so much better in the
friends department but I didn’t feel I knew her well enough to be
so blunt after just a few days. I made a mental note to do it as soon as I felt
qualified however.
“ What about Blaine? He likes you.”
I’m pretty sure even that same blind monkey would have picked up the
exact opposite.
“ Blaine … I just don’t get him at all. In all seriousness I’m
pretty sure he hates me right now, although I have zero idea why. We were
such good… friends. Until last night that is. I don’t get what happened. One
minute were fine, bickering like we always do and the next… he
couldn’t get away from me fast enough.”
“ Hmm,” Lori murmured as if she was trying to summon some
reasoning.
“ Let’s not talk about him. We’re here to shop, and shopping
equals fun, right?” Or at least that’s what high school girls in
the movies say.
“ Hell yeah! And you couldn’t have chosen a better
assistant,” she said with a flutter of her long, obviously fake
lashes as she pulled into the huge car park littered with flashy
cars.
“ Want to come in?” I felt obliged to ask – a sort of thank
you for taking me shopping – even though I didn’t buy anything - and buying
me a pizza.
“ Sure, ” she replied as excited as ever.
Lori’s clicking heels followed behind me as I walked up the
dirty path to splintered wood door of my house. Pulling my key out
of my rucksack I had my head turned to Lori as I opened the door,
telling her I promised to buy something next time we shopped. Then
I witnessed the blood drain from her tanned face leaving her paler
than me. Anxious, I snapped my head around to follow her gaze. What
I saw caused my blood to boil so violently I thought I might spontaneously
combust.
“ Mum what the fuck are you doing?” I yelled towards the
brown sofa where my naked mother was sprawled on her
back.
The bald man’s bare arse stopped pummelling my mum long enough
for him to turn and face me. He didn’t jump off, didn’t try to
cover himself. He didn’t even look embarrassed! Then my mum had the
cheek to narrow her eyes at me and shoo me away with her hand as
she mouthed ‘I’m working’.
“ Get the fuck out of my house or I’m calling the fucking
police!” I barked at him so forcefully the words burned into the
back of my throat.
He
grunted in frustration then leapt from the sofa, gathering his cord
trousers and stripy yellow shirt from the floor and dragging them
on as fast as he could. My mum made no effort to move. She just
continued to lie there - legs open, naked and having the cheek to
glower at me. I hurried over to her, grabbed the frayed flowery
throw from the back of the sofa and threw it over her before
snatching the bald guy’s jacket from the floor and shoving it at
him and pushing him towards the door.
It was then I
noticed Lori stood at the doorway, still a deathly shade of white
and staring awkwardly at the floor. Pure shame ate away at my
insides like acid and I wanted to cry.
“ I should, um, get going,” she said uneasily when the
strange man barged past her. I motioned her outside and closed the
door behind us.
“ I’m so sorry, Lori.” I dropped my head, wishing the ground
would swallow me.
“ What the hell for? That was in no way your fault.” It took
me a few seconds to process the fact that she wasn’t going to run
away screaming. Then another few to get my head around the idea
that she might actually still like me.
“ I just wish you hadn’t seen that. My mum, well… my mum
has, issues .”
“ Yeah, I kinda gathered that,” she said but there was no
judgement in her tone.
“ I wouldn’t blame you if you did but, well I’d appreciate it
if-”
“ If you’re worried I’m gonna tell anyone, Maddie, then don’t,”
she interrupted, “I would never do that.”
I had never
wanted to hug somebody so much in my life. And so, I did.
“ Thank you, Lori. You really are the best friend I could’ve
hoped to find
friends department but I didn’t feel I knew her well enough to be
so blunt after just a few days. I made a mental note to do it as soon as I felt
qualified however.
“ What about Blaine? He likes you.”
I’m pretty sure even that same blind monkey would have picked up the
exact opposite.
“ Blaine … I just don’t get him at all. In all seriousness I’m
pretty sure he hates me right now, although I have zero idea why. We were
such good… friends. Until last night that is. I don’t get what happened. One
minute were fine, bickering like we always do and the next… he
couldn’t get away from me fast enough.”
“ Hmm,” Lori murmured as if she was trying to summon some
reasoning.
“ Let’s not talk about him. We’re here to shop, and shopping
equals fun, right?” Or at least that’s what high school girls in
the movies say.
“ Hell yeah! And you couldn’t have chosen a better
assistant,” she said with a flutter of her long, obviously fake
lashes as she pulled into the huge car park littered with flashy
cars.
“ Want to come in?” I felt obliged to ask – a sort of thank
you for taking me shopping – even though I didn’t buy anything - and buying
me a pizza.
“ Sure, ” she replied as excited as ever.
Lori’s clicking heels followed behind me as I walked up the
dirty path to splintered wood door of my house. Pulling my key out
of my rucksack I had my head turned to Lori as I opened the door,
telling her I promised to buy something next time we shopped. Then
I witnessed the blood drain from her tanned face leaving her paler
than me. Anxious, I snapped my head around to follow her gaze. What
I saw caused my blood to boil so violently I thought I might spontaneously
combust.
“ Mum what the fuck are you doing?” I yelled towards the
brown sofa where my naked mother was sprawled on her
back.
The bald man’s bare arse stopped pummelling my mum long enough
for him to turn and face me. He didn’t jump off, didn’t try to
cover himself. He didn’t even look embarrassed! Then my mum had the
cheek to narrow her eyes at me and shoo me away with her hand as
she mouthed ‘I’m working’.
“ Get the fuck out of my house or I’m calling the fucking
police!” I barked at him so forcefully the words burned into the
back of my throat.
He
grunted in frustration then leapt from the sofa, gathering his cord
trousers and stripy yellow shirt from the floor and dragging them
on as fast as he could. My mum made no effort to move. She just
continued to lie there - legs open, naked and having the cheek to
glower at me. I hurried over to her, grabbed the frayed flowery
throw from the back of the sofa and threw it over her before
snatching the bald guy’s jacket from the floor and shoving it at
him and pushing him towards the door.
It was then I
noticed Lori stood at the doorway, still a deathly shade of white
and staring awkwardly at the floor. Pure shame ate away at my
insides like acid and I wanted to cry.
“ I should, um, get going,” she said uneasily when the
strange man barged past her. I motioned her outside and closed the
door behind us.
“ I’m so sorry, Lori.” I dropped my head, wishing the ground
would swallow me.
“ What the hell for? That was in no way your fault.” It took
me a few seconds to process the fact that she wasn’t going to run
away screaming. Then another few to get my head around the idea
that she might actually still like me.
“ I just wish you hadn’t seen that. My mum, well… my mum
has, issues .”
“ Yeah, I kinda gathered that,” she said but there was no
judgement in her tone.
“ I wouldn’t blame you if you did but, well I’d appreciate it
if-”
“ If you’re worried I’m gonna tell anyone, Maddie, then don’t,”
she interrupted, “I would never do that.”
I had never
wanted to hug somebody so much in my life. And so, I did.
“ Thank you, Lori. You really are the best friend I could’ve
hoped to find
Similar Books
