This Is a Reason for Broken Wings

The morning that my mom called me, I was already in a bad mood. Things weren't going how we wanted in the recording studio, labels were giving us the normal bullshit, and our strive for the new record was faltering ever so slightly.

I was at Johnny's house when my cell started ringing. I looked at the ID and saw that it was my mom calling on her cell.

"Hi mom." I greeted her.

I hear some weird sounds almost like someone was crying on the other end but no one spoke.

"Hello?" I asked. "Mom, are you there? What's going on?" I said, starting to get worried.

"Zacky." She finally whispered, the sound of tears shining thick in her soft voice.

"Mom, are you ok? What's wrong?"

"Zacky, baby, it's your sister."

I stood silent. My sister? Great ...

"Yeah?" I asked, not really caring about what happened to her.

"She's absolutely out of control." She sobbed.

"Mom. What did she do this time?"

"Everything!" My mom cried even harder. "The drugs, the alcohol, the guys, everything she knows she shouldn't be doing."

"Mom, did she threaten you again?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"Zacky..." She cried.

I knew it.

"Mom, call the fucking cops on her and have them haul her off to jail. Maybe then she'll realize how stupid she's been acting." I said angrily.

"Zacky, no. You know I can't do that." My mom had finally stopped crying.

"Well, what else can you do about her?" I asked, annoyed.

"Zacky, I want her to stay with you." My mom said seriously.

I stopped. "What?"

"You heard me Zacky."

"No way mom. She's not staying with me. She's too wild, and rebellious, and is just too much of a troublemaker." I protested.

"Zacky, you're the only one she's ever really listened to, the only one she's actually afraid of. If she stays with you, maybe you'll be able to talk some sense into her. Jail is the last thing I want to resort to with her."

"Mom, I have a job that takes most of my time. If she's here with me, she's just gonna 'cause mayhem. Plus, I'm gone a lot of the time and she's just gonna run off and do what ever the fuck she wants!"

"Then take her with you everywhere you go." My mom said simply.

"Mom, she's fucking 20 years old. If she's still living with you guys, not doing a damn thing with her life then that's her own fault. You guys should kick her out or something; make her realize that she needs to grow the fuck up."

"Zacky Baker. You sister will move in with you; I told you that you're the only one who can get to your sister. Now I expect you to be here tomorrow morning to pick her up. And that's final Zacky." My mom said sternly.

I let out a disgusted snort and realize that I had lost.

"Fine. I'll be there at 11 o'clock tomorrow morning. She'd better have all her shit ready and all the stuff she needs because I ain't buying her jack. If she really needs something, she's gonna have to work own ass off and get it."

"I'm not asking you to buy her things. Just keep an eye on her and try to talk some sense into her."

"Fine."

"I'll see you tomorrow Zacky."

"Yeah. Tomorrow. I love you mom."

"I love you too."

I hung up and tossed my phone back on then bed, leaning forward to rest my head in my hands. Fucking great...my sister was coming to live with me. I guess I should start from the beginning with my sister.

Her name is Lauren, Lauren Amber Baker, and what a whole lot of trouble she was.

Growing up, she was perfectly happy. We got along just great and were practically inseparable. But when she got to high school our father died...and that's when everything changed. She got into drugs, alcohol, the partying...and the guys. But it wasn't like a normal teenagers brush with this shit, no way.

When she got into high school, it was almost as if she were a whole different person. She was no longer pleasant and bright. Instead she was vicious and crude and just so full of hate. No one could ever ask her anything with out being barked back at. No one could compliment her and even have a normal conversation with her. It was like she no longer knew how to talk; instead she would scream threats and insults to you all day long.

Everywhere she went, she caused trouble and everything she did seemed like it was done just to spite you. She was no longer the loving, caring Lauren Baker I had proudly called my sister; she was Lauren Baker who I had no love left for in the world.

You see...when she was about 18 years old, she came home very late one night, and very drunk. My mom, being the woman she is, was worried sick and stayed up for her. When Lauren finally did come home, my mom rushed to great her, glad that she had finally arrive home, and safe.

My sister responded by beating her up. She spent five days in the hospital, recovering from a concussion, broken jaw, and some broken ribs. She told the doctors she had a nasty fall down the stairs and they believed it.

I told my mom then to call the cops on Lauren and report her...but she just couldn't. She couldn't let her baby go even after all the shit she's put her through. I loved my sister dearly before...but when she pulled that shit...that was it.

I knew she had no respect for anything anymore and no love for anyone. So why should I show my love for someone who's not willing to show it back? Why should I give my love to someone who tried to take the life of the one who brought them into this world?

But things have changed now. The one person I had no love for would be, as of tomorrow, be living with me. My mom thought that I was the only one who would be able to break Lauren. What was it she said? I was the only one Lauren was ever really afraid of? The only one she listened to? Since when had Lauren ever listened to someone apart from her own little, fucked up self? She never had, and she most likely never will.

The more I thought about the situation, the more frustrated I became. Lauren was a little shit, that's all there was to it. She'd rather scream at you, than talk to you, and if she got tired of screaming, she would just resort to her fists. And let me tell you, she may not look it, but she could kick everybody's ass if she wanted to. Well, not everybody's ass, but damn close.

No...I knew there was no way I could 'talk' sense into my sister, because for 1) like I said before she doesnt just 'talk' and 2) she was just too much. She was already too bitter, and sour, and hateful. She was just too much of a handful, too much of a nuisance, too fucking much for one person to handle.

I knew I couldn't stop her from doing her drugs. I knew I couldn't stop her from smoking. I knew I couldn't stop her from drinking. And I knew for damn sure that I couldn't keep her away from the sex.

Lauren had once been such a sweetheart, but somewhere along the lines she changed. I highly doubted that by staying with me, she would change back to the Lauren I had grown up with and loved. You know what they say: once a good girl's gone bad, she's gone forever.

As far as I was concerned, to call Lauren 'bad' was by far an understatement.