The Ugly Stepsister (16 page)

That afternoon, Tom pulled up in front of Lauren’s house and waited for Lauren and Sam to get out. “Are you sure you’ll be fine to get home?”

Sam nodded. “I’ll catch a bus. Lauren and I went online and worked out which ones and what time. I can even tie my own shoe laces, brother.”

Tom smiled. “It took me so many months to teach you that I’d be devastated if you’d forgotten how.”

Sam grinned, brushing his curls out of his eyes before he turned and took Lauren’s hand.

As they drove off, Tom glanced at Ellie. “You’ll never guess who rang Sam last night.”

“Last night? And you’re just telling me now? What was wrong with telling me at the pool this morning?”

“I was probably suffering from shock.”

“Real funny. Okay, tell me who. I’m no good at twenty questions.”

“Only because you don’t comprehend the concept that questions are meant to be answered not questioned.”

“Dragging this conversation out isn’t going to change my mind. You’re not coming in when we get to my place. I’ve got too much schoolwork to get done. No way am I ruining my weekends doing assignments and homework if I can help it.”

“It was Michelle. She said a group of them were going to the movies Wednesday night and did he and Lauren want to come along. Then she tacked on the end that I was welcome to come too. Sorry to say, you weren’t even mentioned.”

Ellie laughed. “She was probably trying to forget I exist. Now what did I tell you? Am I a genius or what?” Her laugh vanished when they pulled up in front of her house to see the front door open and music pouring out. She swore.

“What’s going on?” Tom turned off the engine.

“Wait here.”

Tom grabbed her arm when she went to open the door. “What’s going on, Ellie?”

“Let me go.”

“I’m not sitting out here wondering if you’re okay. Tell me what’s happening.” He let go of her arm.

Ellie sighed. It wasn’t Tom she was angry at. “Sorry. I think Mum has a few friends over. I hope that’s all it is. If she’s having a party…” she trailed off. She’d what? She didn’t know. “Just give me some time to find out what’s happening. If I’m not out in twenty minutes you can come in.”

“Don’t do anything stupid.”

Ellie met his eyes, surprised by the look in them. What did he have to be angry about? She considered asking him, but nodded instead. This time when she opened the car door he didn’t try and stop her. She left her schoolbag in the car, striding towards the house. Her lips thinned when she was able to see in the front door. More than a few people. And they’d been there for quite a while by the look of the empty cans and bottles lying around.

“Well, if it isn’t little Elizabeth.”

Ellie spun towards the bedrooms. Scott stood near her mum’s room. She felt like punching the sleazy look off his face. Someone beside her staggered and she took a couple of steps forward so she wasn’t knocked over. “What rock did you crawl out from under?”

Scott strode over to her, his smile never faltering. “Don’t be like that, Elizabeth. You know I think of you like a daughter. How about a proper greeting, sweet little Elizabeth.”

“Good thing you don’t have kids. I’d pity any poor bastard who ended up with you as a father.” Ellie was pleased to see Scott’s smile finally falter. Another person stumbled into her.

They turned around to apologise, then grinned. “Ellie. Haven’t seen you in years. Haven’t you grown? Oh, don’t that make me feel old.”

Ellie nodded. She couldn’t think of the woman’s name. “Have you seen Mum?”

The woman nodded and pointed to the bedroom. “We came over to cheer her up. Looks like you need cheering instead. What’s got you so blue, Ellie? Boy problems?” The woman laughed.

Ellie didn’t bother to answer. She strode towards the bedroom. She nearly made it when Scott grabbed her by the arm and turned her to face him. She glared at his hand. “Let me go, or I’ll scream.”

Scott laughed. “Do you think anyone here’d give a shit? They’re all completely plastered.”

“Final warning, Scott.”

“Or you’ll do what?”

Ellie smiled, stepping in close to be able to bring her knee up swiftly and accurately. She grinned when Scott collapsed onto the ground, screaming and swearing. Stepping past him, she entered her mum’s room.

Sharon saluted her with a bottle of spirits. There were seven other people in the room with her. One sat on the floor, one on the bed and the others stood about. “Want a drink, Ellie?”

Ellie stared at her mum. Behind her Scott continued to swear. No one took any notice. Anger rushed through her. She strode over to her mum, ripped the bottle from her hands and threw it against the wall. It shattered, causing the person standing nearby to jump out of the way.

“What was that for?” Sharon frowned. “What a waste.”

Tom came to stand beside her. “Are you okay, Ellie?”

Surely it hadn’t been twenty minutes already. She nodded, her eyes still on her mum. There were so many words she wanted to speak. She knew it was pointless. Not one word would be remembered tomorrow. The anger that burned in her was a waste of time, but she still couldn’t let it go. She turned away and stepped over Scott who now moaned in the doorway. She unlocked her door and held up her hand when Tom would have followed her. “Don’t let anyone in.” When he nodded, she closed the door and quickly threw a handful of clothes in her overnight bag, including another school uniform. She shoved her laptop in and opened the door. Tom took the bag from her and she shot the barrel bolt home, snapping the padlock on. They walked to the car in silence.

Tom started the car, pulling out onto the street. “What happened to Scott?”

“Someone tried to relocate his testicles.”

“You?”

Ellie nodded.

“Where were you aiming to put them?”

“His throat?” When Tom chuckled, Ellie smiled slightly. “I don’t think I did a very good job of it though.” She sighed and closed her eyes. She felt Tom’s hand rest on her thigh and she covered it with her own.

“Are you okay, Ellie?”

“Yeah. I will be.”

“You can stay as long as you want.”

Ellie opened her eyes. “Thanks. But I’ll sort this out. She’s not going to party all week too.”

“She goes back to work next week, doesn’t she?”

Ellie nodded. “Yeah.” She closed her eyes again as she frantically thought over all her options. There weren’t a lot. The bank statement came to mind. No, she wouldn’t touch that unless she was completely desperate. It’d pay for accommodation during the years she’d be at uni. If she needed it to. Although she was sure she could con her father into paying for that. Especially if Pamela thought she’d be visiting every second she could.

“You’ll let me know if I can help?”

Ellie nodded, her eyes still closed. She would open them when they reached Tom’s house. Until then she was going to pretend the rest of the world didn’t exist. Her life was a mess again. Why couldn’t things go right for more than a day or two at a time? Not one single thing about this day had gone well. Starting with her mum waking her early in the morning. An image of Scott on the floor brought a smile to her face. Well, maybe something had gone well. Seeing him crumple like that had been extremely satisfying. Go Lisbeth! He better keep his distance because she wasn’t putting up with any of his crap ever again.

The next afternoon Ellie sat in the car with Tom and stared at her house. Most of the day had been a blur. Throughout the day she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about what was going on at home. Now she was sitting out the front, she didn’t want to go in and find out. She straightened her shoulders. She wasn’t the sort to sit about moaning and complaining. Well, not for long anyway. Time to see how screwed up her life currently was.

“You don’t have to go in there alone,” Tom said.

Ellie nodded. “I do.”

“Let me know if everything’s okay. I’m not leaving until you tell me it’s safe for you in there.”

“It will be. It’s too quiet to be otherwise.”

“Ring me if you need me.”

Ellie smiled. “Okay.” She said the word with a great deal of exaggeration.

Tom returned her smile. “It looks like you were right. You can teach old dogs new tricks.”

Ellie’s smile became a grin. “I’ll wave to you from the front door if it’s okay for you to go.”

Tom nodded and then drew her close for a kiss. “Will you be online tonight?”

“Eight?”

“I’ll be waiting.”

Ellie rested her palm against his face, staring into his eyes for a minute. Some things she couldn’t bring herself to voice. A marriage proposal? Not a problem. The words that should have come long before it? Well, they got stuck in her throat. “Thank you,” she said softly. She grabbed her bags and raced to the house.

The front door was unlocked. She swung it open and determinedly stepped inside. It was a mess. But other than her mum passed out on the sofa, it was empty. She put her bags in her room, locked it again and opened up all the windows. Yep, empty. She breathed a sigh of relief and went to stand in the front doorway. She waved to Tom who waved at her before he started the car and drove away. Ellie turned back to face her mum.

No point in waiting around for her to wake up. Might as well get it over with. Ellie moved closer. “Mum.” She stirred. “Mum!”

Sharon opened her eyes and stared blearily up at Ellie. “What? Grab me something for this headache and stop shouting.”

Ellie waded through the mess and grabbed Panadol off the top of the fridge. She threw them in Sharon’s lap. “I’m not impressed.”

“What the bloody hell are you going on about? Can’t you see I’m trying to sleep?”

“I don’t care if you bring the house down around your ears on the weekend. I’d prefer you didn’t, but I’m not affected by it.”

“So generous of you. Since when do I have to ask your permission?”

Ellie ignored the sarcastic comment. “But I do care if you have one of your drunken parties during the week. I live here too you know.”

“It wasn’t planned. Scott came over. Things snowballed from there. And what’s your problem with him? He told me this morning that you were a complete bitch to him yesterday.”

“Really?” Ellie’s fists clenched. “Next time he thinks he can put his hands on me I won’t bother trying to knee his balls through to his throat, I’ll cut them off. And you can tell him that.”

“Now Ellie, Scott’s harmless. He wouldn’t-”

“Stop! I don’t want to hear any of your pathetic excuses. You can have whoever you want as your friend. Any pathetic looser who wanders in off the street with a bottle of alcohol for all I care. But I’m not putting up with them.”

“What’s up your butt?

“This.” She indicated the mess with a sweep of her hand. “I won’t put up with this during the week.”

“Oh go away, Ellie. I’m not in the mood for it.”

“Too bad.”

“Don’t take that tone with me. You’re bloody lucky I give you as much freedom as I do. I bet your father wouldn’t let you get away with the shit I let you get away with.”

“No more parties during the week.”

“Or what?”

“I leave.” She had to draw the line somewhere.

Sharon laughed. “Yeah right, Ellie. You’re bluffing. You know you wouldn’t get the same sort of deal at your father’s.”

“I never once said I’d move in with him. I’d rather live in a foster home first.” Okay, so maybe not, but it was an option.

“And I bet they wouldn’t let you get away with what I do.”

Ellie shrugged. “I didn’t say I’d take that option. Aren’t you the one who keeps telling me I always land on my feet? Give me a week and I could come up with a dozen options. Do you really want me to leave? Is it such a chore living with me? Is having parties during the week more important to you than having me stay?”

Sharon stared at her. “I actually think you might be serious.”

Ellie rolled her eyes. “I know you’ve tried to kill off every brain cell possible with your drinking, but I didn’t think it was that hard a concept to understand.”

“Stop being a bitch, Ellie.”

“Then stop trying to win worst mother of the year award.”

“That was low.”

“So is throwing a party in the middle of the week so I had nowhere to stay.”

“Next you’ll be telling me you had to sleep on some park bench.”

“No, I didn’t.” Ellie stared at Sharon. She decided to bend the truth slightly. She had done it, just not last night. “It was a railway station.”

“Stop speaking shit.”

“I’m not.”

Sharon shook her head.

“I had a bag lady tell me to make myself scarce when the police do their sweep through. She even gave me the hours. Told me who to avoid and offered to share her dinner with me. She even pointed out there was hardly any dirt on it since no one had walked on it when it was dropped on the ground.”

“Ellie…”

“No more parties during the week.”

Sharon dropped her head into her hands. “Are you going to tell your father?”

“No. This is between you and me.”

“You must hate me.” Sharon raised her head. Tears streaked her cheeks.

Ellie shook her head. “No.” She shrugged. “You’re my mum.”

“Not much of a one.”

“Probably not. But since you’re the one I’m stuck with I’m willing to make the best of it.”

“So generous of you, Ellie,” Sharon said bitterly.

“No. Generous is cleaning this mess up each week.” Ellie gestured towards the room. “Generous is buying the groceries and paying the bills and making sure there’s always something for you to eat. Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t that the parent’s job?”

“Ellie… I don’t… why are you here, Ellie? Why do you put up with me?”

“Because someone has to deal with it all and I know you won’t. But I’m not sticking around if I’ve got to put up with parties during the week. The only thing I’m asking is that from Sunday afternoon to Friday morning none of your friends are welcome here. Ever.”

“Don’t push it, Ellie. You’re being ridiculous.”

“Is that your answer? Because if it is, I’ll be out of here by Friday.”

“And where will you go?”

Ellie stared at her mum, her expression closed. “That would not be your problem.” She thought of the money sitting in the account her mum had opened for her. She’d have to take one of those statements so she could go and see the bank. And probably cancel any cards that had been issued for the account. She should also give them a different mailing address too.

“Oh what does it matter? I’m usually working during the week. Fine. But only because it suits me. Not because of your threats. Now leave me alone. My head’s killing me.” Sharon lay back on the sofa, closing her eyes.

Ellie stared at Sharon for a couple of minutes before she turned away. Heading straight for Sharon’s bedroom, she opened the bottom drawer. After some searching through the contents she was surprised to find a keycard and pin number. She took them and the latest statement. She would make sure Sharon couldn’t take the money she’d set aside for her. Life felt less uncertain knowing she had some money she could use if it all fell apart again.

Once the keycard and statement were safe in her room, she cleaned up the mess. It wasn’t as bad as it was on a Sunday. But she guessed it had only been a single day, not a weekend of partying. The bit that annoyed her most was that she’d have to do this clean up twice in one week.

By the time Ellie got the mess cleaned up, it was nearly eight. Tom was already online waiting for her. She signed in as offline. She didn’t think she could face chatting to anyone else right now.

Ellie says: Finally finished.

TW says: How are you?

Ellie says: Fine.

TW says: Seriously?

Ellie says: Don’t start.

TW says: So you’re not fine.

Ellie’s phone started to ring and she stared down at it on the desk. She was tempted to ignore Tom. When he sent a message telling her to answer the phone, she sighed. She had to give him top points for being persistent. “What?”

“What happened?”

“Nothing.”

“Try again.”

“Who do you think you are? My therapist?”

“Do I get to lie on the couch with you?”

Ellie couldn’t prevent a smile from starting. “Do you ever think of anything else?”

“Yeah. Now do you want to tell me what’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just had a bit of an argument with Mum, that’s all.”

“Are you sure you want to stay there tonight? I could come and get you.”

“What do you want me to do? Move in with you? I can’t leave Mum here on her own. Who’d take care of her?”

“Have you thought that maybe that’s what she needs?”

Ellie was silent a moment. “Yeah. But not yet. Maybe when I start uni.”

“Okay.”

Silence fell again until Ellie broke it. “Did I thank you for helping me out with Heather the other day?”

“No.”

“Thank you. I guess she brought back bad memories. Every time I saw her I just about had a panic attack.”

“You hid it well.”

“Is that all you’re going to say?”

Tom sighed. “Of course I want to ask you about the bad memories, but I was going to wait until this weekend.”

That was the last thing Ellie wanted. It was much easier to spill her secrets over the phone when he wasn’t watching her. “I was in foster care when I was five.”

“What was it like?”

“I kept asking to go home. And these two strangers kept telling me I was home. They had two older kids of their own. A boy and a girl. I had to share a room with the girl. I had none of my own things with me and she had to share her stuff with me. And her mum kept praising her for being nice to the poor little girl. I didn’t need anything of hers. I had my own things. At home. And they wouldn’t let me go there.”

“Didn’t you get to see your parents?”

“Dad shoved Mum in some rehab so they could get me back. She played their little game so she could get out quicker and he was too busy at work to come and see me. I must have tried to run away every day. I didn’t know how to get home, but that didn’t stop me from trying.”

“So you’ve always been stubborn.”

Ellie laughed. “Yeah, I suppose so.” She fell silent again. “I remember the day Mum was finally allowed to pick me up. I was sitting by the front door, like I did most days, wearing some stupid frilly dress. I can’t remember what colour it was, but I do remember the lace made me feel itchy. She came bursting in the door with some government official and stared at me. Her first words were ‘what is that crap she’s wearing? How can a kid climb a tree in all those frills?’ I just sat there and stared at her. I could hardly believe she’d finally come to get me.”

“How long were you there?”

“Two months. But it felt like years.”

“What were your foster parents like?”

“They weren’t mean or anything. Just strangers. I’d been stolen from my home and shoved with people I didn’t even know. I still get the urge to run whenever I see a cop.”

Silence fell again. This time it was Tom who broke it. “I really don’t know what to say. I guess I feel sorry for that little kid, but not for you. Actually, I kinda feel sorry for the hoops you made Heather jump through.”

Ellie laughed. “I am never going to forget her expression when she realised I’d told her the truth at the hospital.”

“Ellie.”

“Yeah.”

“Thank you for telling me.”

“Did I have a choice? You’d have eventually dragged it out of me.”

“Only because I love you. It’s not just because I’m curious.”

She tried. She really did. The words wouldn’t come. The feeling was there, had been for ages, but the words were stuck in her throat. “Huh. And I thought it was because of your obsessive behaviour that makes you unable to drop anything.”

Tom laughed softly. “Nice try.”

“I should let you get some sleep since you get up at a ridiculous hour of the morning.”

“Yeah. Night Ellie. Love you.”

Once again the words refused to come. Instead, she hung up and turned to her laptop.

Ellie says: Dream of me
:)


TW says: Always.

Sighing, she shut down her laptop, and stared at the screen until it went black. She took a deep breath. “Love you.” Her words were a whisper. She guessed she could say them. When she was alone. She closed the lid of her laptop as she rose from her desk. Maybe practice would help. She shook her head with a short laugh. Who was she kidding? Those words scared the hell out of her. She already had one person she loved. Someone who relied heavily on her. Did she really need more of that responsibility?

She dropped onto her bed. She knew Tom was nothing like her mum. If anything, he was the one who liked to take care of things. Rationally, she knew that. It was the irrational thoughts that got in the way. Somehow she had to sort them out. She wasn’t about to let them screw up one of the best things that had ever happened to her.