AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He doesn’t listen on purpose, but his grip on me slips. That seems to piss him off. He lets me go, then shoves me backward into the hall.
I catch the doorframe, panic clawing at my insides. All I want is to get out of here, but I can’t leave my things here. I don’t have much, and the most valuable thing I had was just ruined. I worked my ass off pulling extra shifts to buy really good headphones so I could block out the noise at home, and now they’re just… in pieces.
My mom’s a hothead, though, so I know further engaging just increases the chances of more of my stuff getting destroyed.
Larry grabs my bicep.
“Get your fucking hands off me,” I spit, glaring at him. “Do not touch me.”
“Don’t tell me what to do, you little bitch. I’m not your last stepdaddy, you can’t stroke my dick and get your way.”
My mom smirks like he just rode up on a big white horse. She wraps her arm around his back and moves close to him, shooting me a look like I’m her rival instead of her daughter. “Yeah, that’s right, hon. I got a good one this time.”
Disgust contorts my features. I can’t stop it.
I shake my head, turning and escaping into the bathroom since at leastthatdoor I can lock.
I lock it and back up, sitting on the closed toilet seat and staring at the door. There’s a lock, but it’s a cheap, flimsy one. I’m sure someone could get in here if they really wanted to.
Tears well up in my eyes. I ignore them now that I’m alone. I don’t have to waste energy holding them back. No one will see me cry.
Once I’ve got it all out, I swipe away the tears and pull my cell phone out of my pants pocket. I’m hoping—praying—to see an invite from Jet, but there are no new notifications.
I’m not so proud to wait for an invitation now. I want to get the hell out of this apartment, and I don’t have anywhere else to go.
“You don’t want a fake girlfriend this evening, do you?” I ask with a smiling emoji that reeks of desperation and makes me cringe, but I don’t care. It’s just Jet.
He types back, “Lol no, you’re off the hook tonight. I’m staying the night at Stephen’s. We’re working on an astronomy project.”
My heart sinks. “Oh.” Claustrophobia closes in on me, but it’s not his responsibility to always be my place to go. “Well, that sounds fun. Have a good time.”
I don’t bother waiting for a return message. I slide my phone back in my pocket and debate leaving anyway, just so I don’t have to be here.
I don’t have anywhere to go, though.
I could just drive around, but I can’t afford to waste gas. Now that my headphones are busted, I’ll have to start saving up for a new pair. I literally cannot live without them. Not in this apartment. Not with that woman.
I listen at the door, but I don’t hear them in the hall, so I ease the door open. I peek out. Mom and Larry have wandered back to the kitchen, so I guess they’re done being assholes to me for the moment.
I slip into my room and close my door as quietly as possible so as not to attract attention, then I cross to my dresser and grab the broken pieces of my headphones. The speakers are bent, so I know even before I start messing with them, I won’t be able to save them. I’m no techie, but it seems like a lost cause. Maybe Jet could make them work, but I have my doubts. If the speakers are busted, what good are a pair of headphones?
Still, I gather up the broken pieces and collect them in the headphone case like a little leather coffin. I zip it up and shove it in my purse to take over to Jet’s next time, just in case there’s something he can do.
Since I want nothing more than for this night to be over, I decide to go to bed. I change into pajama pants and a t-shirt, then I plug my phone in and turn off my light.
I lie in bed for probably two hours, but I can’t fall asleep.
First, Mom and Larry are being too noisy in the living room, then it gets a million times worse. The TV turns off and I hear the sounds of them fumbling and kissing their way down the hall. I hear her bedroom door open, and then I hear everything else—his grunting, her giggles, the wet, smacking sound of their lips as they kiss.
It’s revolting. I try to block it out, to drag my blanket over my head to insulate my ears, but the walls are paper thin. When I start to hear the coils in the bed creaking in tandem with their grunts and groans, I can’t take it anymore.
I throw back my blanket and quickly gather up my phone and charge cord. I don’t even take the time to put it in my purse, just grab it and open my door as quietly as I can.
My heart races as I make my way through the dark apartment to grab my coat and my shoes. I know they’re otherwise occupied, so they shouldn’t bother me, but I won’t feel like I’m free until I’m out of this building.
I slide my coat on while I’m walking and grab my keys off the ceramic strawberry. I don’t know where I’m going, just… anywhere but here.
That’s what I tell myself as I pull the apartment door closed and head for the stairs, but I know it’s not true.
