16 BLAKE JONES
October 18
Mom and Gary were fighting again.
“I... DON’T... CARE, Jolene! The school don’t need to be call’n me at my JOB!” Gary emphasized the word ‘job’ by slapping a can of beer off one of the end tables. I heard the can hit the wall that separated the living room from the den, and I cringed. Mom was smart enough to never come home with beer in glass bottles. She learned that pretty early on after Gary moved in. In fact, she learned many new tricks, like how to avoid making eye contact to appear less threatening, how to take Gary’s side no matter how stupid or wrong he was, and how to cover up bruises with drug store makeup.
I turned down my music and pressed my ear to the wall, careful to avoid the spot where the dingy wallpaper had peeled.
“I’m sorry, babe. I must
