They Don't Know (BOOK TWO)

Chapter 11

The nightmares started last week. She would wake up drenched in sweat, breathing hard and crying. Her heart would pound in her chest and her body would be shaking like a drug addict who needs a fix. Her throat and mouth would be dry, forcing her to go downstairs for a cup of water. Her dreams usually fade by then and she can't remember what the nightmare was about. She knows her parents are usually in them, along with Mrs. Brown and Keenan. She shutters everytime she thinks about the small peieces of the dream she would remember. She hasn't told anyone about them, figuring it's just stress eating away at her. She keeps to herself alot these day, barely even talking to her mom and brothers. At school she's just another body in the hallway, attending her classes and going through the daily motions of life.

During the weekends Sevyn doesn't do much. She's been babysitting a few of her mom's friends's children, but other than that she mostly lounges around the house watching tv or listening to music. Doing nothing all day usually results in her getting lost in her own thoughts and next thing she knows she starts thinking about her dad, Alandra, the divorce and every bad thing that has happened to her in the past couple of months. She often has to give herself a pep talk about the fresh start this new year will bring her, just so she can stop the tears that she can feel building up. She's tired of crying, she's gonna cry herself dry if she keeps it up.

Her appetite is barely exsistent. She eats a little bit here and there but she hasn't had a full meal in over a week. Not that her mother knows because if she did, she would tie Sevyn to a chair and shovel food into her mouth until her plate is clear.  As for company, Corey has been a big help to her. Since her and Monica still aren't speaking she has Corey to talk to or just chill with when she's feeling lonely. She's been to his house more times in the past couple of days than the time that they've known each other. Sometimes Rachel is there too, mostly on Fridays and Saturdays, and she engages in the girl talk that Sevyn misses having with Monica.

 "Are you just gonna lay here all day?" Her mother walks into the living room and looks at Sevyn who's curled up on the couch with a fuzzy brown blanket watching Lifetime movies. Sevyn nods her head yes and her mother rolls her eyes. "I know it's cold out but can you please get out the house? I'm tired of seeing you drag yourself around all day. Go to your brothers basketball game or something."

 Sevyn looks at the time on her phone. "The game doesn't start until six. It's only three-thirty."

 "Well go do something!" Her mother insists.

 "I am, I'm watching tv. Shh," Before her mom can speak again the doorbell rings and she sighs on her way to answer it. Sevyn expected her mother to cry and feel completely torn up about her divorce from her husband of 20 years. But she's actually been doing the exact opposite. Her mother is convinced that this divorce is just opening up new oppurtunites for her. Now that she doesn't have a spouses opinion to interfer with her plans, she can do what she wants without worrying that her husband might not like it. Sevyn doesn't know if it's just a way to distract herself from depression, but her mother has been shopping a lot and re-arranging furniture around the house. Her whole bedroom has been redecorated and any traces of her dad has been removed. 

Footsteps cross the floor and soon a body adorned in a big puffy coat is blocking the tv. Sevyn's eyebrows scrunch together as she prepares to tell off the person blocking her movie, she looks up at the face and her entire mood changes.

 "Jackson!" She exclaims, clumsily untangling herself from the blanket and stumbling over to him. She jumps on to him, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him close. His body is cold against hers causing goosebumps to raise on her skin but she doesn't even care. She holds him tight, rocking side from side as he chuckles softly in her ear. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming home today?" She asks, pulling back to look him in the eye.