she was popular. he was new. he was her way out.
✧ second place in the Chaos Awards! ✧
Kendra Ross is popular. Everyone knows that, and she makes sure of it. She's your stereotypical popular girl; lip gloss, crushes, drama, heels, crop tops, and fa...
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I open my phone from its place on my bed. It's Saturday!
I bury myself under the covers again.
"Kendra, wake up!!!!" I groan.
"GIVE ME ONE GOOD REASON!" I scream aggressively.
"BREAKFAST!"
I bolt downstairs. What? That's a good reason.
I look expectantly at the kitchen table. A box of waffle batter rests on it.
"Mother. Waffles." I demand. She looks up from the sink and puts a dish on the counter.
"You seem grumpy today." She notices, squinting like my emotions were written on me. I roll my eyes.
"Don't know what you're talking about. Now, waffles, please." She ignores this and sits down across from me.
"Did something happen? Did your boyfriend break up with you?" She asks. At first I think she's teasing me, but she looks serious.
"I-what do you mean?" I know what she meant, but I want to know why she said it.
"You've been happier than usual lately, and then you told me you had a boyfriend..."
"MOM!"
"What?"
"Boy-friend!" I say, pausing between to put emphasis on the "friend" part. "Boy-friend! Not boyfriend! He's my friend, who happens to be a guy. Not the same!" I almost yell, not quite sure why I'm overreacting. She raises her eyebrows but says nothing. Instead, a small smile plays at her lips. Or is it a smirk?
"If you're sure." She gets up and goes back to cleaning the dishes.
"Can you get me the milk? If you want waffles then you're going to need milk." I nod and get up, walking to the fridge, adorned in magnets, pictures, and horrible drawings I did as a kid. I squint when I realize the picture is still up.
"Mom, take this down." I say, pointing at it.
It's a picture of my mom and...my dad. On a date before they had me. Dad is smiling widely, dressed in a collared t-shirt. Mom, in a casual black dress, is also smiling. I wonder who took this picture. They probably forced a waiter.
My dad cheated on my mom with a woman much younger than him, which is wrong, but what can I do about it? I don't even know where he is, anyway. They're divorced, but I still call him dad when I'm referring to him out of habit. I don't know. It doesn't really matter anyway.
"I like it. It's a nice picture." She says, turning to look at me. She's not smiling or frowning; her lips are pulled into a straight line, unyielding.
I sigh and refuse to look at her. She looks at me, though, after a few seconds.
