CHAPTER NINE
*Chapter inspired by the song Big Girls Don't Cry by Fergie*
((It's time to be a big girl now. And big girls don't cry))
The next thing I know all I see is a fist going towards my face. Feeling pain, and seeing darkness.
I wake up and expect to be saved. But, I'm not, because my life isn't a fairytale. There is no prince in shinning armour. I'm still on the floor in my hallway, drops of blood on the floor, a killer headache and nose that feels like is going to explode with pain. I sit up against the wall, and I don't think I've been in this much pain in years. My shoulder, scalp, nose, ribs, head, and wrist all burn with the familure ache of pain.
I look over at my fathers sleeping form on the couch and feel a deep hatred for him as he snores loudly surrounded by his empty beer cans. I slowly get up off the ground and go take a shower so I can get all the blood off of my face and neck. I shower as fast as possible with all the pain in my body and get out and run to my room to get dressed. My head still hurts, so I take one of the little white pills I found in Jamie's stuff on the other side of the room.
I thought the police would have came by and looked through his things for drugs and stuff when they tested him, but I guess not. I shrug with my good shoulder and drink it with old water on the bed side table. After about twenty minutes, I feel better and decide I should get ready for school here soon. I think I actually missed the first few days, so I'll have to plan to catch up.
I chuckle softly at the thought. With everything going on, I'm worried about missing a few days of school. I wish I was a normal teenager and only had to worry about passing my SAT's and finding a good college with my grades. Sadly, that's not the card I was given for life. I lean back on my bed to make a mental note, and fall asleep.
I wake up with a start and sit up and listen carefully. SLAM! I flinch slightly at the sound and sit as still as I can on my bed. "Whore!" I hear my father yell out. I freeze and stop breathing. Please don't notice that I'm home. "You left blood on my floor, you skank!" he yells. Oh no. No. How could I have forgotten to clean up? I look around and notice my window is still open. I slip on my flip flops and quietly slide out of my bed and through the window.
I crounch down under the window sill and wait for him to slam open my door before running in a crouch as fast as I could. The flip flops were slowing me down, so I quickly took them off and picked them up before sprinting as fast as I could away from the house. I can't let him catch me. I can't let him catch me.
I hear the truck before I see it. It's HIS truck. I sprint impossibly faster as I hear his truck get closer to me. Almost there. Just a bit farther. I can make it. I'll be safe there. Just a bit further. I keep repeating this as I glance back and see his truck less than a block away from me. I'm going to die. He's going to run me over. I run across the football field at the park, and he drives around it the long way. Yes, an advantage.
I continue sprinting and can see the house a few houses down. I just have to get there before he runs me over. I look over and see his truck round the corner alarmingly fast a few houses down. Crap! I sprint as my life depends on it and reach their front door before hearing his crappy breaks squeak behind me.
I turn the door knob and it's locked! I scream and pound on the door as I hear his truck go into park and his driver side door open as fast as I've ever heard. I start crying and hear him get closer to me. I look behind me and see another car I don't recognize in front of the house. Where are the Brance's? Why aren't they opening the door? I turn around and HE is pinning me against the house. I can feel his breath on my face.
"You think you're so smart, little B*tch. Well, then you should probably know that no one is home. No one is here to save you," father tells me calmly as he gets impossibly bigger than me. I start crying harder and pray that he just kills me. Get it over with and finally kill me. I then hear the sound of a lock being undone behind me and could leap for joy.
"What the H*ll is going on here?!" I hear an unfamiliar, masculine voice boom behind me. I looks up at my father to see him gulp in fear and back away from the man, therefore backing away from me. I take a breath of relief and run into the house and hide behind the unfamiliar man. He looks at my father questioningly before closing the door in his face.
I run into Chance's room to hide, but the man follows closely behind me. I look at him and he seems almost surprised that I know my way around the house- kind of. I smile shyly at him and wave. I see something click in his mind and he smiles at me before snapping his fingers towards me and saying, "You must be Jessica Felow," I nod and he grins. "I've heard many amazing things about you from my sons," he smiles at me.
"You're sons? But I thought Mr.Brance died when the Tyler and Chance were younger?" I look at him funny and the man looks at me like I'm crazy as I back away from him.
I take the knife out from under Chance's pillow and hold it up out in front of me. "Who are you really?"