Three Days

It was Saturday, finally, and after a restless night's sleep I was finally up. Liz had left. She left some time before nine this morning. I pretended to be asleep when she checked in on me. I also made sure that my injury from last night's events was hidden. I didn't need a lecture from Liz this early in the morning. As soon as Liz left, I fired up the laptop and logged in. Maybe my angel would be online, maybe she missed talking to me as much as I missed talking to her.

I smirked when I saw her name, she was online. I started having an internal debate. Should I initiate contact or should I let her? If she was to initiate the conversation then I'd know that she wanted to talk to me, but if I left it too long she might sign out… too late.

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Hey

Dodger: Hey

Blue-Eyed-Angel: So, what's been going on?

Dodger: Nothing much… Well apart from the fact that I really needed to talk to you yesterday and you weren't online, even after you told me the day before you were going to be

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Okay, I'm sensing an angry tone

Dodger: Are you alright?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Yes

Dodger: Not sick?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: No

Dodger: School kept you behind?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: No

Dodger: Something wrong with your mom?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: No

Dodger: Did your dad show up?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: No

Dodger: …I'm running out of viable excuses here

Blue-Eyed-Angel: I was at my grandparents

Dodger: Were they sick?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: No… It's a weekly dinner, my mom and I have to go and in return they pay for my school tuition

Dodger: Weekly dinner? And how long has this been going on for?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Not long, a couple of months or so

Dodger: So long enough for you to know you'd to go there on Friday night?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: I guess

Dodger: Why didn't you tell me?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Because I forgot… Why are you so angry anyway? …I forgot and I couldn't get out of it, if I could then I would've, trust me… I like talking to you

Dodger: Why am I so angry?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Yes, that's what I asked… Why are you so angry?

Dodger: Maybe for the fact that I really needed to talk to my angel yesterday…

Blue-Eyed-Angel: My angel?

Dodger: Then things went from bad to worse…

Blue-Eyed-Angel: My angel?

Dodger: First is the fact that my mother lost her job, again, and then she decided to get drunk. Drunk enough that she lashed out at me with her fist, so now I am sporting a bruised cut eyebrow…

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Wait… Your mom hit you?

Dodger: And it hurts every time I blink or do any facial expression for that matter… and you weren't… and you weren't there, I wanted… I needed you, my angel, but you were nowhere to be found

Blue-Eyed-Angel: I'm sorry, I… Are you alright?

Dodger: Sure… I will be… even more when I can meet you

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Yeah, it's going to be great

Dodger: Really?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Of course, I'm waiting for the day where you get me to skip school and we spend the day reading

Dodger: Correction

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Go ahead

Dodger: I will be the one reading to you

Blue-Eyed-Angel: How could I forget about that? It was the best part of the plan… So are you really alright? How's your eye?

Dodger: My eye's fine, just a little sore

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Skillfully avoiding the question about your wellbeing, I see

Dodger: Well, it is a gift

Blue-Eyed-Angel: How are you? The truth this time, Dodger, no dodging the question… Oh my god, Dodger… dodging… too funny

Dodger: Very amusing

Blue-Eyed-Angel: I know, wait where was I? … Ah, so you're alright?

Dodger: No

Blue-Eyed-Angel: No? Really? What's the matter?

Dodger: Everything

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Everything? You're going to have to give me more to go on here Dodger

Dodger: I'm seventeen

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Right

Dodger: I'm… Why am I putting up with everything when I don't have to?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: What do you mean? … Is this about your mom hitting you because you need to speak up about that?

Dodger: It was an accident

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Really?

Dodger: Yeah, she wasn't herself… You're steering me off topic

Blue-Eyed-Angel: I'm sorry, go ahead

Dodger: Why don't I just run away? Nothing's keeping me here

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Where would you go?

Dodger: Wherever you are

Blue-Eyed-Angel: And if I don't tell you where I am?

Dodger: Then I'll search the whole east coast looking for you… I won't stop until I find you

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Hmm, I'm guessing it'd be easier for me to just tell you where I live

Dodger: So you're going to tell me?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: No

Dodger: No? …Why? I'm not a stalker

Blue-Eyed-Angel: I know, it's just… I don't know… You're great, but what if you don't like me when you meet me?

Dodger: I'll like you… how could I not?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: You don't know for sure

Dodger: Listen, my angel, if I like you this much after only talking to you for three days, then just imagine how much more I'll like you when we meet… I'd probably faint

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Really?

Dodger: Yes

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Can't you just work it out?

Dodger: I don't think that I can… Since meeting you I want to do better and I can't do that here

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Why?

Dodger: Everything here is holding me back. I think maybe if I can get a fresh start then I can change, I can do better

Blue-Eyed-Angel: How about one week?

Dodger: One week what?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: One week and I'll tell you my address

Dodger: Why a week? Why not now?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Because I know that the minute I give you my address you're going to come straight here… I'm giving you the chance to say goodbye, the chance to pack up some of your stuff

Dodger: Fine, but I really don't have anyone to say goodbye to and the people I want to say goodbye to will only take a couple of hours

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Okay fine, three days

Dodger: Three days?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Yes, in three days I'll tell you where I live… Can you last that long?

Dodger: I don't know

Blue-Eyed-Angel: I'll make it a week again

Dodger: Fine, I can wait that long

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Good

Dodger: So tell me about your dinner that ruined my day

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Umm, well, my mom decided to cluck every time someone used a word with the letter 'e' in it, she blamed it on a hypnotist she met, but her parents didn't believe her

Dodger: Lol

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Lol? Really?

Dodger: Sure, why not

Blue-Eyed-Angel: I thought you said you'd never use that acronym

Dodger: Well, things change… I'm happy for once in my life

Blue-Eyed-Angel: And why are you happy?

Dodger: Because I get to meet my angel in three days

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Well that depends on how close we live to one another

Dodger: True… So do you live close to me?

Blue-Eyed-Angel: I don't know, do I?

Dodger: I'm thinking yes

Blue-Eyed-Angel: And what's the reasoning behind this assumption?

Dodger: No reasoning, just hope… but either way I'd travel across the globe to meet you

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Well, seeing as we live on the same coast it shouldn't be too far for you then

Dodger: See, told you I was right… shit

Blue-Eyed-Angel: What?

Dodger: I think my mom's home

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Let me guess you have to go

Dodger: Yeah, I'll miss you though

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Dodger?

Dodger: Yeah

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Try not to get hit

Dodger: Lol, I'll try

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Will you be back online later today?

Dodger: I'll see, but I hope

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Yeah, me too

Dodger: Bye, my angel

Blue-Eyed-Angel: Bye, Dodger

Dodger has signed off

I quickly turned the laptop off and stashed it safely in the closet.

"Jess," Liz said as she opened my door.

I jumped away from the closet quickly and prayed Liz didn't search it and find the laptop.

"Yeah?" I said. "Did you find a job yet?"

I figured I could provoke her a little. I wasn't going to be here in three days.

"No."

"What? Weren't they hiring at the bar you went to?" I asked her in mock confusion. "Shame."

"How'd you get that cut?" Liz asked me.

"Nowhere," I responded.

"You've been fighting again, haven't you?" Liz said slurring all the words together.

"No," I answered truthfully.

"You're lying to me, Jess," Liz said as she takes a swing at me.

This was usually the time I escaped to my room, or Washington Square Park. But seeing as she was in my room and she was blocking my only means of escape, I steadied myself for her onslaught.

I thought about my angel and I thought about finally getting a fresh start… no more drunken Liz, I only had to wait three more days. It helped a little, but I could still feel Liz's blows, they were weakening, she was tiring herself out, but they still kept on coming.

I had one sole thought as Liz hit me hard in the side of my head and I felt everything turning to black… Why was I so against hitting my own mother?