Sunlight the color of ripe tangerines streamed through the high windows. Everything glistened subtly, clean and welcoming. A girl ran through the panels of light, squealing, sunshine bouncing off of her deep red curls and spraying the walls in warmth. Her laughter rang throughout the entire hallway. A man in his early thirties was bounding after the girl, a wide grin stretching his handsome face, splitting it with dimples.
“I’m gonna getchu!” He called, grasping the little girl around her tiny waist and lifting her high into the air…
Evie opened her eyes, slowly. The figures of a happy girl and healthy father danced across her mind- a long forgotten dream. Her head throbbed. It was as if the happy times were beating against the inside of her skull, rallying for a release Evie could not give. She wasn’t that little girl anymore and her father wasn’t that happy man. He was a shell of a man, rotten and brittle to his core. Evie never knew what went wrong, just that something did.
But she was tired of it. Sick to her stomach, nauseous with secrets and lies and this motel which felt more like a cage than a home. In fact, she was done. Obviously, coming to this rotten town had done nothing to help her family. She swung her legs out of bed, ignoring the throb of protest her head provided. She stood slowly, still dizzy from Rick’s blow to her head the other day.
“Mom?” She called. Vanessa entered the room quickly. She looked guilt stricken. Evie could understand that- after all, Vanessa had been so insistent about hiding Rick’s drinking that she had forgotten about protecting her only daughter- Evie.
“What is it sweetie?” Vanessa trilled in her tired voice. Once upon a time, that voice had been happy, proud.
“I think…I think we should leave here. This town isn’t helping anything and I miss home…mom, I want to go home. Please…” Evie felt like a child pleasing to go home after a particularly long spell at the grocery store. This was so much worse.
“Evelyn, honey, you don’t understand-“
“No, mom. I understand more than you think. Dad is SICK, okay? This isn’t normal, this isn’t okay! Hiding it won’t fix anything. I don’t know anyone here, I don’t like this stupid town and I miss our house. I miss being at home. You promised this wouldn’t be permanent but it’s been WEEKS and every time you assure me things are okay, they just get worse!” Evie exploded. She was panting, heart hammering in her chest. Thud thud thud thud. She couldn’t breathe properly and her hands were shaking. She just wanted to go home. That was all. Even if it was a visit…why was that so hard?
“Evie, this has been hard on all of us.” Vanessa said. Her eyes had shut Evie out. This wasn’t her daughter she spoke with. Just one more person.
Evie stared at her mother, lost, before flinging herself out of the room. To her surprise, her mother didn’t call after her. She ran hard and fast, wanting to escape the bullshit. Her feet dug into the rough asphault of the street. She could feel tiny cuts opening on the soles of her right foot. Finally, she stopped, gasping for breath, tears spilling down her cheeks. She leaned against the glass window front of the Sunset Grill. A woman, on her phone, speaking in a surprisingly southern accent, exited the door to Evie’s left. She jumped involuntarily, watching the woman she recognized as Spring Patterson. Evie was so focused on Spring not noticing her that she didn’t hear what her conversation was, she didn’t notice the shocked expression on Spring’s face. She curled her legs up to her chest and wiped her nose on a sleeve. She hated everyone. She hated this place. Most of all, she hated her mother. When would it all end?
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