Home Sweet Home [Solo]

The mat outside the house was simple and friendly. While most doormats came across as ridiculous or looked as though they tried to hard to be witty; this one only had to two words... Welcome Home.

The girl had a dazed look as she pulled out her key to unlock the front door to her home. The house that the Marchant family inhabited was quite large in relation to the rest of the city. It had a large kitchen, five spacious bedrooms, three bathrooms, a full studio apartment beneath, and a den. It was obvious that Erik and Lucinda hadn’t really been thinking about fitting in when they decided to move to Japan, but like the American’s they were, personal space was always a top-rated necessity. When you had the savings and income necessary to live in such grandeur, then what was there to stop them? Nothing.

“I’m home.” It was obvious from the girl’s tone that she didn’t want to see her parent’s at that moment. Her therapist would have called them by now and while she knew her father would understand her reaction to an extent… Her mother would probably be fuming. Dropping her schoolbag by the door, the girl slumped in the couch in their foyer as she pulled off her boots and just stared into space. If she was being honest with herself, it was times like these that she wished that she was on good terms with her mother. Her father was great and all, but talking to him never really helped her… He always had some scientific explanation involving hormones and over stimulated brain cells. As much as he tried to understand what she was going through… He had no idea what it was like to be in her shoes.

Staring at her multi-colored socks for a moment, the girl could feel herself dozing off even though it was only 18:15. “Izzie is that you? It’s time for dinner.” At the sound of her mother’s voice the girl blinked a few times as she stood up and smoothed out her shirt. “Coming mom!” Her voice was full of sarcasm. It was only on days where things went wrong that Lucinda decided that they should eat as a “family.” They would go through the motions to reassure her that they were normal. They would talk about how uneventful their day was… Lie if anything had gone wrong and after they would scatter like leaves being blown away with the wind.

Taking her seat at the table, Isabelle watched as her Mother set the platters of food in the middle for them to serve themselves from. Holding her hands out for her parents, the girl closed her eyes as her Mother said a short prayer to bless the food. It was routine for Lucinda to pray for her family. She was a large part of their Church and she was a leading role-model outside the house. But things were changing and Isabelle only felt uncomfortable as her mother talked to God.

Cooking was one of the few things Lucinda was fond of, the plates of food full of vibrant colors. From the looks of it she had made pot-roast with sides of mashed potatoes, steamed vegetables, and dinner rolls. Passing the dishes around, Isabelle took a small scoop from each and put in on her plate. For a few moments the girl ate in silence as she listened to her parents talk about their days. Her father told them about how one of his previous patients came to the hospital today for her follow-up and it looked as though she was healing nicely. Her mother told them that she had decided to take up painting. She had a dream the other night and the picture of a beautiful sunset had stuck in her mind. She talked about how she didn’t want to lose that picture and so she decided to paint it. Listening as her parents drabbled on and on about meaningless things, she couldn’t take it any longer. They were avoiding their problems, pretending like they didn’t have any at all, and she was sick of it.

“I need to tell you guys something…” Pausing, the girl stirred her potatoes around a bit as she tried to rework her wording in her mind. They wouldn’t agree with what she had to say, but she had to get some truth into the relationship she had with them. “I hope this isn’t about a certain meeting today. You know how I hate to fight at the table Isabelle.” The girl jumped at the sound of the harshness in her mother’s voice. Was she really that much of a disappointment to the woman? It wasn’t as though she asked to have these creatures attack her. She never asked for any of it, but for some reason the universe felt the need to isolate her from her peers and her family. “It’s not about that--” Hearing her mother’s fork scrape across her plate the girl shut her mouth as she stared down at the table. “Don’t be like this Lucinda. Don’t shut her out.” Her father’s voice sounded just as cold as her mothers, but his anger wasn’t directed at her. “Go ahead honey. We’re listening.” The anger in his voice seemed to disappear as he spoke to her, his hand moving to cover her own as he smiled. I’m sorry Dad. Looking at her father, the girl pulled her hand away and cupped both of them in her lap.

Disappointment after disappointment. That was all she was ever capable of.

Taking a breath the girl wrung her hands in her lap as she spoke. “I don‘t think I should be forced to attend your church‘s Youth Group anymore.” She could hear her voice getting lower and lower as she spoke, her eyes flashing left and right, waiting for her parent’s reaction, but where she expected her mother to give her some sort of exasperated sigh… Nothing happened. “Christianity just isn’t my thing and even if it was… I don’t think I should feel pressured into worshipping God in public.” Staring down at her plate, the girl realized she wasn’t hungry. All she wanted to do was sleep… At least when she was sleeping she couldn’t knowingly disappoint anyone.

“Is there anything else you’d like to say Isabelle?” Her mother’s words seemed even colder to the girl’s ears and she couldn’t help but cringe a bit. She had a lot that she wanted to say, but felt as though she was being suffocated in her own home. “No. I just wanted to let you know how I feel.” Setting down her fork, the girl tried to focus on something… Anything. The green hue of the asparagus, the sprinkle of pepper in the gravy… Anything that could keep her from losing it again like she did in Dr. Trammel’s office. That small glimmer of empowerment gone with only a few words from her mother‘s mouth. “I think it would be best if you gave us time to think about what you said. This topic… Makes me uncomfortable and honestly I’m a bit offended that you can deny your religion so easily.” Her mother’s tone was clipped as she stared across the table at her father. Looking up at her parents, the girl could feel the rejection that seemed to be seeping from her mother with every word. “Lucinda, don’t be so harsh.” Her father interjected as he set his silverware on the table and removed the dinner napkin from his lap. “We will consider what you’ve told us tonight honey, but as of this moment we both believe that the Youth Group is more good than bad and would appreciate it if you continue attending. They‘re good kids… And you‘re an asset to the group.” Her father’s voice was gentle as he spoke to her. Perhaps it was because in his mind she was an unstable wreck… Perhaps it was because he could see how much her mother’s rejection hurt her… Or perhaps it was both.

In her heart the girl knew that her father was a good man. He helped people… He saved lives… But if he was as great as people thought he was then why couldn’t he fix her? “I’m… Going to my… Room.” Her voice was shaking as looked back and forth between her parents, her eyes brimming with tears. She knew that her mother would take it badly and she had mentally prepared herself for it, but she was expecting total rejection. Standing up from her seat, the girl placed the napkin that was on her lap on the table beside her nearly untouched plate and walked out of the dining room. Picking up her school bag, the girl pulled the round object from side pocket before upstairs to her bedroom. The night she had met that man, that soul, she had chosen to fight back… But she had no idea how to even go down that road. She had nothing to offer when it came to fighting… Yes she was athletic, but pure physical health only got one so far.

Opening the door to her room, the girl walked inside and closed the door behind her. She was exhausted and she didn’t want her parents coming to check on her. Laying there, her hazel eyes stared up at her ceiling, her mind completely blank. She had pictured this conversation with her parents going a lot different a thousand times. She wasn’t religious and she never had been, if she couldn’t be honest with them about her monsters then she could at least attempt to be honest about this. Running a hand through her hair, the girl pulled the hair tie from her dark pink tresses and set it on one of her bedside nightstands. Crawling under the covers in the clothes she wore to school she closed her eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.