Chapter 1: I'm holding on, I'm strong
I always thought that university was my way out, my way to leave everything behind and start a new life.
A life that was mine and only mine.
A life were I didn't have to worry about whether or not my sister and stepbrother were being neglected, left to make their own way home from school, soccer practice, Tae Kwon Do or whatever other activity that my mom and George happen to have forgotten to pick them up from.
A life where I didn't have to worry about whether or not my mom would remember to make dinner or do the laundry.
A life where I could just be me and not worry about anyone else.
When my dad left, my mom took it pretty hard. She definitely came back from it but it took a while. During the time when she was down, I had to grow up fast. Lizzie was only 8 and I was only 11 but I knew that it was up to me to make sure we all came out of it okay.
I taught myself to cook, made sure my mom got up and off to work, walked Lizzie to school, made sure she did her homework, kept the house clean and the laundry done, all the while keeping my grades up. My mom relied on me to keep everyone and everything organized and I didn't let her down.
So when she got her life back together and married George, I thought I could go back to being a kid. I thought I was done being the grownup and dealing with everyone else's responsibilities. I could just focus on myself for a while and have the carefree life that all of my friends led.
But I was wrong. Instead of being relieved of some of my responsibilities, more were piled on. I got a new little stepsister who had always gotten her way and had been allowed to run wild and do as she pleased, a new stepbrother who was constantly coming up with schemes and business plans and another new stepbrother who thought he was the king of the world and therefore always got what he wanted.
The life I had worked so hard to organize went to chaos and it was like I had to start all over from the beginning. My carefree life turned into a mere fantasy, once again unreachable.
So when I graduated from high school this past June I thought I only had two months until I was finally free.
That's what I thought…until August arrived and everything changed. It's surprising how much can happen in one month.
A/N: Okay, so I know it's short but I just wanted to see if there was any interest. It will be a Dasey for anyone who was wondering. Please let me know if you think I should continue. Thanks :)