Falling for my Best Friend

The Trainwreck on the Deck

Wren

Well, now I guess I get to sit around for the rest of the night and worry about those boys of mine. I know that boys fight and it's different than girls. Even if someone throws a punch tonight, I bet that it will be over by tomorrow. They aren't as catty as girls and I have to remember that.

Now that I've shaken the feeling of impending doom I unlock the front door. But as soon as I get Quin inside my stomach sinks again, I can tell the vibe in the house is off. All of the lights are on but Mom and Dad aren't on the couch where I expect to see them.

There is an eerie electronic buzzing coming from the television that is playing the nightly news on mute but right off hand that's all I can hear. I feel a bit out of breath and my hands start to shake, that's when I realize that my body is reacting like I'm terrified. This reaction is trying to warn me of impending danger. Suddenly my throat feels dry and I want to run. I'm not sure what's happening but I know that something is wrong, very wrong.

After my fight or flight takes over I feel a bit out of control. My protective instincts kick in so I tell Quin to go upstairs and that I'll come see her in a bit. She should be safe in her room, my parents very rarely venture up to the second floor where our bedrooms are.

She must be able to tell that something is off too, because she doesn't argue like she usually would. Maybe this is a blessing in disguise, I was sure I wouldn't get her to bed without a bowl of cereal and an hour of television.

After I hear her bedroom door close I step into the kitchen where I hear a loud television blaring from my parents' bedroom. I go in to find my dad passed out, obviously drunk with half a beer still in his hand. He's still in his work clothes with one leg hanging off the side of the bed. This isn't the first time I've come home to this. Usually it's him like this and mom on the deck sleeping with her mouth open on one of the lounge chairs.

I turn off the TV, then take the beer from Dad before I have to use all of my strength to put his dead weight leg in bed. I'm huffing and puffing from the exertion but Dad hasn't stirred one bit so I remove his shoes and plug in his phone before I turn off the lights and leave.

I hate coming home to this. Just once I want to be a regular teen. I know that my parents can do better but they keep choosing their vices over Quin and I. It's so damn disappointing, I didn't mind the first few times but now that it's happened more than five times I've sort of run out of empathy. I wonder where my mom is hiding.

A minute or two later, I'm in the kitchen dumping Dad's beer down the sink when I look out the window and see my mom on the deck with creepy Robert. She is swaying on her feet but she is obviously awake. He says something to her and she laughs really loud, she looks like a trainwreck and I can't stop watching.

When she finishes her laughing fit she smiles at Robert before she steps closer to him, then she leans in and starts kissing him! I don't mean like an accidental drunk smooch, I mean she's making out with a strange man, at the house she shares with my dad, on our deck while Dad sleeps in their bed.

Rage courses through my body; my teeth grind and my fists clench, now I can tell that my palms are also sweating. I feel like my heart might just jump out of my body because it's beating so fast. I'm overcome with emotion and I feel out of control as I swing open the French doors leading outside and stomp over to Robert.

The way that the string of lights my mother hung from the screen enclosure light up the space, combined with the water feature on the pool make the deck look like it belongs in a storybook. But the sight of my mother making out with a man other than my father is ruining the ambiance.

My boots are sounding on the stone deck loud enough that Mom and Robert break apart when I approach; I instinctively put my hands out, crash them into Robert's chest and push him away from my mother. I'm satisfied when he stumbles back away from her and his stupid expression only serves to please me more.