Sorry for the short chapters. Keeping them short allows me to update more often because I don't have a whole lot of time during the week.
Emily sat on her window seat and gazed out at the clear, blue sky. It had only been a day since the incident, though it felt like weeks had passed.
After Spencer left yesterday, her mom had initiated lockdown. No phone. No internet. No TV. No girls. Nothing that might "trigger" her "disease".
She yearned to see Spencer's face and to talk with her about what had happened, but even more so, she longed to hear that warm, comforting voice that always put her at ease.
Emily was awoken from her trance as she heard a knock at the front door. She jumped up and ran to the staircase, but stopped at the first step when she saw her mom had already beaten her. Pam looked up at her sternly, as if to say "don't you dare," and turned to open the door.
It was Hanna. "Hi Mrs. Fields. Is Emily home?"
"She is, but she's grounded right now."
"Oh. Well, I guess I'll just see her tomorrow at school then."
"No. You won't be seeing her at school. We're moving Texas to be with her father. Tell your friends not to call or come here again." With that, Pam slammed the door and stood there, unmoving.
"Mom.." said Emily with a mix of desperation, disbelief, and confusion.
Without looking up at her daughter, Pam maintained her composure and said, "Please don't make this difficult Emily. It's already been decided. You need your father. I think his absence is causing you to act out." Then she turned and walked away.
Emily's knees were trembling, so she slowly lowered herself to sit on the staircase. She could feel a gut-wrenching pain in her stomach as her throat began to burn and her eyes filled with tears.