Game Recognize Game

38. Getting it Right

      That, I wasn't surprised to hear. Ebony's brother was straight bitch made. I knew he was the type to tuck his tail between his legs and run. Damn drug addict took his anger out on everyone. "So that's when you two ended up here," I asked?

        "Yep. I switched high schools and we moved here, but things were still bad with Kollins. He began doing more drugs and staying away from home or bringing his addict friends over. It got so bad that one of his friends tried to touch me once, but i fought him off and ran away," she chuckled coldly and made me look at her pouting lips and watery eyes. 

        "If i would've known telling Kollins i was almost raped would have started his abusive phase i would've never said a word. After that the blame was always on me. It was my fault we had to leave Cali. It was my fault Denise left him. It was my fault his friends wanted to come over all the time... but I never blamed myself. I didn't blame him either... it was all just a bad situation that i thought couldn't get any worse. So, I got a job while finishing out school and saved up so I could move away, but then he begged for my help one sober night. He begged me to help him kick the drugs and i promised to get the old Kollins back and began giving him my checks so he could go to rehab."

        "Did he go," I asked, knowing the answer.

        She shook her head solemnly. "No, he lied. He'd go cash the check as my guardian and use it for drugs. I think what pissed me off most about that though was that he still owed money to a dealer. A guy who was trying to make a come up, and was deadly. When he came looking for my brother, i'd heard of him once or twice and thought for sure he was going to kill me. I didn't know where Kollins was and whether he believed me or not but none of that mattered to him i'm sure. I wish he would've just killed me that night," Ebony said, reliving a moment. The terror and pain in her eyes ate at me. I watched her run her hands over her belly and stop walking.She made me pause and turn to look at her. She was staring down and I was watching her gently caress her pregnant belly. 

         "After that the world was really dark for me. I could barely crawl out of my bed in the morning and just barely got my high school diploma. I thought i'd just keep working and move away, but then I realized i had dreams. My parents had dreams for me to live better than that. My mother would talk about us going to college and playing sports, or helping sick people. She had dreams for us, and though Kollins had forgotten I hadn't. It hit me that I was living for them, my dead parents. Everything they never got to accomplish, everything they sacrificed so we could be here... it woke me up. So i applied for college, which was very expensive, and sent Kollins to rehab forreal that time. That was my first time in a strip club, I mean that was the best idea I had for a seventeen year old," she giggled as she smiled up at me. 

      She began walking again as she nibbled on her ice cream. I smiled at her strength and nodded in agreement that it wasn't the best idea. "Young and dumb, we were all there," I teased. 

    "Oh no not you, Mr. Problem Solver," Ebony teased me. I laughed tenderheartedly at her comment. I remembered that conversation we'd had at Jyrell's and how i probably tried to act perfect though I had many flaws. This wasn't about me right now though. I feel like she was leading up to  the part i wanted to know about so I had to hear the rest of the story. How we ended up here?

           "You're almost finished with school now though, right," I ask?

       "Yep, this is my last semester. Thanks to Kinzy i took more classes during the summer and finished in three years instead of four. It was exhausting though. Kinzy helped me through most of it. She's the only other person who knows everything about me too. I finally talked to her today and she apologized, which is great because i've missed her so much."