Snippet #2488381

Molly sucked in a deep breath, much like any other morning. She started most days this way, still laying on the cot on the floor of what doubled as her living room and bedroom, eyes closed, sucking in deep breaths. She listened to the sounds of the world around her, the screaming of her neighbors downstairs, the crying of the new baby next door, the sounds of girls playing hopscotch in front of her apartment building. She rolled over onto her stomach with a sigh before heaving herself into a kneeling position, hands resting on the wall in front of her. Her eyes remained closed until she heard the buzz of her phone against the wooden floor.

Molly didn't like to use her phone more than necessary. She had a pretty basic phone, it was cheap, and it wasn't a flip phone. It was touch screen, and slid up to show a hidden keyboard, and the only numbers in it were her grandparents and the only app was pandora. Aside from that, it was filled with music of almost every genre. New artists and old artists filled countless playlists, and she listened to it all with the same enthusiasm. This morning, her grandmother was calling.

"Hola," she mumbled, standing and shuffling slowly into the kitchen. "Yeah, I'm up." Her grandmother rambled on about needing things after Molly got off of work, but Molly didn't listen entirely to what she was saying. Grabbing an apple from the fridge, she jumped to sit on top of her counter. "No, I'm not sitting on the counter. I'll call you after work. I need to get ready for school." Molly slid down, landing on the floor with a simple, hollow thud. "Yes I'm going to school. I love you, bye."

She loved her grandparents dearly, but they were clingy and controling. They hated that she straightened her naturally curly hair, as she did now, staring into the cracked mirror in her bathroom. She liked her hair, when it cooperated with her, but mostly because it was long enough to cover the fresh tattoo that lay hidden between her shoulder blades. It was a bass clef in a heart, to partner the treble clef necklace she never took off.

Turning on the television, Molly began flipping through the channels to MTV so she could listen to music while she got dressed. The first day of school, for her, meant she wore a dress. She had one in mind for the day, a white, strapless lace dress with a magenta ribbon tied around the waist. The ribbon matched her magenta and grey vans, which she slipped on before going back to the bathroom to do her makeup. She liked looking cute at the beginning of the school year. Molly spent her entire summer working multiple jobs, which put a decent amount of money in her pocket to be spent on bills and groceries as well as luxeries like clothes, makeup, and nail polish. Currently, her nails were painted a grey to match her shoes and the bandana she tied in her hair. To finish her outfit, she slid a pair of jean shorts on underneath her dress, and added lipgloss.

The walk to Riverview wasn't an especially long one. The girls were still playing hopscotch. She waved at them and they waved back. She made a left, then a right, another right, another left, and walked on. She passed a man in an uncomfortable looking buisiness suit. What's he even doing in this neighborhood? She thought to herself. The neighborhood wasn't especially bad, just filled with people of minimal money working shitty jobs and barely getting by. This man, in his fancy suit, did not belong. She kept her thoughts to herself and walked into school, putting her headphones in and holding her purse a little closer. She clutched two binders close to her chest, one filled with several notebooks with the titles of her classes written on their cover, the other filled with extra paper and doodles and notes.

Molly slipped into English quietly, bobbing her head to I Know How To Say by 3Oh!3, and sat down in a seat in the back. She didn't bother turning down her music. It was loud enough to block out everyone else, but not loud enough for them to hear it, and that's how she liked it. She had a feeling it would be the only thing getting her through the school day, but one more year in this hell hole and she was free to go wherever she wanted.