Jonah's mom smiles. "I'll have to think about it." She said. I smile. "So what is she gonna do tomorrow? She thinks she's going to her dads." Jonah said. "She can just stay here with me until I talk to your mother." Jonah's mom said. I smile. "Thank you so much. You don't know how much this is helping me." I said as I give her a hug. She hugs me back. "I'm glad I can help." She said. We stop hugging and she looks at me. "Where are you gonna live?" She asked me. "Um...I'll figure it out. I just want Jenna's living arrangements situated." I said. "Do you wanna stay here too?" Jonah's mom asked. "No, it's okay. Thanks for offering though." I said. I get off her bed. "Well, I'm gonna get some sleep. Goodnight." I said. "Goodnight." Jonah's mom said. Before I walk out of the room, I stop at the door. "Thank you." I said, again. Then I walk out. I walk back into Jonah's room and lay down on his bed. Tomorrow is the last show on the boys tour. I'm probably never gonna see them again. Jonah walks into the room and lays down next to me. "So, do you know where you're gonna live after this?" He asked. "Yeah." I said as I close my eyes. "That's good." He said. I sigh. "Yeah." I said as I close my eyes.
