Walk Through Hell

I groaned and, reluctantly, got into his car. It smelled like cologne. Not axe, though, which I guess is a good thing.

After a few moments of awkward silence, I said, "You know, you can just drop me off at the end of this road, and I'll walk the rest of the way."

"No, it's cold and it's raining, and you'll get sick."

I groaned as he drove off. It's been like the UK lately. Just cold and rainy. The silence grew awkward and I turned on his radio. It was Blur! I guess it was a mixed CD because when Boys and Girls ended, Parklife came on.

I was humming along to the chorus, when he reminded me, "I don't know where your mom's is, so you're going to have to give me directions."

"Umm... I need to run to the grocery store, then I'll walk home. Drop me off at Kroger?"

"Have you looked out the window? I can barely see to drive!"

"Which is why you should try to get home sooner. It'll be safer. I live on a narrow road."

"Lexie!"

"Fine. I guess you'll wanna take a left at this light then." He turned. "And a right here." Right turn. I sighed. "And... the next right." He still didn't understand where we were? "And... left here." There they were.

"Where?"

"Right up here."

"Here?"

"YES! TURN!"

He took the right turn, barely making it.

"Uhh, which one is yours?"

"Fifth one down." Fifth trailer down.

I opened the car door as he slowed down. "Do you... need anything?" Oh great. Now I'm a charity case. F.uckin wonderful.

"Look, my family's doing just fine. Don't treat me like some broken little girl, okay? Thanks for the ride." I slammed the door shut.

I just can't catch a freaking break, huh?

I walked in the door. Ratbastard was drinking probably his eighth beer. I threw him a pack of cigarettes. While giving my passed out mom the once over.

"These aren't right." he slurred.

"They're Newports."

"It's open."

Shit. I must've given him the wrong pack. "I'm a minor. I can't buy cigarettes. I did the best I could."

He stumbled out of his chair. "NO! YOU SMOKED THEM! YOU F.UCKIN BRAT! I PAYED FOR THEM! ARE YOU WASTING MY MONEY?!"

Umm, actually I payed for them. His screaming woke my mom up.

I just stood there quiet while my mom told him to sit back down.

"No, she has to learn her lesson," he said, picking up an empty beer bottle and chucking it at me. He missed, but a shard that flew off the wall hit the back of my arm.

I wasn't gonna stick around for more. I started for the door when another bottle went whizzing by my head.

"You DON'T walk away from me!" he screamed.

"Just chill the f.uck out!" I yelled.

"What did you just say to me?"

I ducked. His aim was getting better.

"Just... chill." I said.

"You're lucky I f.uckin took you in."

"You took me in? You were forced to! It's the only way you can the money for this dump!" I started giving in to his yelling.

He came at me and pushed me. The door flew open and I landed in the dirt, managing to avoid the arm with the glass in it, scraping up my other arm in the process.

"Hey!" someone yelled. Familiar voice.

"You stay out of this, kid." ratbastard yelled.

"Stop throwing her around." I must have hit my head when I fell, cos I couldn't remember that voice to save my life.

He came and picked me up. The mysterious owner of that voice. Oh. It's him. What, is he stalking me now?

"You can't take her!" ratbastard slurred.

"You can't hit her!" He shoved me into the front seat of his car. I barely understood what was going on around me. I really think I did hit my head on a rock or something. F.uck it hurt.

The door slammed shut. Then the other opened and shut. The light in the car was open. He leaned over me. "Are you okay?"

"What the fuck is your problem? I couldv'e handled that just fine." I tried yelling. I don't even think he understood what I said.

"I'm taking you to the hospital." He buckled me up and started his car. We were five minutes down the road, and everything started mixing together. It just got more and more jumbled and darker, until it just went out.

A bright light woke me up. I was in a hospital bed, still in my normal clothes, being run through a hallway or something. My father and step-mom were there.

"Honey, what happened?" my dad asked.

"I... Fr... Bottle... Cig... Ground..." I couldn't speak. Where the hell was I? How did I get here? Why was I going so fast? There were just people in white rushing me down a hallway.

Jake came forward and I started to remember. I blacked out again though, because the next thing I remember was waking up to him explaining the story again, I guess.

"Wait, she's awake." My dad said.

"Sweetie, are you okay? Can I get you anything?" Caroline.

"Water." I choked out. They both ran out of the room to get me a bottle of water.

I didn't see him at first, but there he was. Sitting in the chair. He cleared his throat, while I just stared at him.

"You'd left your cell phone in my car." He choked out. "I called your dad once I pulled into the parking lot."

I waited a while. "Thanks, I guess. So... what happened?"

He stared at me a while, quizically. Asking if I was serious. He started to explain anyways. "You're, uh, step-dad I guess--"

"I don't have a step-dad. You must mean ratbastard. He's my mom's boyfriend."

"Uh, yeah, he sort of, got you out of the... house... you were in. You looked like you were in trouble, so I brought you here. You had some glass in your arm." He was lying. I heard him recalling the end to my dad and Caroline. Whatsisname threw me out of the trailer and I'd hit my head. "Some of it was lodged in your arm. In a major vein."

Didn't remember that part. I thought there was just a bit in the back of my arm.

"You landed on your right side, and you broke two of your ribs." he finished. I pulled up my gown out of the covers up to my ribs. My entire torso was bandaged.

"Here you go. I didn't know if you wanted flavored or not, so I just got everything." My dad said, piling six water bottles into my lap. I grabbed the normal Dasani and drank it.

After I put the water bottle down, Caroline reached down and hugged me. "You're never going back there again." I didn't know how to react.

I mean, I didn't want to go back again. But it was my mother, at the same time. I had to see her. I just patted Caroline's back. She wasn't my favorite person in the world, but she seemed sincere. This didn't look like the best time to try to fight.

My dad held my hand when she sat up and told me I'd be let out before the night was over.

It was like, 2 in the morning. I ended up leaving at 3:30. My dad drove Jake home because he looked tired. He was probably pretty freaked out, too.

Caroline stayed with me until I got out and then drove me home in our car. I fell asleep on the way home, not knowing what to say.