Chapter 3
Days With Mom
Tyler woke the next morning to the sound of Greta's red convertible parking in the driveway. He looked over at his digital clock. It was six in the morning! He didn't know Greta got up that early! He hurriedly hopped out of bed, for he was sure his mom would want him up for their guest.
Today Tyler didn't have any clothes to wear! Should he risk getting in trouble by wearing some clean pajamas? No! That would earn him a beating from both Greta and Mom!
He dug through his dirty laundry and pulled out some clothes. He made sure they didn't have any blood stains. Tyler finally appeared in the living room.
Greta's red highlighted hair was outstandingly ugly. Her normal hair color was a reddish brown. She had bright red highlights in them and blue tips. Her hair was short, and she had thin bangs. She was wearing way too much black and blue makeup too! Tyler thought she looked unusually dumb today. Never before did she have her hair dyed!
"Greta, whatcha doing here at this time of day?" Rosa asked in her manly, yet in a way kind voice.
Greta pointed to her black bra and net like shirt over it. "Got me a new shirt last night," she explained. "Thought I'd come over and show it to ya. Maybe torment the kid a little too." She then turned to Tyler, who was now huddled in a corner.
"I sense a beating coming on!" Rosa laughed as she and Greta hurried into the kitchen.
Tyler huddled closer into the corner. His poor back hurt enough, now he was probably going to be stabbed! Could life get any worse? he asked himself.
Greta and his mother soon returned, each with a weapon in their hand. Tyler froze, his scared blue eyes watching them closely. They're gonna kill me, I know they are!
Greta walked closer, her face brightening with every step. This'll be a blast, she thought to herself.
Total darkness. Tyler was no longer awake. Everything in his world was dark, and he couldn't remember a thing. He was awake, yet he wasn't. Did he die? Was he in heaven? Or was he in the other place?
Finally he saw a light. The light seemed to encourage him to go on. What did all this mean?
After a few more fuzzy minutes, he finally became aware of what was going on. By the looks of it, when he was out, his mom and Greta had been drinking. They were both passed out on the couch, bottles in their hands.
Hands! It was all coming back to him now! They had just beaten him! That's why his world went black! Tyler slowly tried to stand up. Waves of pain filled both legs. Everything ached. Did they really beat him that hard?
thought. Why am I bleeding? My back healed last night. God, what happened? Tyler began to panic. He didn't know what had happened when he was out. Was he dying? Thud!
Black. His world was once again black. This time he wasn't one bit awake. Nothing seemed to happen. He seemed to be nothing.
Greta soon woke up from passing out. Rosa was still out. She decided to leave Rosa "sleep." Poking about the house, Greta saw one hundred dollars worth of drug money. "This is mine," she whispered to herself.
She then lumbered back into the living room. A pool of blood was on the floor. On top of all of the blood was a body. This made Greta panic. "Shit, I killed him!" she yelled. "Or did Rosa? I don't remember. I'll just tell the cops Rosa did it."
Greta was just about to creep out the door to buy some drugs with Rosa's money, when Rosa awoke. "Greta!" she hollered.
Greta hobbled back over to her friend. "What?" she demanded.
"Want to watch Club Hooker LIVE?" she asked as if Club Hooker were a normal TV show.
Greta jumped up at that chance. "You know I do!" she laughed. Then they both had one of those stupid laughing fits. They rolled all over the couch, laughing wildly like hyenas
"And we're back with Club Hooker LIVE," a man on the television said.
"Shh!" Rosa said to Greta.
Both girls stared at the screen, hanging on every word. Club Hooker was the club that Greta and Rosa always went to. Rosa's sister and her friend, Trish, went there too. When they weren't on the show themselves, they watched it. They found it so interesting!
Tyler suddenly saw a sexy girl doing the pole dance on TV. He was conscious. What had happened? Last he remembered, he was bleeding. Did he dare look on the floor?
Tyler decided to look below him. There was a pool of blood under him! He tried to stand up again, this time he fell down with a thump. Rosa turned, very annoyed at her son. "Shh!" she told Tyler. Then she turned back to her program.
Tyler didn't understand! Why couldn't he stand? He was beginning to feel dizzy again when a commercial came on. "Aw!" he heard them cry as Billy Mays started advertising Oxi Clean.
Rosa stood up and bounded over to Tyler. To him, it felt like the entire earth was shaking. "Tyler!" she bellowed. "Why did ya interrupt my show?"
Tyler's stomach felt uneasy. He was really sore and weak. Should he talk? Could he talk?
Rosa kicked him in the leg. "ANSWER ME!" she yelled in his small, scared face.
Tyler tried as hard as he could to stay sane. He still felt like the world was spinning, but he couldn't let Rosa see that. "I--I was trying to stand up," he managed to say in a weak voice.
Rosa laughed loudly. "Why didn't you just say so?" she asked kindly. "I woulda picked ya up and put ya where ya wanted to go." Tyler felt his eyebrows raise at that last remark. Did she honestly think he could believe such a thing?
Surprisingly, Tyler felt her rough hands lift him up. He felt oddly secure. He watched as she carried him out to the kitchen, close to the front door. She opened the door slowly. He saw Greta watch intently as his mother did this.
Wham! Tyler was out in the hallway, and the door was shut and locked. She had thrown him out of the house!
Tyler could still hear the TV from out here. Must be on full blast, he thought. Tyler didn't know what to do. He couldn't move, his mom had locked him out, and he had no one to help him.
Tyler tried once more to move. He decided maybe he should crawl across the hall and ask for help. With everything he had left in him, Tyler crawled to his neighbors' apartment. He weakly rapped on the door, hoping for an answer.
Before they had any time to open the door, Tyler was gone. "Hello?" a confused man said.
Tyler was then thrown down in a chair in the living room. "What the hell do you think you are doing?" she demanded, her eyes filled with anger.
Tyler wished he could tell her what's what! He hated swearing! That won't get you anywhere, he thought to himself. He was right. Swearing just made things worse.
"I was trying to get help, I'm really hurt," he replied, trying not to look into her vicious eyes.
Rosa clasped her hand on Tyler's throat. "I take good care of you!" she barked, her breath making it hard to breathe.
"I didn't say you don't," he said, trying to stay on her good side, if there even was such a thing. He found himself curling up in a ball as she gave him a really creepy and evil look.
"Then why did you want to go asking for help?" she wondered.
Tyler squeezed the arms of the chair. She was really ticking him off! "I wanted help, maybe you didn't see I was hurt," he told her.
Rosa squeezed his throat tighter. "You're damn right I didn't!" she said. Then she gave him a hard slap across the face and returned to her show. She just left Tyler sitting there, not doing anything.
"And that's our show for today," the man said once Club Hooker LIVE was over.
Both Greta and Rosa scowled. "We want more Club Hooker!" they hollered to the television. Of course that didn't help, but who knows, they may think it does!
"Should we go to the club?" Rosa asked Greta.
Greta shook her head sadly. She pointed to Tyler and said, "Look at your boy. If I were you, I'd get him some medical help before he dies. If he dies, the neighbors will notice the stench after a few days. The police just might blame you for his death."
Rosa knew Greta was right. "Alright," she decided. "I'll take the slug to the hospital. You can go on home."
Greta was soon gone, leaving Rosa and Tyler alone. "Tyler, hold on. We're going to the hospital. I guess I need ya to live." She then picked Tyler up and carried him out to her car. She strapped him in the back and pressed as hard as she could on the gas pedal. The speed limit was fifty, but she was going at least eighty.
Tyler woke to see that they were pulling into a parking lot. His mother stepped out, and then went back to him. She pulled him out of his car seat. Rosa hurriedly carried her son into the emergency area.
Tyler noticed that everyone in there was staring at him. I'm probably a sight, he thought as his mom told a lie about what had happened to him. Tyler was soon sitting in a cozy bed, watching America's Funniest Home Videos. They were busy waiting for the doctor to come in.
Finally, someone knocked on the wall and entered. A thin lady named, Lisa Donald, came in. "Hello Tyler, what seems to be the problem?" she asked kindly.
Tyler looked at his mother. He mouthed the words, "What should I say?"
Rosa cleared her throat. "Well, my son was beaten up by some kids on the street," she lied.
Lisa grabbed Tyler's face. "Are you sure this is the work of some teenagers?" she wondered as she examined the large, bloody bump on Tyler's head.
Rosa tried to keep her cool. "Yes, they are mighty big fellas," she replied, letting out a small giggle.
She gave Rosa a quick, strange glance. Lisa then pulled up Tyler's shirt to examine his belly. Nothing wrong here, she thought as she pressed on his warm body. She then asked Tyler to turn around so she could check his back.
Rosa almost wanted to object to that, but she may as well let the doctor look.
The doctor's face was full of surprise as she looked over this part of his body. She carefully pressed down on the bruises.
Tyler squirmed uncomfortably, letting a small cry come out. "Stop," he whispered. A single tear managed to squeeze its way down Tyler's face, making him all the more upset.
Lisa looked concerned. "Honey, were you maybe slashed with a knife in your spine?" she questioned.
Tyler didn't know what to say! "Well, I saw them come up to me with kitchen utensils, then my entire world went black. I don't know what happened then. All I know is that when I woke up, I couldn't move."
She looked at him with sorrowful eyes. "Well, I'm going to have to put some peroxide on your back," she told him. "Then I'll bandage you up, and you can go home. But make sure you get plenty of rest."
She soon came back with peroxide and bandages. Lisa fixed him up real well. "Can you walk?" she asked in a curious tone.
Tyler shook his head.
She then pulled up his pant legs to see that he had been beaten bad there too. She decided to put ice on his legs and his head. She made sure she tied them on too.
Tyler was soon back at home. He sat on his bed, very bored. His mother had told him to stay in there all day. She didn't want to see his messed up body!
Tyler woke at midnight the next day to the song, "I Kissed A Girl," playing on their boom box. He also heard tons of people dancing and doing weird things. They were obviously drunk.
He tried to make himself unnoticed as he hobbled to the kitchen to get a snack. Luckily, nobody noticed the handicapped boy. He peered into the fridge, looking for something to warm up. All his mother had stashed in there was her beer.
I guess I won't be warming anything up, he thought as he went over to the cupboard. In there he found some instant soups. He picked out the shrimp flavored and put hot water from the sink in his soup. He had to wait a few minutes before eating.
Finally, he headed back to his room to eat. He was so thankful that he was able to walk again. According to what he had seen before his world went black, Greta had hit him in the head with a heavy pan, to knock him out. His mother must have reopened up his back with a knife. Then Greta must have beaten his legs with the pan so he couldn't walk.
Rosa walked up to this really good-looking man named, Chad. "So baby," she said in a flirty voice. "Do ya wanna see me get down and dirty?"
Chad smiled. "Sure baby," he said.
Rosa ran into Tyler's room. Luckily, she didn't seem to notice that he was eating. She yanked him off his bed and said, "Tyler, the people want entertainment!"
Tyler looked at her as if to say, "Well, what do ya want me to do?"
Rosa grabbed his small face. She held it up close to her to tell him that she meant business. "They want to see me beat you," she explained in a hushed voice.
Tyler wished he could pull away from her. It was scary enough just laying on the floor with her in your face, but now she wanted to beat him in front of her drunk friends! Tyler lay motionless. He wished he were dead. Death seemed like the only thing to get him out of his misery. Then again, there could be a whole lot more misery if he were dead. Misery-he really didn't want to think about that.
Rosa soon came out with a nervous child in her arms. "This here is my boy, Slug," she laughed.
Everyone at the party turned to Rosa and her son. "Watch this!" she said in a daredevil voice.
She then began to kick, punch, and slap Tyler. He felt very hard blows all over his body. She kept on doing these things, no matter how much he cried.
Tyler was soon laying in another puddle of blood, about ready to die. He was laying right in front of his bedroom door, which was right beside his mother's white couch. At any moment, he was sure the blood would get on her couch. He certainly hoped not, but it was highly likely.
She decided she should stop, for she didn't want to murder him with witnesses. Well, maybe Greta would be okay, but not the others. She didn't know half the people at her party, so she couldn't be sure if they were loyal.
A few days later, Tyler was feeling a lot better. He was still pretty sore, but he could handle it.
Rosa, on the other hand, was feeling very bad lately. She was always vomiting, and she drank twenty beer bottles each day instead of ten! She was also always complaining about having a headache. Was this her punishment from God?
Tyler was trying to sleep in that morning, but he kept hearing moaning and vomiting. He decided he may as well get out of bed before she ordered him out. Tyler stood before his opened dresser drawer and marveled at the clean clothes that lay in it. The other day Rosa had taken them to the laundry matt. He reached in and felt the clean fabric of his checkered and polo shirts. He decided to wear a red plaid shirt and a pair of tan dress pants.
Stepping out of his bedroom, Tyler looked cautiously about the house. No sign of his mother anywhere. Could he maybe sneak a shower before she woke up?
He tiptoed over to the bathroom, watching for his mother to pop out at any moment. Tyler was safely in the shower, when he heard the bathroom door creak open. Tyler froze, letting the warm water run repeatedly over his head. At any moment, he was sure she would come and hit him in the back with a towel bar.
He waited and waited. Was she still there? Was she waiting for him to make a move? Tyler decided to continue washing his body, still watching closely.
Suddenly, Tyler heard a heavy footstep. It didn't sound like his mother's, but it did sound familiar. He thought for a moment. Who could it be?
Another footstep. Then he heard more softer footsteps. He knew the person was approaching the shower. A wave of fear made him shiver. He wasn't sure who it was.
Then it hit him like lightning! Chad! he thought. It's Chad! I remember hearing Chad's footsteps during the party. What in the world is Chad doing in our bathroom? My mother is in bed!
The steps stopped. Tyler was extremely surprised when Chad quickly opened the shower curtain and said, "Hey Babe!"
Tyler gave him a weird look. "Hey who?" he asked, trying to cover up his privets.
Chad stumbled back in amazement. "Y--you aren't Rosa," he stammered in disbelief. "You're that kid."
Tyler nodded slowly. "Yeah, she's still in bed," he explained about to laugh. "I don't think she's up for company. She's a little under the weather lately."
Chad gave him a confused stare. "Under the weather?" he repeated. "What the hell does that mean?"
"It means she's ill," Tyler told him, acting as though he were so special. First this guy thinks I'm Rosa, then he doesn't know what "under the weather" means, he thought. Real smart. You chose a good one, Mom.
Chad nodded as if to say, "I knew that." He then led himself out the door. Tyler listened for Chad to slam to door shut. He didn't. Well what is he doing? Tyler asked himself.
After Tyler's shower, he brushed his teeth and combed his matted up hair. He smiled into the mirror to see if his teeth were white. They were a bright white. Tyler always took good care of himself, unlike his mother.
Tyler opened the door a bit to peep outside. He heard loud music, which sounded like it was coming from the TV. He pried it open a little more to see what was on. He rolled his eyes at what he saw.
There on the couch, was Chad watching Club Hooker LIVE. How am I gonna sneak some breakfast now? he wondered. Could I possibly slip by him? Tyler decided it was worth a try. He slowly crept across part of the living room and safely into the kitchen. As he was eating, he heard another door open. This time there was lighter footsteps. Then he heard his mother say, "Oh Chad, I didn't know you were here."
"I thought I may come and spend more time with you," was the answer.
"Chad, I have something to tell you," she said nervously.
Tyler was now watching from behind a wall. He watched as his mother tried to smile.
Chad smiled happily. "What is it, my love?" he asked as he held her chin in his hand.
Barf, you're calling her your love? She only wants you until she gets you in bed, then you're nothing more than a man! Tyler knew his mom all too well.
"You're going to be a father," she told him.
Chad looked scared. "Wh-who told you?" he stuttered.
Rosa looked annoyed. "I took a pregnancy test this morning," she replied.
Chad sighed. Good, I thought you meant you found out that one of my other girlfriends got pregnant, he thought, relieved.
Tyler's eyes bugged out! He couldn't believe what he was hearing! His mother was going to have a baby! She wasn't fit to raise anything! She couldn't even raise a pet rock! Tyler really thought that his mother needed to watch Supernanny.
"We're going to have a baby!" Chad cried in delight. He was now jumping up and down.
Rosa touched her stomach. "Yep, gonna be having another," she sighed.
"Honey," he said with a concerned voice. "You don't seem so happy."
Rosa turned to him. "I don't have enough money to pay for another."
Chad nodded. "I could move in," he suggested.
Rosa's face lit up. "That would be great! Plus, the boy needs a man 'round the house to teach him manly stuff."
Chad looked around. "Where is he?" he asked her.
Rosa thought for a moment. "I donno."
Tyler walked out of the kitchen. "I was gonna make you breakfast," he explained.
"Sure ya were," she sneered.
Chad walked up to Tyler and gave him a friendly squeeze. "You're gonna have a baby brother or sister soon."
Tyler gave him a long, mean glare. He didn't want to see a sibling being abused! He couldn't imagine what it looked like when he was abused, but he wouldn't like to see it any time!
"Rosa, you're gonna make a great mother for the second time!" Chad said encouragingly.
Tyler wanted to roll his big blue eyes. Was this man blind?
He must be pretty dumb, Tyler thought to himself.
Rosa began to make out with Chad on the couch. They kept on moaning and groaning. Tyler couldn't watch. It was just too dumb to be true!
Lord, please don't let it be so, he prayed silently. If it's your will, I'll except it, but I really can't see why you'd want her to raise another one!
Tyler immediately felt guilty. Why had he talked to God like that? What kind of a little monster was he?
After asking God for forgiveness, Tyler made his mother and Chad microwave pancakes. He soon laid the two plates on the table and told them that their food was ready.
Rosa plopped down beside Chad. She took a bite of her pancakes and scowled. "Woulda been better homemade," she remarked.
Tyler smiled at her politely. He didn't want to say anything, for she may just beat him for it. Standing in the corner of the kitchen so he wouldn't disturb them, Tyler watched them eat. He waited and waited. They were the slowest couple of eaters he ever saw!
Once they were done, Tyler lumbered over to the table and took their plates. "I'll throw them out the window for you," he said in a polite little boy voice.
His mother always threw her plates out the window once she was done eating, for she didn't want to waist money on washing them. Tyler opened up a window in the living room and threw them out the into the summer grass. Oh how he longed to be outside playing in the hot sun. It had been almost a week since he was outside the house! The last he was outdoors was on the last day of first grade.
Tyler then flung himself into the nearest armchair and tried to think about the fact that his mother was having a baby! He sat there for quite a while, daydreaming, when his mother broke into his thoughts. "Slug, the baby is gonna get your bedroom," she told him with a grin on her face.
Tyler made a small fist with his right hand.
He slowly lifted himself out of his chair and stood before his mother. He was quite a bit shorter than his mother! He slowly brought his fist up to his face.
Rosa thought nothing of Tyler's small fist. She thought he was just really mad.
"Slug!" Rosa cried in horror as she grabbed her breast.
Tyler stood back in amazement at what he had just did. He had just punched his mother in the breast! What have I done? he cried to himself.
Chad stormed over to Tyler, his face filled with fury. He grabbed Tyler and held him back. Tyler tried to get away, but Chad was too strong and muscular!
"Rosa, take a good swing at him!" he yelled to her, making sure Tyler would stay.
Rosa jumped up at that chance! She made a fist with her pale, yet meaty hand. Then she swung her fist at her son.
"Ugh!" Tyler whined in pain as he tried to release his hand and cover his left eye.
Chad held his hand back, so Tyler couldn't cover it. "Haha," Chad laughed with an amused look on his face.
Some stepfather you'll be, Tyler thought as he waited for the next punch.
Rosa prepared herself for another stress-relieving punch into Tyler's face. Got one down, three to go, she thought. She then bopped Tyler a good one in the right eye.
Tyler howled in pain this time too. Although he was always beaten up like this, each time he found the pain terrible to endure. "C--can you please stop?" he begged. "You already knocked out both eyes."
Rosa began to laugh wildly, and so did Chad. They both found beating Tyler very amusing. Tyler, however, did not! Can you blame him?
"Got some more spots to punch him in!" Chad told Rosa encouragingly.
Rosa smiled widely at Chad, and then she whacked Tyler again. This time she got him square in the nose! Tyler really wanted to hold his nose this time! Man did that ever hurt! He then felt blood run down his face. Man, I'm bleeding!
Chad pulled Tyler back. "Haha, Tyler, you're bleeding!" he teased.
Tyler wanted to glare at him, but he didn't want to look up at really tall and strong Chad. "Yeah, I'm bleeding," he whispered.
Rosa punched him once more, this time in the lip. After all the punching was done, she cracked her knuckles in a thug way. "Chad, go show Tyler to his room," she ordered in an evil voice.
Chad gladly led Tyler into his room. He then picked Tyler up and threw him onto his bed. "That's why you don't punch your mother in the boob!" he yelled. "Didn't you ever hear of respect for your mother, boy?"
What about respect for me? Tyler wanted to say. Instead he said, "I'm sorry."
"You're damn right you are!" he said, now in Tyler's face.
Spit flew in all directions. Tyler wanted to cry. Chad's alcohol breath was breathing right on his face. How much more could this boy take?
"CHAD!" Rosa yelled. She was standing in the living room in front of the TV.
Chad turned around, afraid he had done something wrong. "What?" he asked worriedly.
"Club Hooker LIVE is back on," she told him in a happy voice.
Chad hurried into the living room, leaving Tyler alone and afraid in his small bed. What is up with adults and Club Hooker LIVE? he wondered as he listened to the two loons enjoy the program.
Pregnancy came with many gifts, but the biggest one was his mother's sick feelings. Every morning and every evening she was vomiting and complaining about her headaches. The only thing that seemed to calm her down was drinking or Club Hooker LIVE.
All of these disturbing things made life even harder for Tyler. Every time his stomach growled, his mom made him eat her vomit. This made Tyler want to vomit! He hated eating what came out of his mother. At least it wasn't what came out her backend!
Ring! Rosa stomped over to the phone, upset that someone was interrupting Club Hooker. "What do ya want?" she demanded.
"Rosa, are you watching Club Hooker?" Greta asked excitedly.
Rosa groaned. "What else would I be doing?" Rosa wondered.
"I was wondering if you saw me stripping," Greta told her as if stripping on TV was normal.
Rosa hit the kitchen counter with her fist. "No, I didn't," she replied somberly.
"Well, I won't hold ya up, go ahead and watch."
Rosa did as she was told. When she sat back on the couch, there was Greta stripping. "Damn, she's got big boobs," Rosa commented.
Tyler heard many other comments about Greta's "beautiful" performance. He rolled his eyes at each remark. How in the world could you enjoy watching this piece of junk? he asked his mother silently. Tyler sat silently on his bed for quite a while. He knew that he should be quiet and leave his mother alone. She'd surely have his hide if he didn't! Plus, he felt like a lump of garbage right now. Both Chad and his mother had given him a good thrashing yesterday. If only he weren't so scrawny! He may have been able to fight back! Who was he kidding, he couldn't hurt his mother standing right there in front of him?
Tyler wished he had the luxuries that most boys his age had. He wanted a TV in his bedroom, a Nintendo DS, and a lot of the other game systems they had out these days. He longed to play Super Mario Bros as he had seen others do. If only he didn't have an abusive mother.
Tyler also wished he weren't locked up in their small apartment. He was only ever out once, and that was to see the doctor. Would he ever see the sun again?
"SLUG!" Rosa yelled once Club Hooker was over. "We're going to Wal-Mart to get me some smokes, Tylenol, and groceries. I also might eat at the McDonald's."
Tyler hurried to get his sneakers. He pulled on the well-worn white shoes with blue underneath. Anything to get out of the house!
They hopped into his mom's four-door car and headed out. Since they lived in the city, Wal-Mart was not very far away. They were there in no time at all!
Tyler slowly unbuckled himself and stepped out the car, slamming the white door behind him. He strolled up to his mother, who was digging for her purse in the McDonald's trash she had in front. Finally, they were walking side by side into the giant store.
Tyler's face lit up when they entered the store. A kind man with a sticker roll asked if Tyler wanted one, but his mother refused to allow him to take any. "He's been a bad boy lately," she explained rudely.
Tyler left the kind man with a sorrowful look on his wrinkled up face. Tyler felt bad his mother was so rude, but what could he do? She would always be that way. Nothing could change that woman!
They were soon at the place where is mother could purchase some cigarettes. After taking those and placing them in her cart, they went to pharmacy section to pick up some Tylenol. "I'll be needin' this 'bout everyday," she mumbled to herself.
Tyler was then lead into the food department. There, his mother got all the microwave food she could find! She didn't ever bother to cook any meals. "Slug, go pick out a bag or two of chips," she ordered. "Make sure they are no more than three dollars."
Tyler looked carefully for potato chips that were cheap. He picked out two large bags and hulled them over to his mother. Rosa picked up the bags and examined them. "They look good enough," she commented as she threw them into her cart.
Not for long, Tyler thought as he walked beside the cart.
After a few more minutes of shopping, Rosa was getting hungry. She decided to eat at McDonald's as she had planned.
"What would you like, ma'am?" asked a lady at the register.
Rosa looked up at the menu above. "Two McDoubles and a small water," she answered.
"What about your little boy?" she asked looking down at Tyler.
"He won't be getting anything," Rosa sneered. "He's grounded from any public fun for a week. He was pitchin' a fit the other day. He also got a little spanking. Nothin' much nice gonna be happening to him for the next few days."
The woman rolled her eyes at Rosa. Poor little boy. He doesn't get any McDonald's food. I doubt he's even grounded. He doesn't seem embarrassed.
Rosa soon headed over to the table Tyler had picked out. Tyler watched as she munched on her two, yummy sandwiches. He so badly wanted some good tasting food! Would he ever eat anything worth eating again?
Tyler heard many people laughing behind him. He looked all over himself. There was nothing wrong! Why were they laughing at him?
Rosa sensed Tyler's wonder and pointed to his lip. She was beginning to laugh too!
Tyler reached up and ran his fingers over his lip. On the side where Rosa had punched him, was a large, swelled bump. He also felt that his mouth was crooked. I'm probably the dumbest looking person here! he thought as he hid behind a napkin.
A day later, Rosa got a call from Chad saying that he wanted to breakup with her. So, there she was with one boy, and a baby on the way! What could she do?