Chapter 1
"Here," Steve said, handing a plate of chicken over to Jamie.
"No, that's okay," she said from across the table, refusing his offer.
"Aren't you hungry?" Steve asked, becoming worried-she'd been turning down food lately.
"Yeah, but that's too fattening," she complained, walking over to the fridge
for something healthier.
"Too fattening?" Steve questioned. "You look fine. You're not fat."
He was utterly bemused-he'd been living with Jamie, and her mom, Michelle, for almost 3 years. In all that time, Jamie had never been self-conscious about her weight or the way she looked.
"Yeah? Tell that to my mom," she said, seemingly upset as she left the kitchen.
~*~
"Why are you telling Jamie that she's fat?" Steve accused Michelle later that night, thinking Jamie was asleep.
"What do you mean?" Michelle asked, acting bewildered.
"Cut the shit, Michelle!" Steve growled. "She keeps complaining about how fattening everything is-she's never had this problem before."
"And why is this my fault?" Michelle asked, playing dumb.
"Because you are telling her things that are not true."
"Maybe, but the little bitch needs to stop acting so full of herself," Michelle quipped. "She's my daughter; she does what I tell her. She needs to realize that she's not so beautiful," Michelle said through clenched jaws, trying to hide the rage inside.
"Michelle, you must be the dumbest woman alive," Steve argued. "Jamie is
beautiful and talented, but you're just too jealous to realize it. I'm not going to deal with this anymore. I've had it with your shit about Jamie and your ex-husband, and whatever else you can find to complain about!"
Jamie, who had not been sleeping after all, was standing by her door- she'd heard everything. Steve Mertey was the only person who cared about her, and she loved him very much-but that night he packed his stuff and left for good.
~*~
After Steve left, things got worse for Jamie. Michelle made sure that Jamie ate only enough to stay alive-she was getting so thin she began to look like a walking skeleton.
She was not allowed to do anything but work: she went to school, came home, did housework/homework, pampered her mother-she hated her life. Worst of all-but it was the only thing that kept her going-she still had a whole year until her eighteenth birthday, until freedom.
"Michelle!" Jamie demanded from her room. She had stopped calling her "mom" after Steve left. Michelle walked in, a disgusted look on her face.
"I cleaned everything," she announced. "I'm going to make me some dinner," she said, heading for the kitchen.
"What are you making for us?" her mother said, acting all motherly like-it disgusted Jamie.
"Us?" Jamie said stopping, her eyebrows arched.
"Oh! So you're going to make your self something, but not your loving mother?" she asked sarcastically.
"Loving? Mother?" Jamie questioned again, feeling the urge to laugh.
"You little ungrateful bitch!" Michelle roared. "Go in your room! You don't get any food tonight!" she ordered.
"Fuck you!" Jamie said, walking towards the kitchen again-she was so hungry that she just didn't care anymore-she needed food.
"That's it! I've had it! If you want something done, you can do it yourself. And I'm NOT going to let you starve me anymore!"
"Get the hell out of my house!" Michelle ordered, her daughter's reaction catching her off guard.
"Fine with me," Jamie said, grabbing a sandwich from the fridge, trying to walk back to her room, but Michelle blocked her path.
"Where are you going?" she questioned.
"To get my stuff," Jamie replied angrily, trying to make her mother feel stupid.
"Everything in that room is mine! And you're not taking anything-so just leave!"
Jamie sighed regretfully and looked down at her feet. "I've been waiting to do this for a long time," Jamie said, grinning as she punched Michelle square in the jaw. Michelle immediately fell backwards, hitting her head on a nearby wall and knocking herself out cold. Jamie shook her head and proceeded to her room, packing most of her stuff into a duffel bag. She took advantage of her mother's unconsciousness and grabbed loads of food from the cupboards. As she walked towards the front door, her mother started to regain herself.
"Loved the stay, but I'm leaving now," Jamie said sassily to Michelle's face.
"Let's just see how you do on your own," she whispered wearily, slowly getting to her feet again.
Jamie opened the front door, but before she closed it, she warned, "Oh, if you decide to send the cops after me, I'll just tell them about how you were starving me and making me your little slave, then we'll see who gets in trouble." And with that, Jamie left her home, and her horrible mother. She knew where she wanted to go, but had no clue as to how she was going to get there.
~*~
God I look worse then I did when I lived with my mother, Jamie thought, looking at herself in disgust. She had hitchhiked her way from Tijuana Mexico to Los Angeles, California, and was now standing outside of Vince Lebrowitz's house. Although she had never seen her cousin's house, it was hardly difficult to find once she had the right neighborhood-after all, there aren't very many Vince Lebrowitz's in LA. She walked up to his front door, knocking loudly-unsure if Vince would be awake at 4AM. As she was raising her hand to beat on the door for a second time, it swung open, putting her face-to-face with a tall, muscle bound, bald, gorgeous guy who was definitely not her cousin.
"Does Vince Lebrowitz live here?" Jamie asked, wondering if she had the correct house.
"Yeah," the mysterious man said in a low, deep voice, turning and yelling, "V! Someone's at the door!" Instead of turning back to her, the man just walked into the dark
house, leaving her standing on the porch. She wasn't sure if she was supposed to just stand there or walk inside. But she didn't have much time to think on that, because a few seconds later a man appeared in the doorway- this she knew was her cousin.
"Jamie? What are you doing here? Where's Michelle?" Vince asked, one question spilling after the other. He was completely surprised to find his cousin standing on his doorstep this early in the morning.
"I decided I'd come visit you for a while," Jamie said, side-stepping the question about her mother. Vince gave her a curious look, but moved aside to let her in. She followed him through a small hallway that led to a semi large living area, where there were people sprawled all over the floor and furniture, but Vince seemed to pay them no mind.
"Have a party?" she asked playfully, looking at the people and grinning.
"Hell yeah!" Vince confirmed, looking back at her. Then he led her into a small room with two beds on each side.
"You can take that one," he said, pointing to the twin bed beside the wall as he collapsed onto the other one. Jamie giggled to herself, watching her drunken cousin fall asleep, before crashing out herself.
"Here," Steve said, handing a plate of chicken over to Jamie.
"No, that's okay," she said from across the table, refusing his offer.
"Aren't you hungry?" Steve asked, becoming worried-she'd been turning down food lately.
"Yeah, but that's too fattening," she complained, walking over to the fridge
for something healthier.
"Too fattening?" Steve questioned. "You look fine. You're not fat."
He was utterly bemused-he'd been living with Jamie, and her mom, Michelle, for almost 3 years. In all that time, Jamie had never been self-conscious about her weight or the way she looked.
"Yeah? Tell that to my mom," she said, seemingly upset as she left the kitchen.
~*~
"Why are you telling Jamie that she's fat?" Steve accused Michelle later that night, thinking Jamie was asleep.
"What do you mean?" Michelle asked, acting bewildered.
"Cut the shit, Michelle!" Steve growled. "She keeps complaining about how fattening everything is-she's never had this problem before."
"And why is this my fault?" Michelle asked, playing dumb.
"Because you are telling her things that are not true."
"Maybe, but the little bitch needs to stop acting so full of herself," Michelle quipped. "She's my daughter; she does what I tell her. She needs to realize that she's not so beautiful," Michelle said through clenched jaws, trying to hide the rage inside.
"Michelle, you must be the dumbest woman alive," Steve argued. "Jamie is
beautiful and talented, but you're just too jealous to realize it. I'm not going to deal with this anymore. I've had it with your shit about Jamie and your ex-husband, and whatever else you can find to complain about!"
Jamie, who had not been sleeping after all, was standing by her door- she'd heard everything. Steve Mertey was the only person who cared about her, and she loved him very much-but that night he packed his stuff and left for good.
~*~
After Steve left, things got worse for Jamie. Michelle made sure that Jamie ate only enough to stay alive-she was getting so thin she began to look like a walking skeleton.
She was not allowed to do anything but work: she went to school, came home, did housework/homework, pampered her mother-she hated her life. Worst of all-but it was the only thing that kept her going-she still had a whole year until her eighteenth birthday, until freedom.
"Michelle!" Jamie demanded from her room. She had stopped calling her "mom" after Steve left. Michelle walked in, a disgusted look on her face.
"I cleaned everything," she announced. "I'm going to make me some dinner," she said, heading for the kitchen.
"What are you making for us?" her mother said, acting all motherly like-it disgusted Jamie.
"Us?" Jamie said stopping, her eyebrows arched.
"Oh! So you're going to make your self something, but not your loving mother?" she asked sarcastically.
"Loving? Mother?" Jamie questioned again, feeling the urge to laugh.
"You little ungrateful bitch!" Michelle roared. "Go in your room! You don't get any food tonight!" she ordered.
"Fuck you!" Jamie said, walking towards the kitchen again-she was so hungry that she just didn't care anymore-she needed food.
"That's it! I've had it! If you want something done, you can do it yourself. And I'm NOT going to let you starve me anymore!"
"Get the hell out of my house!" Michelle ordered, her daughter's reaction catching her off guard.
"Fine with me," Jamie said, grabbing a sandwich from the fridge, trying to walk back to her room, but Michelle blocked her path.
"Where are you going?" she questioned.
"To get my stuff," Jamie replied angrily, trying to make her mother feel stupid.
"Everything in that room is mine! And you're not taking anything-so just leave!"
Jamie sighed regretfully and looked down at her feet. "I've been waiting to do this for a long time," Jamie said, grinning as she punched Michelle square in the jaw. Michelle immediately fell backwards, hitting her head on a nearby wall and knocking herself out cold. Jamie shook her head and proceeded to her room, packing most of her stuff into a duffel bag. She took advantage of her mother's unconsciousness and grabbed loads of food from the cupboards. As she walked towards the front door, her mother started to regain herself.
"Loved the stay, but I'm leaving now," Jamie said sassily to Michelle's face.
"Let's just see how you do on your own," she whispered wearily, slowly getting to her feet again.
Jamie opened the front door, but before she closed it, she warned, "Oh, if you decide to send the cops after me, I'll just tell them about how you were starving me and making me your little slave, then we'll see who gets in trouble." And with that, Jamie left her home, and her horrible mother. She knew where she wanted to go, but had no clue as to how she was going to get there.
~*~
God I look worse then I did when I lived with my mother, Jamie thought, looking at herself in disgust. She had hitchhiked her way from Tijuana Mexico to Los Angeles, California, and was now standing outside of Vince Lebrowitz's house. Although she had never seen her cousin's house, it was hardly difficult to find once she had the right neighborhood-after all, there aren't very many Vince Lebrowitz's in LA. She walked up to his front door, knocking loudly-unsure if Vince would be awake at 4AM. As she was raising her hand to beat on the door for a second time, it swung open, putting her face-to-face with a tall, muscle bound, bald, gorgeous guy who was definitely not her cousin.
"Does Vince Lebrowitz live here?" Jamie asked, wondering if she had the correct house.
"Yeah," the mysterious man said in a low, deep voice, turning and yelling, "V! Someone's at the door!" Instead of turning back to her, the man just walked into the dark
house, leaving her standing on the porch. She wasn't sure if she was supposed to just stand there or walk inside. But she didn't have much time to think on that, because a few seconds later a man appeared in the doorway- this she knew was her cousin.
"Jamie? What are you doing here? Where's Michelle?" Vince asked, one question spilling after the other. He was completely surprised to find his cousin standing on his doorstep this early in the morning.
"I decided I'd come visit you for a while," Jamie said, side-stepping the question about her mother. Vince gave her a curious look, but moved aside to let her in. She followed him through a small hallway that led to a semi large living area, where there were people sprawled all over the floor and furniture, but Vince seemed to pay them no mind.
"Have a party?" she asked playfully, looking at the people and grinning.
"Hell yeah!" Vince confirmed, looking back at her. Then he led her into a small room with two beds on each side.
"You can take that one," he said, pointing to the twin bed beside the wall as he collapsed onto the other one. Jamie giggled to herself, watching her drunken cousin fall asleep, before crashing out herself.