Rewind

Thursday morning

6:45 am.

"Carrie wake up or you're going to be late for school!"

Carrie groaned from underneath her covers.

"I'm up, I'm up", she replied.

Kicking through the tangled mess of her sheets, Carrie slowly sits up, squinting at the light pouring through her window. She rubs her eyes, trying to wipe the sleep away.

God I am so tired, Carrie mumbles. Maybe if I just lay down for a minute-

A knock on the door interrupts Carrie's thoughts.

"Come in", she says to the door.

The door opens slightly as a head pops through the small space.

"Carrie honey are you up?"

"What does it look like?"

Seeing Carrie up and responsive, the door is opened the rest of the way and a beautiful woman walks into the room, her 5-inch heels clicking against the hardwood floor.

"If you keep lounging in bed you're going to be late for school."

Carrie huffs as she lifts her arms above her head, sighing as she hears the popping noise her bones makes as she stretches.

"Perceptive, aren't we?", Carrie snarks as she gets up reluctantly and moves towards her dresser. She hears the woman sigh as she rustles through her clothing, deeming everything unsatisfactory until she finds what she's looking for. Having her outfit in hand, she turns to see the woman in the same postion as before, a concerned look on her face.

"Is there a problem, Jennifer?"

Jennifer walks up to Carrie with a pained expression.

"Carrie I know this hasn't been easy for you, but I'm still your mother. You can't just shut me out and be rude because you're upset with me."

Carrie gives an irritated huff in response.

"Why don't you do something productive after school. Didn't you say there were play auditions? Or you can go to the new mall they just built in the town over. You're always stuck in the house. It'll be nice for you to get out with some friends and just walk around."

Carrie knew her mother was trying, but she couldn't help the snide comment that past through her lips.

"Well you seem to "get around" enough for the both of us Jennifer so I don't really see a reason to-"

"THAT IS ENOUGH"

"Why are you yell-"

Jennifer puts up her hand angrily, stopping Carrie from finishing her statement.

" I don't have time for this. Just get dressed and get to school on time, please", Jennifer pleaded, running a hand over her tired face.

Walking out of the room, Jennifer turns to look at her daughter, a hurt expression on her face.

" I just", she starts.

"Just what?", Carrie asks, annoyed.

Jennifer takes in a hurried breathe, visibly calming herself before answering.

" I just dont know where I went wrong with you, Carrie"

Jennifer closes the door, despite the insults hurled to her by her only child.

Carrie stands there, cursing her mother for what seems like hours, even though she can clearly hear her mother slam the front door and drive away.

When she feels her throat become sore, she grabs a towel and walks towards the bathroom, not before looking forlornly at her unmade bed.

"I'm going to miss you" , she whispers.

.~~.

7:20 am.

Carrie walks down the stairs in a crop top and skinny jeans, her curly hair straightened to her liking. She picks up her maroon vans from the hallway and slips them on, not bothering to lace them yet.

"Come on girl", she says patting her tummy.

"Let's get some food in you"

Humming a familiar tune, Carrie strides into the kitchen, pausing when she sees a plate of pancakes sitting on the table. Walking towards the table cautiously, her eyes hone in on the purple sticky note next to the plate.

Don't get into any trouble today. We're having a serious talk when I get home, Carrie.
Mom.

"Whatever", Carrie mumbles, stuffing the pancakes into her mouth. She turns to look at the kitchen clock, almost choking when she sees the time.

8:00 am.

"Shit! I'm gonna be late!"
Carrie quickly grabs her keys off of the counter and runs to the car, tripping multiple times over her shoelaces.

Finally making it to her jeep, she slides in and puts the key into the ignition, pleading with her car to cooperate.

"Come on baby, you can't die on me just yet. I need you today"

Finally, the old jeep roars to life and Carrie breathes a sigh of relief.

She fixes the front mirror, staring at her own reflection.

Finally she puts the car in reverse, steeling herself for the day to come.

Let's do this.