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"if you cared, you wouldn't make me go"
━━━━━━━☟━━━━━━━ april 1942, florida ━━━━━━━☝︎━━━━━━━
THE GENTLE TICK OF THE CLOCK DID NOTHING TO SOOTHE THE GRAND DINING ROOM. the platt family were gathered around the mahogany table, each eating from their fine china and silverware. all that was heard was the gentle clinking of cutlery. jenna hadn't sat at this table for 3 months, and she couldn't say she'd missed it. you could cut the tension with a blunt spoon, never mind a knife. she could feel the anger and hatred radiating from her father, and she clenched her fork as she ate. "jenna, you know you can't stay here." he piped up. she didn't reply to him. "i'm making arrangements to send you to georgia." jenna still said nothing, just looking up at her mother to see if she would defend her. jenna was disappointed, but not surprised. "i don't want to go to georgia." "and you think you have a choice, young lady? do you know how much finishing school costs?" "you chose to send me there!" the loud clatter of silverware. her father had blown his fuse. his pupils widened and his eyes were red. the veins on his forehead throbbed visably, and jenna found her focus on those as his hand clasped her forearm. "how dare you! how dare you, you impermanent girl!"
finishing school had been an experience to say the least. jenna platt was not a talker, but when she did she spoke with the kind of venom that would cause a snake to quiver. and she sure as hell made sure those girls knew what she thought of them. and then one girl spat back. so jenna did what she knew those girls couldn't do. she punched that girl in her dainty little nose. that got her kicked out, of course, and her father wasn't best pleased. it gave jenna a sense of strength and courage, that she'd disobeyed him. she wanted to break him. just like he broke her. but she knew she'd never win.
sat at that table, placing a crystal glass to her lips, she prayed for the first time in a long time. she prayed she'd make it out of the house alive. "where am i going?" her voice was quiet. the room was silent for a beat, only the sound of jenna's mother pouring some form of alcohol from the decanter into her glass. "to train at camp toccoa. general taylor has confirmed it." "right." jenna reached for her glass, the liquid sloshing violently against the sides of it as her hands shook. "it's where they're training soldiers. the paratroopers." jenna's eyes widened, but she didn't say anything. she didn't know what to say. except what the fuck has gotten into you?, but she dared not question her father another time. she dared not look at him, instead looking back over to her mother, silently pleading with her eyes. her mother met them, but raised her eyebrows slightly and murmured, "it's for the best, my sweet."
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"sweetheart?" "get out mommy." the night had been lonely, jenna couldn't tell you what time it was but she knew it was late. her father had finally collapsed into bed, and that rarely occurred before 12. "i've come to... check on you." jenna didn't answer. she just rolled over to face the window, and not her mother. she could smell the alcohol on her from across the room, and it made her nauseous. "get out mommy. you're drunk." "sweetheart, i... i need to check you're well!" "why?" jenna spat, sitting up and facing her mother. "you don't care—" "i do care!" "you don't mommy! if you cared, you wouldn't make me go! but you don't! you don't care about anything except your drink! your drink that keeps you from tossing and turning at night, while you're thinking about daddy tossing and turning with his secretary!" her mother stared, wide eyed and breathless, before mumbling a goodnight and pulling the door half closed as she left. jenna felt a slight pang if guilt, then remembered the punishment she'd been condemned to, without her mother's defence.
