Chapter 9
I don't leave my room for the rest of Saturday. Penny sleeps soundly in the nook created by my fetal position. She makes small wheezing noises as she nuzzles her head deeper into my side. I run my hands down her fur over and over again, tears escaping from my eyes. I watch through my blinds as the sun goes down. I fade into a light sleep for what feels like hours, but is only two, because I'm woken up by a knock at my door.
"Lia? It's mom" the voice calls out and enters my bedroom. I turn around, disturbing Penny and causing her slip under my covers.
"Yeah?" I say and rub my eyes.
"I'm sorry if I woke you up" she apologizes with a frown.
"It's okay" I shrug. She sits at the end of my bed.
"I miss you" she admits and rubs my left leg. My eyes soften.
"I miss you too" I repeat with a grin. She's sober.
"You've been cooped up all day, how do you feel about getting pizza?"my mother suggestsand my core begins to warm.
"Can we get ice cream instead?" I ask in a somewhat whine.
"Yeah, we can" she laughs and so do I.
"I just have to take a quick shower" I announce but refrain from getting out of bed.
"Alright, I'll let you do that" my mom grins and exits my bedroom. I throw my covers off and go straight to my full length mirror.
The inside of my thighs are bruised from where he held my legs open. There's a bit of dry blood on my inner thigh. I lift up my shirt and see my ribs also bruised from the fight I put up. I look away.
I put on my robe and grab a towel. Penny follows me into the bathroom, as per usual, and I turn on the hot water. I slip into the shower and wash every crevice of my being, three times. I scrub and scrub and scrub, but I still don't feel clean. I give up and dry off, wrap my hair in a towel, and throw on a plain black pair of leggings and a red sweatshirt. I put on my grey converse and I pound my way down the stairs, throw on my purse so it's strapped across my chest. I walk into the kitchen and see my mother.
"Ready?" I ask with a small grin.
"Yeah, lets go" she grins back and grabs her keys.
We get in the Volvo.
"So, Baskin Robbins or McSweaney's?" my mother asks while pulling out of the driveway.
"McSweaney's of course" I reply. Bon Jovi plays for the ride there.
"I'll have vanilla soft serve in a cone, please" my mother tells the man behind the counter at the ice cream store. He's tall, dark complexion, green eyes.
"Can I get rocky road in a sugar cone, please?" I ask the man.
"Of course you can. That'll be $10.75" he replies and my mother pays. He assembles and hands each of us our desserts.
"Thanks so much" I grin and the two of us accept our treat and take a seat at a small booth.
"Good?" my mother asks with brows raised as I dig into my ice cream almost savagely.
"As always" I reply with a smile. We sit in silence for a while, focused solely on eating.
"Your school called" my mom pipes up from behind her ice cream "You've missed forty days of school and it's only the middle of October" she continues and I sink into my seat without a word.I fiddle with my fingers and remain silent. "You won't graduate if you keep this up" she tacks on to the charge, I still don't respond.
"I'll graduate if they let me go onto home tutoring" I mumble and avoid eye contact. My mother sighs.
"They said it's going to take another week and a few meetings" she informs me from across the table. "We're scheduled to meet with your guidance counselor and your vice principle Monday morning at 8" she continues andmy stomach sinks.
"Ugh" I groan and slump back in my seat, rubbing my eyes with the palms of my hands. "This is going to suck" I say and sink lower. I lock eyes with my mother and her frown takes a blow to my chest. I slap on a fake smile in hopes of wiping that frown away, and it works. She grins.
"It'll suck but I'll get over it" I announce and lean forward.
"Thank you" she replies a little bit lighter than before.
"You're welcome" I reply warmly.
I decide not to mention that I know she lost her job, that I know John is paying the mortgage and that if I don't give him what he wants we get evicted, which would most likely mean we would have to move in with him. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what that would mean for me. I gulp, accompanied by a yawn. I glance at my watch to see it's passed 9pm.
"What do you say we start heading home, I'm exhausted" I suggest with a pit in my stomach and take a lick of my ice cream.
"Sure" my mother replies and we're out of the shop minutes later. We arrive home shortly after and I kick off my shoes.
"Thanks for the ice cream" I grin at my mother and give her a tight hug.
"Anytime baby" she replies and hugs me tightly back. We stay in that position for a number of seconds, I breathe in the scent of her skin, the same scent that's brought me comfort for fifteen years. Baby oil and Donna Karen Gold perfume. I immediately relax.
"Would you mind if I slept in your bed tonight?" I ask timidly, cringing at the thought of sleeping in the same bed that reeked of cigarettes and bourbon.
"Of course" she replies and kisses me on the forehead.
"Okay, I'll go get change" I announce and unhook myself from my mother and head up to my room. I walk in and Penny is sleeping on my dresser. I immediately go to my bed and rip its comforter off, then strip the pillows, then rip off my blue sheets that are stained with small drops of blood. I shove the linins under my bed and wipe a tear that has escaped from my left eye. I change into a baggy grey sleep shirt and cross over to my mother's room. I climb into her queen sized bed that smells of her, and I'm asleep in minutes.
I wake up the next morning, a Sunday, my mother soundly asleep next to me. I go back to sleep, the sound sleep I have craved for so long. I spend the day fading in and out of consciousness, my mind blank. I do not dream, and my mother doesn't bother me. Not an ounce of energy in my body. I briefly wake in the afternoon and see a PB&J sitting on the nightstand next to me. I grin and robotically take small bites out of the sandwich. I leave a quarter of it behind and take a swig from the water bottle on the floor next to me. I fall back asleep.
I officially wake up at 5:42am, Monday morning. I am fully aware that i have to endure a meeting at school, and I'm less than thrilled. I sit up and stretch, put my hair into a pony tail, and head downstairs and into the kitchen. I turn on the coffee maker and brew a cup, and I drink it on my front porch with my knees pulled to my chest. I listen as the world around me wakes, birds chirping and cars starting. I feel my eye lids getting heavy, I check my watch and it's already half passed six. I go inside and take a shower, Penny sitting on the toilet lid as per usual. I finish washing myself and turn off the water, twist my hair in with my towel, and brush my teeth. After reaching my bedroom I pull on a pair of black jeans, a cream colored v-neck sweater that fits closely around my torso. I let my hair down and allow it to air dry as I apply a small amount of concealer on and around my eyes, trying to mask the bags that have stationed themselves below my lower lid. I don't bother with further makeup and slip on my hazelnut oxfords. I grab my back pack and head into my moms room, where she is not.
On my fifteen minute walk to school I stop at the local deli and pick up an egg sandwich and a bag of potato chips for Ethan, a veggie humus wrap and strawberry yogurt for me, and two chocolate milks. I pay for it all and I'm on my way again, and I reach the school in a matter of minutes. Hundreds of teenagers are milling around the front lawn, slowly pouring into the temporary prison that stands in front of me. I take three deep breaths and keep my eyes glued to the ground as I walk up the concrete walk way and through a set of metal doors. I enter the lobby of the building and students are milling everywhere. I make a bee-line for the library, where Ethan is sitting in our usual meeting spot.
"Hey" I sit down and toss Ethan his sandwich accompanied by his chocolate drink.
"Hey, thanks" he replies and unwraps his food.
"No problem" I nod, take a seat, and open my yogurt. "How was the rest of your weekend?" I ask as Ethan gnaws at his sandwich.
"Fine, boring. You?" he says with his mouth full.
"About the same" I respond and shove a spoon full of yogurt into my trap. The pit in my stomach that the events of Saturday left in my stomach stirs. I don't even think about saying a word about what I endured. Before Ethan can answer my phone begins to ring from my back pocket, making me jump.
"Who the hell is calling you at 7:45 in the morning?" Ethan asks with a raised brow.
"Beats me" I reply as I reach for my phone. I look at the caller ID and my nerves are at ease. "Spencer does apparently" I declare and put the phone to my ear.
"Hey" I answer with perk.
"Hey, h-how are you?" Spencer asks from the other end.
"Good, good. What about you?" I respond.
"I'm good, thanks" he replies, "I thought I'd call and let you know that we're on our way back to Virginia now, we should arrive in a couple of hours" he informs me.
"Oh, that was quick" I nod my head in understanding although he can see it. "You solved a case in three days?" I say in slight disbelief.
"Uh- yeah, yeah we did" he says back and I can tell from the tone of his voice that he's grinning.
"Damn, you guys must be good" I counter and take a small bite of my yogurt. "I can stop by later if you want" I offer as a reflex.
"Yeah- yeah sure. I'll be at the BAU until late so you can come by whenever you want" he responds and I work the trip out in my head.
"I have practice until 4:30 so can be there by half passed five" I assure him and cross my legs.
"Great, so I'll see you then" he replies.
"Yeah, see you then" I repeat and we hang up. I let out a long breath.
"Long day, huh?" Ethan pipes up. I open my mouth to answer and the first period bell rings. I roll my eyes. I go to speak again and a voice comes over the loud speaker:
"Lia Reid, please report to the guidance office. Lia Reid please report to the guidance office" the voice repeats.
"Ugh" I grunt and stand up, throwing my backpack over my shoulder. Ethan laughs. "Guess I'll see you later" I say monotone and reluctantly make my way down the hall.