Penny was eating duck. Crispy Peking Duck, from the Chinese just around the corner. Her mum had run out to get it a few minutes ago, but it had still only got to her at nine. It wasn't very good, but Penny was so hungry that she was wolfing it down.
"You'll get indigestion" warned her sister, Meg. Penny looked up at her older sister, but there was no sign of her eyes moving away from their small TV, which was showing a rather fuzzy X Factor. She laughed at the man on the screen, who was murdering ...Baby One More Time. "Don't you just love the auditions?"
Personally Penny preferred the live shows. It was then when you saw the real talent, and not just a load of attention seekers who were tone deaf. Penny finished her duck and brushed the last crumbs off her lap. Their house was full of clutter; magazines, left over food, empty bottles. She scanned the living room and found her make-up bag. She began the long process of re-doing her make up, applying some foundation here, a little lip gloss there.
Meg looked up at her. "Are you going somewhere?"
"Yeah, me and Chrissie are going to the club downtown." she replied."I heard that Oscar's going to be there!" Oscar was the one. Penny was sure of it. She just needed him to work it out and it would be all good.
"Well are you going to tell mum?" Damn it. Penny had hoped her parents wouldn't notice. But that wouldn't be a problem if Megan ratted her out.
"Wait, Meg don't..." Too late. Her older sister had leapt up and ran out the room to find their mother. The TV screen flickered as Dermot O'Leary congratulated an exceptionally good performer. But Penny wasn't even looking at their tiny TV set as their mother was pushed into the room by Meg.
"I think Penny's going out tonight. Had she told you? What are you going to do about it?" Meg's voice was strong and demanding, but at the same time quiet and soft, like she was talking to a small child. And in a way their mother wasn't much better.
" Oh it's okay Pen, you can go out if you want. What does it matter to me?" Meg let out a sigh of desperation, but their mother spoke in the same depressed tone as always. It was very likely that she really didn't care.
The doorbell rang. Penny could see her best friend Christina stood outside, looking amazing as usual. She grabbed her coat.
"Ooh, I'll go tell your father you're going out."
"No, mum, you don't have to..." Meg began but their mother had already left. Penny darted out into the hall and through the front door, hoping to escape the fireworks. When she looked back she saw Meg give her look of disappointment and Penny hated herself for leaving her sister behind.
"Let's get out of here" she said to Christina as soon as she was on the drive. Penny knew Christina was always nervous when she came to this neighbourhood. Behind her the shouting had begun; loud but incoherent . A bottle flew through the open door before Penny had time to close it and smashed above her head. She brushed the glass out of her hair and quietly closed the door. That was the thing when your mother suffered from depression and your father was always drunk. You had to know when to duck.
