A/N: I don't even know what this is. It's just that I have been reading a lot of awesome stories here and hadn't written in a while so I thought why not. I was inspired by some of the very good young Remy fics as I have been watching a lot of House and always liked 13.
The strap on her backpack slipped further down her shoulder so she hiked it back up and slowed her pace to a walk. Remy loved school, she liked learning and she was actually pretty smart, but she couldn't wait to get home today. She wanted to get home, because she couldn't wait to show her dad her report card. Lately her dad has been really busy looking after her mom, but she was hoping that her report card of straight A's would be enough to distract some of the attention away from her mum's failing health.
When Remy walked through the door she knew that not even perfect grades would be enough to get her dad's attention today. Her mum's cries echoed through the hallway and she heard the sound of glass shattering. Not wanting to get involved she slipped up the stairway and into her room. She unpacked the contents of her backpack onto her desk and pulled her discman out of the drawer. Slipping in her headphones Remy got an early start on the math homework due next week. The irony wasn't lost on her that the very thing she hoped would get her parents attention was what she did to hide out from them.
It wasn't long before her stomach started to growl and she knew she would have to go downstairs soon. She had skipped lunch, opting to hide out in the bathroom so no one would notice her not eating. It wasn't that she was anorexic or anything. In fact Remy rarely gave her looks a second thought. She knew that people called her pretty, but she didn't have any interest in her looks. She knew that a lot of girls her age were really into that, but she just didn't know what all the fuss is about. No, she hadn't had breakfast or lunch for the last couple of days because there wasn't much food in the house. She couldn't remember the last time her dad had gone grocery shopping and every time she offered to go he told her not to be ridiculous he would go that evening.
Finally the hunger in her stomach got to be too much and Remy set her pencil down. She pulled the headphones out of her ears and was glad to hear no loud noises. When she got downstairs she was surprised to see that her dad's keys were missing from the front hall table. Remy realized that it wasn't just quiet it was silent. Her parents had gone out without consulting her. "Well I guess it is up to me to make supper...again" Remy grumbled. She opened the fridge, the pantry and every cupboard she could reach, but all she could find were condiments and two cans of garbanzo beans. Not knowing what the hell to do with garbanzo beans, Remy made a decision. Grapping a handful of cash from the stash she knew her dad hid in an old peanut butter jar and her jacket Remy ran out the door figuring she would be back from the store without her parents even noticing her absence.
After walking 6 miles to the store, grabbing as much food as she could carry and pay for and walking the 6 miles back (which took almost twice as long because the bags kept hitting her legs and causing her trip), Remy finally made it home. Her stomach dropped as her gaze fell upon the car in the driveway. If her parents were home that meant she wouldn't be able to slip in unnoticed. She felt conflicted. She didn't want to get yelled at but at least it meant her parents had noticed her lengthy absence. She screwed up her courage and walked through the front door, beelining for the kitchen, where her dad and mum sat wordlessly. "Hi" Remy squeaked.
"Where the hell where you?" Her father's strained voice was almost pleading and Remy felt a surge of guilt. She knew he had so much on his plate already; she didn't want to be a burden like her mum. Remy's head snapped up as she realized what she had just thought. She knew her mum had a disease and it wasn't her fault, but for the first time Remy was blaming her. Realizing that her dad was staring at her expecting a response as she raged an internal battle over her feelings towards her mother, Remy mumbled "I thought I would help out by getting the groceries".
Her dad's features softened but before he could say anything her mother's arm launched itself sideways and his focus was completely back on her. Remy watched him calm her as she cursed her stupid disease for a few minutes before starting to put the groceries away. When she had finished she grabbed a pizza pop, heated it up and headed upstairs to listen to music, or read, or do anything that could take her away from here.