Walking Travesty

I wake up in the middle of the night to a cold, empty bed. Alex's mom had kicked me out before we could really do anything.
I roll over and try to figure out what had woken me, when I hear a familiar sound that I'd gone a long time without hearing.
My parents risen voices float up the stairs and through my closed door, but I can only make out a few words here and there.
I crawl out of bed, shivering at the cold air, and tiptoe to the door and open it a cracks, instantly making their voices cleared.
"-that's all you care about," my mom's tired voice yells. They must have been arguing for a while now, since it takes a lot for her to raise her voice. "Your daughter tried killing herself and you didn't even care."
I frown, immediately interested in their argument which, as far as I can tell, was about me. "Stop making me out to be the bad guy. Maybe if you weren't in your own little world all the time she'd be normal," my dad yells back, and even though I can't see him, I can just imagine the vein in his forehead pulsing like it always did when he got mad.
"Oh, so it's my fault our daughter's crazy," she laughs humorlessly, and I deepen my frown. "Maybe if you had actually been around more instead of fucking your way up the career ladder..."
"I never even wanted kids!" his voice is so loud now that it echoes and makes me flinch. "I didn't fucking want her, so don't you dare blame me for this."
"Well you've made it very clear that you don't want either of us, so why are you still here?" my mom's voice is so quiet, I have to strain my ears to hear it.
"I'm leaving," he mutters in response.
A minute later I hear the door slam and I quickly shut my door and climb back into bed.
I'm still half awake so it takes a while for their words to sink in. They think I'm crazy, and my dad doesn't want me. I already knew this, but it hurts. A lot. I squeeze my eyes tight to ward off the hot tears that escape anyways.
I hear my dad's car start and slowly fade away. He's left more times than I can count, but usually comes back in the morning, apologetic with a bouquet of flowers for mom. A part of me always hopes he doesn't. Then I feel guilty, because why would I want that? Why would I want my own father to leave and never come back?
Soft footsteps pad down the hallway and stop in front of my door, which creaks open, causing a sliver of light to burn through my closed eyes. I hear a sniffle, and think it's me at first, only to realize it must be my mom. Was she crying? She never cries. Ever.
I feel her eyes on me for a while, and I try my best to look as asleep as possible. Finally she leaves, closing the door softly behind her.
I roll over and open my eyes, and stare at the dark ceiling for a long time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Since I finally dozed off as my alarm was going off, I turned it off and continued sleeping. My mom didn't come to wake me, so when I finally wake up it's well into the afternoon and my stomach is growling like a wild animal.
I'm in the kitchen making a pot of coffee and a sandwich when the doorbell rings. Despite my just-got-hit-by-a-train appearance, I go to open it, revealing a worried looking Alex.
"Hey, where were you today?" he asks as he tugs on his beanie so it covers more of his messy hair.
I shrug and motion for him to come in. "Sleeping. Did I miss anything?" I ask over my shoulder as I walk back into the kitchen with him trailing behind.
"Besides a freshman setting the fire alarm off by smoking weed in the bathroom, nope." I laugh and continue making my sandwich, then one for him as well. He walks up behind me and slides his arms around my waist, resting his chin on my shoulder. "I missed you," he says softly in my ear.
"I know, it's not like I was with you last night or anything," I tease as I move away from his embrace and pour two cups of coffee.
"School sucks without you," he whines as he begins eating the sandwich with a comically pitiful look on his face.
I roll my eyes and hand him a cup. "I'm pretty sure it always sucks."
"True." He hops up to sit on the counter, and since there was limited space on there, I sit on the floor, completely ignoring the table and chair a few inches away from me. We both eat in silence for a while. He looks around the small kitchen, seeming to take in everything his brown eyes looked at, and I study him, committing everything I see to memory. The way his face is a day or so past the 5 o'clock shadow faze. How his Green Day t-shirt is a little too big and faded, with a small hole on the shoulder. How he swings his legs back and forth. How he keeps absentmindedly licking his lips. "My mom really likes you," he says suddenly.
I move my gaze from his lips to his eyes and raise an eyebrow. "She likes the girl you were making out with, topless in your bed last night?"
He grins, revealing his dimples. "Well, as far as she knows we were cuddling and watching TV."
I laugh and pick up my now-empty plate and cup and stick them in the dishwasher. "You don't think she really believes that, do you?"
He chuckles and follows my lead with placing his dishes in the washer. "Nope. But she still likes you. She says you're intriguing."
I raise both eyebrows. "What's that supposed to mean?"
He shrugs his shoulders and grabs both of my hands in his, pulling me closer to him. "No idea. She wants you to come to dinner next week though."
"Ooh, dinner at the parents," I joke, "This is getting too serious too fast, dude."
He laughs softly and kisses me once. "Damn, and I was planning on proposing that night too." He pushes me gently against the counter and kisses me again, but almost as soon as the kiss starts, it's broken apart at the sound of the front door opening.
I step away from him and frown. It was only four-thirty, too early for my parents to be home from work. "Lina?" my mom's voice calls out.
"In the kitchen," I respond, silently praying she's forgotten about my being grounded.
She enters a few seconds later, looking like a zombie. Dark circles that put mine to shame line her eyes, and her normally neat hair is messy. She glances at Alex, and thankfully doesn't seem to remember punishing me the night before. "How do enchiladas sound?" she asks as she sets a couple grocery store bags on the counter.
My eyebrows knit together. Enchiladas were her comfort food, usually what we ate when it was her time of month or when a family member died. "Good."
"Does Alex want to stay?" she asks a little absentmindedly as she slips out of her heels and starts putting away groceries.
I look at Alex for his answer. "I'd love to," he says, smiling his adorable, dimple-y smile.
My mom returns the smile, but it looks forced. I notice that behind her glasses her eyes are bloodshot. Had the fight been that bad last night?
I grab Alex's hand and pull him out of the kitchen and upstairs to my room. He collapses on my bed and I start brushing through my tangled hair. "You look worried," he informs me as I pull my now-smooth hair into a ponytail.
I glance at his reflection in the mirror. "You look funny laying on a bed that has a pink blanket."
He smiles a little, then sits up. "You look really pretty right now."
I laugh, and roll my eyes. "Yep, pajamas and no makeup really suit me."
"I'm serious," he insists. "I mean, you always look pretty, but right now you look really pretty."
I walk over to the bed and sit besides him and smirk, trying my best to force away the blush that his compliment was causing. "If you think flattering me is going to get me to fuck you, you're sorely mistaken."
He chuckles and plants a kiss on my lips. "There's a difference between flattering someone and being honest."
I kiss him back, resting my hand on his jaw. "You're obviously doing the first," I say between kisses.
"You obviously underestimate how beautiful you are," he murmurs, as our eyes close and he deepens the kiss.
The butterflies in my stomach make me feel a little sick, but I keep kissing him, never, ever wanting to leave this moment. "DINNER'S READY!" my mom's call from downstairs ends the kiss, and Alex stands, pulling me with him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dinner went surprisingly well. My mom and Alex got on so well, it was a little scary. The meal was spent with him telling us funny stories about Jack, or him raving over the food, which I think made my mom fall in love with him. She went completely head over heels when he offered to do dishes, which, of course she declined his offer and shooed us off to my room. My mom, encouraging me to be alone in my bedroom with an attractive guy. Not to mention I'm grounded. Something was off.
We both curl up on my bed together and watch TV. "Your mom's really nice," he says as he throws an arm around my shoulder.
"Yeah, don't be surprised if she tries stealing you away from me," I laugh. "I'm pretty sure she's in love with you."
He smiles, his eyes leaving me and watching the TV. "Lina's mom has got it going on," he sings softly, making my smile widen.
"Well, don't get me started on your dad..."
He rolls his eyes, then cuddles closer to me, wrapping both of his arms around me. We silently watch Full House reruns for a while, and I'm about to doze off when the sound of my dad catches my attention. It's almost impossible to hear over the sound of the TV, but it's obvious he and my mom are arguing again. I frown and curl up in a ball on Alex's lap, hoping he can't hear my parents downstairs. He hugs me a little tighter and presses a kiss onto the top of my head. A few minutes later the arguing gets louder as my dad comes upstairs and goes into my parents room.
I try casually turning the TV up a little bit louder, my face burning in embarrassment. Couldn't they at least wait until Alex left?
"I have a massive crush on Uncle Jesse," I announce, dragging my thoughts away from my annoyance.
"I'd bang Kimmy Gibbler in a heartbeat," he replies seriously.
I laugh and turn around to face him. "You're kidding, right?"
He shrugs his shoulders and smiles. "Nope."
I roll my eyes and turn back around, leaning against his chest. "Alexander, you are odd."
"As are you, Lina." He kisses the side of my face, sending an electric shock down my cheek.
I hear the front door shutting loudly, and a few minutes later my mom says from the other side of my door, "I'm going out, sweetie," in a fake voice.
"Bye," I respond, more than a little confused. First of all, my mom never goes out. Second, she was leaving me alone with Alex.
Before I can over think what's going on, his lips start kissing the back of my neck softly, making me completely forget about my family. "We're alone," he points out as he slides my sleeve off of my shoulder, planting kisses where the fabric had been.
"Excellent observation, Captain Obvious," I say sarcastically as I turn my body to face him.
He smirks and licks his lips has he stares at mine. "Who in their right mind leaves their highly attractive daughter alone with her extremely horny boyfriend?"
I grin and kiss his lips once. "Someone who knows that their daughter isn't gonna put out for a guy who she's hardly been dating."
His eyes flick up to mine, and the look he gives me makes my face heat up. "Hmm, you're no fun," he whines, before pushing me onto my back and pulling himself over me.
I smile and reach up to knot my fingers in his hair and pull his face down to mine. We kiss for a long time, and he apparently figured I wasn't joking about not putting out, because he doesn't try taking my clothes off.
When his phone starts ringing he moans softly against my lips, then pulls his phone out of his pocket and answers it without moving his body off of mine. "Hello?" he says, sounding a little annoyed at the interruption. "Jack I'm busy- no, you cannot-" he lets out a sigh. "Fine, I'll be there in a little bit. Whatever." He hangs up, then rolls off of me, a frown etched onto his face. "Jack got into a fight with his mom and is insisting he has to sleep over my house."
I laugh and sit up. "Aw, how cute. Are you guys gonna do each other's hair?" I tease.
He rolls his eyes and laughs before planting a soft kiss on my lips. "I'll call you after he falls asleep, okay?"
I nod once and kiss him again, before he stands and leaves.