Page 118 of Collided

“Have you seen him? He’s been drinking.”

She shakes her head. “No. Alex won’t do that to me. He's promised me that he quit.”

“No, Mom, he hasn’t. Every night when I come home he’s drunk and yells at me. He’s even hurt me physically.” I’m about to show her marks but she stares at me as if I’m crazy.

“Hurt you? Yell at you? What are you talking about?” There’s disgust and surprise on her face.

“I’m telling you the truth. You can even ask Nadina. She saw him drunk and breaking into the house a few weeks ago.”

Mom sighs heavily. “I know about that. He told me. But he’s also promised me that he won’t go back to his ways. He wants to change. He wants to be good to me and make up to me. I think we should give him a chance. I love him.”

Just like I suspected, she is hypnotized. She discards everything that I said. She won’t care if I show her how he’s been abusing me. Even last night.

I have to try. I have to show her that he’s not different. “He’s lying to you.”

The worry in her eyes disappears, and anger appears. “I know him better than you, Hope.”

I nod in sympathy, trying to not let my emotions get the best of me. “I’m sure you do, but you have toseethat he’s not okay. He’s hurt me, Mom. I swear.”

“He will never hurt you,” she dismisses my words.

“How are you so sure? He’s hurtyoubefore.”

She glares at me. “That was before. The time we spent apart has changed him.”

“No, he’s not. Last night he made up some stupid rules and he asked me to follow them. He told me how to dress and—”

Exasperation flashes across her face. “I know. Alex told me you were dressed like a hooker.”

“No! I wasn’t,” I protest. She knows what kind of clothes I wear.

“From how he explained the outfit to me, I believe him.” She shrugs carelessly like my words don’t even matter.

“But you don’t believe me?” My voice breaks.

Mom sighs and stares at me in sympathy. “I do, Hope. But your father and I know better.”

Anger flares through me. “The father who left us four months ago right after he choked you.”

Mom stands up and glares at me. “Watch your tongue, Hope! I won’t tolerate disrespect next time. Your dad is back home and he’s going to stay. You can either deal with the fact or move out.”

What?

I can’t breathe.

She… she kicked me out? Even after I told her he’s hurting me.

She chose to not believe me.

I…

My throat grows thick. “M-move out? W-what are you talking about? I don’t have—”

“That’s what I thought. When you live under my house you live by my rules.”

Emotions overwhelm me to the point they suffocate me, so I burst out. “I just told you how he’s treating me, and you don’t even believe me.”

“It’s not that I don’t believe you.”

---