There is nothing to be scared about! (13/73)

A few weeks would pass by and I started to feel a little more comfortable at home. I was sleeping better, enjoying school more and getting to spend time alone with my mother. It was very nice to have her close to me after everything that had been happening. The weekend was getting close and I was getting excited to see my dad.

We were going to see ET on the big screen at the theatre for the third time. We loved going to the movies. Star Wars, ET, Rocky. It did not matter how many times we had seen it, if I wanted to see it he would take me. ET was one of my favorite but it always made me cry at the end. By the third time my Dad had a trick up his sleeve or I should say in his pocket to stop my tears at the end of the movie. My favorite licorice, Red String and Bubble Gum with the comics. I immediately smiled when he pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to me. I reached up and hugged him tightly. I loved my father, very much. To me he was my hero as every little girl’s daddy should be.

We would spend Saturday mornings watching  the Smurf’s and Scooby Doo. There was always lots of laughter when my father was around. He loved to make me smile. As the weekend came to an end I was not as afraid as I usually was to return home. We even stopped for ice cream on the ride over to my mothers, vanilla and chocolate swirl. It had been a great weekend. I couldn’t wait to get home and tell my mother all about it.

My father walked me up to the inside door of our apartment building where he could see my mother waiting for me. He hugged and kissed me good bye and waved up to her as she looked down over the white metal banister. I ran up the two flights of stair in excitement to see her. By the time I reached the top she had already turned and started to walk down the hallway to our apartment. I started to run faster so I could catch her before she reached our door. Once I caught up to her I was talking a mile a minute about what I had done on the weekend and about seeing ET again. She asked me to stop talking a minute because she had something to tell me and promised we could talk about ET later. This frustrated me but I did as she asked and followed her into the apartment. Once I did, she took my coat, put it down by the door and asked me to come sit in the living room with her.

I followed her to the sofa and sat there waiting patiently for her to tell me what she needed to so I could get back to telling her about the movie. As I looked around the living room I could tell that my mother must have had people over on the weekend. The coffee tables were stained dry with water rings from glasses. Quite a few actually and there was a faint smell of beer and cigarette smoke in the air. When she sat down she reached for my hands and said I have something to tell you but I do not want you to be scared…… because there is nothing to be scared about!