Invitation to a Better Life (Meeting the Beast Chapter 2) (standard:drama, 3238 words) [2/8] show all parts
Author: Siobhan	Added: Sep 26 2002	Views/Reads: 2736/2218	Part vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Jessica goes home after the long party and is met by her mother who seems slightly sick and she must deal with Steven, who takes every chance he can to bother her.

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

Everything would be all right if only her mom got some sleep. 

"No, you're not.  Go to bed," Jessica began to help her up the stairs,
but her mom waved her off.  She always was so proud and didn't want to 
submit to being helped, especially when she was insisting that nothing 
was the matter.  She had a weak smile upon her face, and even though 
beads of perspiration clung to her face and her hair was tangled and 
limp, Jessica thought she still looked beautiful. She knew that even if 
her mother were drawn and pale, she would still find her incredibly 
pretty.  Her mom was just like that. 

"This is so sad.  I'm the mother but you're sending me to bed," she
laughed and hugged Jessica, before beginning the venture up the stairs. 
 They both laughed, but it sounded strained and forced.  It was for 
Jessica because she was sick with worry about her mom but she had to 
keep up a good face for her.  She didn't understand why they both had 
to deny the truth, that she was sick, but they did and her mom was 
getting worse with every growing day. 

"Hey, someone has to take control," Jessica joked even though she was
filled with concern for her mother.  Her heart ached with that line, 
she should take control and get her mom to a doctor before she died in 
her sleep.  But, surely it wasn't bad, probably just something a couple 
pills could take care of.  At least, she hoped that was all that it was 
but deep down, she knew that it was more.  That if they didn't get her 
to the doctor soon, they'd be taking her to a coroner, and that was a 
very unpleasant thoughts. 

"That girl, Rhonda, a real nice kid," her mother mumbled, sounding once
more like a little kid in deep fascination with something.  The way 
that she said that bothered Jessica so much but she could not honestly 
say why.  She was probably just acting weird because of her headaches 
but it still was disturbing to hear her mother go from joking to a 
child.  It was like having a mom with split personalities and she could 
never predict what was going to occur next. 

"Yeah she is, now go to bed," she urged and watched her mother drag
herself up the stairs.  She looked so weak and frail that her heart 
sang out to try and help her mom.  She clung desperately to the 
banister, her feet slowly picking out the next step as if it might 
disappear as she was putting her foot on it.  The whole ordeal was 
taking so much out of her and every move cause sweat to drip out of her 
pores.  Jessica decided, after watching her mom make it to the second 
floor, that it was definitely time to take her mom to the doctor.  They 
had to do something quick before she slipped off the stairs and broke 
her neck. 

"Rhonda, very nice, be friends with her.  She's a real nice girl,"
Jessica wondered why her mother seemed so taken with Rhonda. She heard 
her mother stumble into the bathroom and throw up.  It was another one 
of her retching fits that generally occurred when she had a headache of 
such magnitude.  Concern lit her entire being and she forced herself to 
stand there, not run up to her mother's aid.  It was all she could do 
not to fly up those stairs and hug her mom, tell her that it was going 
to be okay.  Her mom was always so embarrassed when she was throwing up 
and Jessica did not want to embarrass her at all.  Her mother had too 
much pride and as much as she wanted to comfort her mother, she would 
not damage that pride by walking in on her stomach issues. 

A few minutes later, Steven strode down the stairs and Jessica sighed
with irritation.  Every step he took was filled with an enraging 
arrogance and he had a morbid smirk upon his face.  She disliked him 
and blamed him for her mother's worsened condition.  They had been 
living in Colorado until Steven had came up for a business trip.  Her 
mom had supposedly “fallen in love” with the jerk and they had eloped 
without Jessica having ever met Steven.  If that was not enough insult, 
they had then ripped her up from a home that she had lived in for 
seventeen and seven months of her life with to move here, to Arizona.  
She had lost her best friend, Anna, and her crush, Elijah, had revealed 
that he had the hots for her near her last day of school.  Since the 
move, her mother had continually had more headaches and more puking 
sessions.  She had become increasingly stranger and more moodier.  
Jessica resented Steven for forcing them out here and held him 
responsible for everything that went wrong in the world.  To  her, he 
represented pure evil in it's most revolting form. 

"You really should not make your mother wait up like that Jessie.  It'll
kill her," he chided and she flinched with the name Jessie.  She hated 
that name when he used it which was why he used it.  It was her 
mother's nickname for it and because he had decided he should play the 
role of father, he used it too.  Only her mother could use it, only her 
mother could call her Jessie and she would teach him that one way or 
another. 

"Well Stevie, you really shouldn't have moved her out here.  That is
what is really killing her," she retorted and he glared at her.  He was 
constantly telling her to respect him and call him Steven or father.  
He didn't understand, she didn't respect him and she never would.  He 
hadn't done anything to deserve her respect and in all aspects, had 
done everything possible to be degraded into something she didn't even 
deem worthy of life. 

"Don't call me Stevie.  I deserve more respect for as  I am your father,
er, step-father, so, you need to respect me," he hissed, anger twisting 
his features into a laughable expression.  She did let out a guffaw at 
that comment, just because she knew it would tick him off.  He was so 
predictable and so easy to anger.  It was great for at least he was 
useful at providing her with entertainment, something to laugh at. 

"Oh Stevie, claiming me to be my father now.  Until you play the part of
the role and have an influence like a father on me, I'm going to call 
you Stevie.  Get used to it," she explained with spite clear in her 
voice, "And you still haven't said anything to the move out here 
killing her."  She knew that she was provoking him much more than usual 
but she had a lot of animosity and bitterness inside of her that she 
needed to take out, particularly on him.  The horrible but exciting 
thing was she had just touched the tip of the iceberg that was growing 
inside of her and she had so much more to say, so much more to do.  She 
was just getting started. 

"Look you little twit, I moved her out here cause I thought it would be
best for her," he growled but his eyes flitted from side to side.  He 
was afraid of her and he also knew he was in the wrong.  She had heard 
him apologizing to her mother one night for making her move out here.  
They all knew it was destroying her but they couldn't possibly make her 
move back cause that would certainly kill her.  There was no way her 
mom could handle the stress of another move, she could barely handle 
walking up the stairs. 

"Yeah right, you took her out here cause you wanted to be here.  You're
killing her, and only you," she looked right into his eyes and she 
could see that he was boiling with rage.  But she was too, he was never 
thinking of what was best for her.  It was always was best for him.  He 
had moved her out here cause all of his family and friends were here, 
his business was here but everything they loved was back in Colorado.  
How could he find the nerve to make the claim that it was best for her 
mother?  How could he truly dare?  They all knew he was lying but maybe 
he actually believed what he was saying and if that was true, she was 
really irate. 

"No wonder your father left, I would too if you were my kid," he
snarled, pulling out what weapon he thought would be of use.  She 
recoiled inwardly from that slap in the face cause she did blame 
herself for her dad leaving.  Certainly he would not have left her 
beautiful and wonderful mom but she would never let Steven see that he 
had touched a nerve.  He would just have to suffer the consequences but 
not enjoy the shot he managed to take. 

"We couldn't all be so lucky as to have you leave us, now could we?" she
grinned with fiery hostility.  She hated him so much, she had never 
known she could hold so much vehemence towards someone who she lived 
with.  She despised him even more than her father, who had ran away.  
Why, she wished that she could go back in time and kill Steven as a 
baby, and in doing so, successfully halt everything that was occurring 
now.  They would still be in Colorado and maybe by now, she would be 
dating Elijah and Anna and her would be gossiping eagerly about all 
that life was dishing them.  But she was well aware that was no such 
wonderful thing and she would have to suffer with Steven until one of 
them died. 

"You little bi...twit," he took a step towards her and she stood her
ground.  She would never back down from him and she would kill him if 
he laid a hand upon her.  She was, in fact, hoping that he would slap 
her or do something of the nature cause then she would attack with a 
passion that was only designed to murder.  She would rip him apart, 
limb from limb, and revel in his screams and dying gasps for life.  She 
realized that she was shaking, she was so enraged, and that her hands 
were twitching to cause some pain upon his form. 

"Steven, are you coming back?" her mother called from upstairs.  She
sounded so feeble that Jessica just about cried but she would never do 
so in front of Steven.  She would never allow him to see how much she 
cared for her mother, or how much her weakness was affecting her.  She 
would drive every nail into his body that was possible but she would 
not allow him to penetrate her shield. 

"I'm looking forward to the day that you touch me," she laughed with
sinister meaning.  She was kind of bummed that her mother had called 
down because now most of the tension was lost.  And, Steven, in all of 
his ignorant and stupid glory, was thinking of going back to her mother 
rather than continue the fight.  She wanted him to continue, she wanted 
him to hit her so she could take her revenge.  But honestly, the sound 
of her mother's voice so unhealthy, had shook her resolution and taken 
out some of her fire. 

He looked up the stairs then back at her, his eyes holding fear and a
deep sadness.  She was shocked by the utter despair she saw in his eyes 
for she didn't think he cared about her mother very much.  But, the 
emotion displayed in his eyes said that her mother meant the world to 
him and hearing her suffer was agony for him.  But, maybe she was 
giving him too much credit and the sadness was only the fact that he 
wasn't going to finish their malignant conversation.  That he was going 
to back out because of her mother rather than stand his ground, and 
cream Jessica.  Though she knew better if that was the case, she would 
have destroyed him. 

"Why?" he inquired, he was laughing at her but she could see that he was
nervous.  He was frightened by Jessica and somehow she knew that he 
would never hit her.  He was terrified of whatever he had seen in her 
face, and she felt powerful.  She had never made an adult scared of her 
and it was an adrenaline rush that thrilled her.  She was intimidating 
and that was so cool. . . even if it were only Steven. 

"The moment that you touch me, I will kill you and I mean it.  I will
rip you apart and kill you," she explained and she felt her whole heart 
and soul telling him that it was true, but the steam had gone out of 
her.  She knew that he wouldn't come near her now and that his main 
worry was her mother now.  She wished that she could be the one that 
her mom wanted but her mom did not want to admit that she was hurting 
to Jessica.  She wanted to carry on the false pretense that everything 
would get better and Jessica allowed her to believe that she was naïve 
about how serious the headaches were. 

"Is that a threat?" he asked and she shook her head.  What a dumb fool! 

"No Stevie, that's a promise.  There is a difference," she chuckled and
he glared at her before clomping up the stairs.  She hated him with an 
incredible passion and wished her mother had not married him.  She only 
had a couple of months left with him but it was still too long.  
Someday, she hoped that they were going to physically fight and she 
could kill him and be happy with the results.  That would be absolutely 
heaven and she could get away with the cry of self defense. 

She went into the living room and flicked the light off.  For a moment,
she saw her mother sitting on the chair, so delicate and gentle, then 
she shook her head and the image was gone.  She turned around and 
strolled carelessly to the stairway.  She could hear Steven softly 
talking to her mother, but they were too quiet to be heard.  Apparently 
he had figured out that she could hear what they said and now wanted to 
keep it on the low note.  She dawdled up the stairs and crept into her 
room.  She changed then sank obligingly into bed and dropped out 
immediately, exhausted from the day's activities. 


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