Riley wiped the blood that was now gushing from her bottom lip as she raced down the fire escape. Her mother was still hanging out the window shouting at her. “You get back her right this instant Riley!” She was still holding the wooden spool that was now stained with her daughter’s blood. “Riley look at me!” She screamed. Riley glanced back, long enough to see that all the anger in her mother’s face had been replaced with al look of pain. “Riley, I’m sorry.” She said quietly “Don’t leave” Riley rolled her eyes and replied “I have to” She turned away again. “Don’t be like that Riley” Her mother shouted from the window, her face blank. “I told you mom.” Riley snapped “I’m not going to take this anymore”
Any guilt that was on her mother’s face disappeared. She gasped in anger. “Riley Williams” she shrieked “If you take one more step, I swear I will kill you!” Her mother waved the spoon threateningly. Riley took one, slow, deliberate step forward. Her mother began screeching out curse words as she struggled to get herself through the small window. Riley sprinted down the metal steps leading to the ground. She looked up in time to see her mother squeeze herself through the window and descend the first flight of steps. Riley landed on her feet, almost tripped, and began running to the only safe place she knew.
She climbed up the fire escape of the apartment building on the next block. This was where she and her mother had lived a few years ago. Her mom didn’t know she still went there. She climbed up all the way to the roof, where she jumped off onto a bunch of pipes and cement that wrapped around the top of the building. From here, she usually peeked through people’s windows. She loved to watch families play games and eat dinner together. As she watched them she would imagine that it was her and her mom. They were happy, and got along.
A bit of blood ran down her chin. She wiped at it with her sleeve and walked silently to her favorite window. It was a family of five. There were the parents, a very young little girl, an older girl, who was probably just a few years younger than her, and a boy, who was, most likely, the oldest. She had seen the boy and the youngest girl many times. The older one seemed to stay in her room for most of the day. On some days, she only came out of her room for dinner. And after dessert, there she went, back to her room.
Sometimes Riley got irritated with the girl. She had the family that Riley had always dreamed of. Two parents who both cared about her, she had siblings. Something Riley had once pretended she had when she was younger. Because her dad was dead, and her mother mistreated her, Riley had once imagined that she had an older brother. It was almost like an imaginary friend. Whenever her mother would get mad and beat her, she imagined her brother would stand up for her.
Riley sat down and wrapped her arms around her knees. The family, except for the older sister, gathered in the living room. Riley was very happy because the living room was the closest room to the window. If she listened very carefully, sometimes she could hear them laugh or talk, if they spoke loudly. Often, she wanted to tap on the window and wave, or ask if she could join them. But she never had the guts, or stupidity. Riley was always worried about them seeing her. She didn’t want her imaginary family to reject her. So almost every evening she sat there silently. Most nights she sat there shivering until long after the kids had gone to bed.
