F.R.I.E.N.D.S

Suckers....

                         Maya P.O.V

I pawn over the fact that my father is coming home for  it seems like forever.

I keep it from my mom because every time I try to tell her it brings back painful memories of blood, bruises and scars.

I remember walking to school every morning in first grade and seeing kids get walked to school by their fathers or mothers.
I would hope that when I would get home everything would be fine. We would be a perfect family. It would be the same thing almost every day though.

My father comes home half drunk flinging things everywhere hitting me in the process. Then my mom would get mad and try to stand up for once but he would get even madder and take it out on her. After he was through with her it was back to me again.

I used to walk to school and see Riley and her father walking to school every morning at the cross walk. He would hold onto her hand and the other hand would be holding her pink and purple lunch box.

I remembered everyday I would look and my tattered brown bag and feel like I was nothing.

One day when I was walking behind them on the crosswalk, looking down at my grimy fingernails and picking at them I heard a little voice.

"Where's your daddy?" Little Riley asks.

"He's not here" I say looking at my paper bag.

She tries again. "What do you mean?" She asks.

"He's just not here" I say.

"That's ok"she says. "You can hold my daddies hand?" She says grinning.

"Really?" I asks looking up.

Mr. Matthews offers out his hand with a warm smile. "Yay!" Riley shouts and grabs his other while swinging her lunch humming loudly the Barney song "I love you".

It happened like that from everyday on then. I would meet them at the crosswalk and Mr.Matthews would hold onto my hand and Riley's hand and walk us all the way to school.

I soon then started playing over at her house after school, I could tell her parents had questions about my parents but they never pushed it.

My mother loved the idea of me staying there and not seeing the things that was going on at home most of the time.

One day when I was coming home from playing over there I found my mom on the floor in a bloody mess with so many bruises you barely see a glimpse of her actual skin.

I stood there in shock at first but I remembered  the Matthews had given me there phone number incase of an emergency. I spent almost all my time remembering it.

I quickly dialed  the number and explained to Mr.Matthews what's happening and soon enough the ambulance and the Matthews were there.

I watched as the loaded her into the ambulance. I watched. I didn't cry.

Mr. Matthews stood on my right holding my hand and Mrs. Matthews stood on my left holding my hand and Riley holding onto hers.

The Matthews took me and we followed the ambulance to the hospital. I remember watching my mom on the gurney with frantic open eyes calling my name, but every time she did blood would dribble out of her mouth.

Some men in suits lead me away to a room and sat me down at a table. They asked me questions if I had a father and what he was like. I told them he most likely did this, they nodded and scribbled something down in a notepad. They asked if he ever hurt me. I told them he once threw me down the stairs.

They scribbled a lot more down this time and they lead me out the room to the Matthews.

They then took Mr. and Mrs. Matthews into the room and I sat down next to Riley.

"Your mommy is really pretty" Riley says. "I bet she'd be even prettier without all those marks" she said full of innocence.

"She is" I said smiling to myself.

"Your gonna be staying with us tonight" Riley says squirming in her chair. "This is gonna be our first sleepover!" She says excitedly.

"It sure is" I said  half-heartily.

I saw the Matthews inside of the room with horrified expressions shaking their heads

Mr. and Mrs. Matthews come out of the room. "Your gonna be staying with us a little while" Mrs. Matthews said.

"What about my mom?" I asked.

"Your mommy is not feeling very well, she will need some time to recover" Mr.Matthews said.

"I know what happened to her" I said.

"I'm sure you do" Mrs.Matthews said with a sympathetic expression.

Once we got  to their home Riley and I changed into our pj's and played board games and ate popcorn and drank hot chocolate.

Sooner or later we drifted toward her room and sat down on the bay window.

"Are you okay?" Riley ask me.

"I'm fine" I say.

"That's good, because I really hope so, I don't like seeing you sad and I hope that your mommy is okay" she says. The corners of her mouth tug into an adorable Riley frown.

"Hope it for suckers" I whisper slightly to myself.

"I guess I'm a sucker then" Riley says smiling another toothy grin. "A sucker is not good thing" I said frowning.

"I know but hope is" she said her smile widening.

Mr. and Mrs. Matthews come into her bedroom. "Goodnight my princess" Mr. Matthews says giving Riley a kiss on the forehead.

"Daddy, mommy give Maya a kiss too! She's part of the family now!" Riley exclaims.

"She is now?" Mr. Matthews says. He then swoops me up in  the air and plants a kiss on my forehead. "Goodnight my princess" he says.

"Goodnight!" I say smiling beaming with joy, he gives me a big hug then sets me down. Mrs. Matthews also gives me a big hug and squeezes me. "Goodnight Maya" she says and gives me warm smile and a kiss on the forehead.

They both leave and shut the door. Riley gets up and grabs a blanket and two pillows from her bed and comes back to the bay window.

She hands me a pillow and spreads the blanket for us. "Your my sister now!" she says unable to contain her joy.

"Pinky swear we will always be sisters" she said in a dead serious tone. "Ok, we will always be sisters, sisters forever" I say and we hook'd pinkies and sweared upon the bay window.

She fell asleep quickly.

I soon drifted off to sleep with a feelings and I realization  that a father can love his child.

And I felt loved.