Dear Mitch (Merome)

Chapter 1

I ran into the house, and not even bothering to greet my parents, flew into my room. I found my sister Caitlyn with her head in her arms on my bed, and sighed faintly, but I didn't blame her hiding in my room. She was eight, and still didn't understand why Mom and Dad were always yelling. Like now. The usual routine that we still weren't accustomed to. Yell for an hour or so, nearly causing earthquakes and have the neighbours about to get Sound Control on their way, before they make up with apologies, hugs and kisses. Repeat daily. "Katie, did Mom and Dad yell at you? Is that why you're sad?" She shook her head. "Tay, please just make them stop!" She would have been home less than twenty minutes, and already, it's like this. I pulled her onto my lap, and gently pushed her hands down from her head, even though I wanted to block my own ears. "Come on, they'll be okay." I whispered, even though I didn't believe it. She looked up at me doubtfully. "Really?"

"Of course. They always are." She wriggled off me, then sat next to me, and then jumped off the bed. "Can we go away until they're done? Please?"

"Of course. Go get changed." She did as she was told, and I did the same, pulling off my uniform, then put on shorts, a jacket and shirt, one that my dad helped create. It said "Power Moves Only" and had some sort of diamond thing.

My dad's name is Jerome Robert Aceti. Maybe you've heard of him, maybe not. He used to be some sort of YouTuber, playing Minecraft. He still does it, but hardly ever. A video a week, and that's all. He's now an accountant, and not a bad one either. My mom is Louise Daly, now Louise Aceti, but by the way they're going, she might be Louise Daly again.

Truthfully, I don't think I'd mind, or, if anything, I might be glad. It isn't that she's a bad parent, but she's forever on my case, and I know she likes my sister more. Of course she does. Who wouldn't like the eight year old in comparison to the fourteen year old? The cute little blonde girl who's always smiling and happy or a brunette with pain behind her eyes, from the sharp blades made that have hurt her?

I walked into the kitchen, where my parents were still yelling themselves hoarse, and put a hand over Dad's mouth. The safer option. He may have been stronger, but he wouldn't fight me, and it would shut Mom up too. He wouldn't hurt me like Mom might. Katie was Mom's favourite, but maybe I was Dads. I looked at Mom. "Before you guys start again, I'm taking Katie on a walk."

"Okay. Is that all?"

"Yes?" I shrugged, then took Katie outside. She skipped alongside me, and I felt tempted to join in, but it would feel weird. Being about 1.7m tall made it a little awkward. Instead, I took her to the park, and we sat on the swings. Near us, there was another family, one where the kid, maybe five, was on the seesaw with their father, and the mother was cheering and taking photos. Caitlyn tugged on my arm. "Taylor, will our family look like that one day?" I didn't realise she had been watching. "Maybe..." I whispered, but I didn't believe it. By the way Caitlyn looked at the family as well, she didn't seem to either. They weren't dressed with high-class clothes, just simple ones from Target, yet so much set them apart from us. They may have been poor, I didn't know, but they were a family. Not like ours. I knew Caitlyn saw it too. We may have had money, enough for stability, all our stuff we bought on a regular basis, but they had love.

I couldn't take it anymore, and Katie seemed sad to see it as well. Grudgingly, we trudged home, spirits dampened. "Look Katie. What if Mom and Dad broke up? Would you be okay?" She looked at me. "I don't know." She finally admitted. Of course she didn't. But she might have to know soon. I ran with her the rest of the way, and we went in the house, and the lack of screams calmed me. Dad told me Mom had gone shopping. More like spending money as a therapy.

I followed Katie to her room, before she burst into tears. "Tay, I don't want Mom and Dad to break up!"

"Why? Do you want them to keep yelling?"

"No!" She whimpered, and I looked at her sharply. "Then what?"

"I want us to be a family again!" She yowled, and I knew Dad had heard us. I guess I knew what I had to do.

When Caitlyn stopped crying, I left her room, and found Dad. "Dad, can I talk to you?"

"Yep, just hang on a sec."

"Okay." I ran to my room, and waited. He came in ten minutes later. "Yes?" I took a deep breath. "Are you and Mom going to divorce?"

"What?"

"Will you?" He ran his hand through his hair. "I don't know Taylor. I'm sorry."

"It isn't for my sake. I'm old enough to deal with it. I'm more worried about Katie." I bit my lip, and Dad looked at me, all emotions finally coming through. "I'm sorry. I love your mom very much, but I don't know if I can go on having to fight for my every right, so maybe." He looked sad. "I'm just sorry that you're stuck in the middle of it. Both you kids. You shouldn't have to deal with all our problems." I hugged my legs close, and Dad hugged me. "Just remember I'll always love you Taylor." He whispered. He took a sad look at my shirt before he kissed my forehead, and left.

I waited until I could hear him in the kitchen again, before I went to their closet and buried myself in swathes of clothing, feeling my breathing start to tighten up. It was my secret spot, always burrowing in the darkest spot in the closet, and hiding in layers of clothes, practically hibernating there until everything felt okay to me. This time, it felt different. Ominous almost. Maybe I would be okay with divorce, but it would still hurt. I had lived with the comfort of two parents, and now it would go.

I wriggled around, then gasped in shock and pain.

Something was digging into my back.

I pulled at it, and it revealed a somewhat worn book, but still in good condition. I pulled it out into the light and saw that it dated back to 2020, when my parents were married.

Sixteen years ago.

Dad would have been... 26 when he wrote this? Compared to him being 42 now. Maybe not much different. I opened it up, having realised it was a journal, and read the first line.

Dear Mitch

Hey! So plans for this is one update every week, maybe two... we'll see. It'll also be a short book, probably less than 10 chapters... definitely less than 20.

Amber