Sam

A pale pink room with light wood floors had a white bed in the middle with a nightstand next to it. The nightstand had several journals, and three pencils, ready to write the dreams of the small girl who slept there. Things in the room were plain because Sam was plain. This seven year old girl had things simple, no matter how much her extravagant mother tried to bling things up.
Sam walked into her room, wearing a long white nightgown, closely followed by her mother wearing a skintight party dress, ready to flirt with men all night. She was always overdressed, but ever since her husband left her, she seemed to be drowning in the jewelry and bright colors. Rushing her daughter into bed, she said

"The babysitter is downstairs if you need anything. I promise as soon as I get home, I will come check on you, okay?" It was the same routine every night, so Sam had her 'Yes, Mother' prepared. Her mother left and the room seemed heavy. Not the air, not the lack of light, but the room itself. As Sam laid back, falling asleep while doing so, her eyes flicked shut and her muscles relaxed once again. It had been a long day, and the days seem to be longer since her father ran off with another girl.

Jerking around in her bed as she tries to sleep, Sam couldn't keep her eyes shut. It had been another nightmare, and she needed to make sure she wasn't really in the car again. A loud car crash echoed through her room, but nobody else could hear. 'I must be imagining things again' she thought, trying to lock her brain from all thoughts reoccurring. She just wanted to sleep.
The crash noise continued to ring in her skull, pulling her to her wits end. Crying, she grabbed a notebook and pencil and began to write what was going on. That's what her mummy, Margaret, told her to do. If she wrote it, it would be out of her head and on paper, and couldn't scare her anymore. It wasn't working this time. Reading her words as they floated to the paper, she said
"My mum looks so scared, and she won't stop crying. I was scared too, but I tried to stay calm. I was pretending to sleep so I could hear what was happening. I knew they would lie if they knew I could hear, so I had to stay calm. Calm was all that was on my face, but panic filled my heart. A doctor walked in and I heard him talk to my mum. He said something about a lot of blood, and that he was sorry, but is couldn't figure out what was wrong. I decided to wake up, and my mummy looked even worse. She hugged me tightly, and I asked what was wrong. She said everything was fine, and it would be alright. I asked if Devon was okay, and she said he was all better. She told me that my only big brother was in a better place. I was happy to hear it because I was with him when he crashed the car. He told me he was sorry, and then drove straight into a tree. I was okay, but he looked hurt. Before he crashed, he looked so sad, and so tired. I am happy he is better now, I just wanted him to be better. I guess I got my wish."

Putting her journal back down, Sam closed her electric blue eyes and drifted into a tretchorous yet steady sleep. Her nightmares, though still causing heartache and nausea, failed to wake her the rest of the night.

Seven a.m. hit quicker than Sam had anticipated, yet she was glad to wake up and see the sunrise. Walking downstairs to an empty feeling kitchen, she began making herself some breakfast. When her shell of a mother walked in, Sam froze. She was a true mess, and had no idea the night Sam had was still causing a pinching numbness in her mind. Even if she did know of her daughter's discomfort, she won't care. Her own self was always, and will always be the first concern of hers. The conceited woman and the passive girl, who could ask for a better match? They truly fit together better than two puzzle pieces.

Sam decided not to go to school that day, so when her mother left for work, she went back to bed, blaring the telly as loud as she could to block out any screaming she might do. The neighbors couldn't know she was home alone, she had to be unnoticed. The noise was also comforting. It filled the room when there was a lack of life and air and feeling. Sam only wished she wouldn't need it.