Backpacking
"I just want ya to know that I completely resent this idea." Rocket growled at Alexi. In response she slightly kicked her backpack, which Rocket was in.
"If you don't shut up you're gonna be skinned alive!" She hissed under her breath at him. "Plus, you've already made your opinion on this matter very clear!" Rocket grumbled under his breath and tried to get more comfortable inside the stuffy backpack. It didn't help that almost everything inside the backpack was hard and jabbing at him.
Why does one girl need so many flarkin different makeup products? Rocket thought angrily as yet another makeup kit jabbed his back. Groot had his small arms wrapped around him as the backpack jostled when the truck hit a small ditch.
"Why were you late?" The man asked softly. Rocket poked his head out of the bag slightly to look at the Terran that was driving the truck. He was a well muscled man with light almost warm eyes and a smile on his lips. His hair was a dusty color and clung to his head like it was glued there. He didn't necessarily look unkind but he gave off that vibe of someone about to boil over. He's probably her father. Rocket thought.
"Why do you care?" Alexi answered the man's question. He stiffened and then turned to glare at her, his light eyes turning harsh and cold. His smile curled into a sneer and the next thing Rocket knew his hand was off the steering wheel and lashing across Alexi's face. Rocket flinched as he heard the skin on skin contact and stole a glance at Alexi. She was holding the side of her face where a black and blue hand-print was forming.
"Answer my question!" This time his voice was loud and harsh like someone cracked a whip in the air. Groot started shaking in his pot and Rocket slowly crawled back farther into the backpack. Well I guess that explains why she didn't want to take any of us. Rocket thought. All of a sudden the millions of makeup containers made sense. She was trying to hide bruises and hand-prints and whatever else happened to her face.
"It's none of your business why I was late." Alexi growled. From the sound of her voice Alexi was facing the window. Good choice kid.
The man laughed and the rest of the ride was silent, only broken every so often by them hitting a ditch in the road.
When they finally arrived at Alexi's place Rocket dared to peek out of the backpack. The house was actually a shack that was leaning to one side. A broken gravel path led to the front steps that looked ready to cave in. The windows were broken in places and a tangled web of weeds was the bare remnant of a garden. Some smoke puffed out of the chimney and the front door opened with a spooky creak. In the doorway stood a girl that looked a little older then Alexi with long brown hair and perfectly tanned skin. She had light makeup on and as Alexi walked past, the girl shoved her hard from behind. Alexi stumbled but kept walking as the girl laughed.
Rocket lept out of the backpack the moment Alexi set it down and shut the door of what was apparently her room. The walls were wooden and bare, the frosted window had spiderweb cracks running up the middle and besides a few random items laying around the only furniture was a small bed and a dresser.
"What the heck type of family is that?!" Rocket asked as Alexi sat down on her bed and pulled out a thing of skin color liquid to start applying to her face. She shrugged.
"It's not a family." She mumbled. When Rocket stared at her, his eyes pleading for answers, she set down the makeup container. "Okay look, those two are my stepdad and older stepsister Veronica. My mom had an affair with another man, my dad, while she was married to my stepdad. When he found out, which was when she was pregnant with me, he threw her out but got sole custody of me and my stepsister. They both hate me though so yeah sometimes they'll hit me." Rocket scoffed under his breath. "Fine, they always hit me and Veronica kinda makes sure that everyone at school hates me." Alexi finished.
"Why do you stay here?" Rocket asked. "Why not go and live with Harmony or Courtney? They'll probably be happy to help you out." Before Alexi could answer a loud voice shouted up the stairs.
"Alexandria!" Her stepdad yelled. Alexi winced. Birth name. Rocket guessed. Alexi is her nickname.
"What?" She yelled back down to her stepdad.
"You have a call from the walking zombie." Came the reply. Alexi's face twisted in rage.
"DON'T YOU EVER CALL COURTNEY A ZOMBIE AGAIN!" She screamed. Rocket's ears involuntarily fell down against his head and Groot shrunk down in his pot. Damn that girl had a set of pipes! Alexi stormed down the stairs with a muttered "stay here" to Rocket and Groot.
"I am Groot!" Groot wailed in distress.
"Yeah I know this is bad, I don't see how it could get worse though." Rocket bit his tongue as the words left his mouth. "Oh krutack! Why do I always say stupid shit like that! Now the universe is gonna send some extra bad luck our way just to get a good laugh outta us!" Groot snickered. "Oh you think that's funny?" Rocket asked.
"I am Groot." Groot shook his head quickly. Rocket's bristling fur was just calming down when Alexi came barreling back into the room. "I am Groot!" Groot shrieked in shock as Alexi grabbed both him and Rocket, hurling them back into her backpack.
"Ow! Hey!" Rocket shouted as Alexi zipped the bag almost completely shut. "What's going on?" Rocket asked.
"Pipe down." Alexi hissed as she threw the bag on her back. Then Alexi took off running down the stairs. Rocket was flipped around and around with each step as the backpack bounced harshly against Alexi's back. When the door to the house slammed shut Rocket had a rolling case of nausea. Alexi flipped her leg over something and Rocket heard wheels running over gravel as he started moving.
"Where are we going?" Rocket shouted. He stuck his snout out of the backpack to get a better look at what was going on. The world zoomed by in quick bursts of color and shapes and Rocket felt his fur flying around wildly. "What happened?" He asked again, this time louder to be heard over the suddenly whirling wind.
"There's been an accident!" Alexi called back. "Drax and Harmony are gone!" Rocket let out a hiss. Me and my big flarkin mouth!