The cops were just around the corner. Tina slowed down. Perfect timing. A peanut butter cup lies opened and half eaten in the passenger’s seat. She ate the rest. Pull over, change clothes, pull hair back, deep breath. Same routine as always.
And when she got home, her mother didn’t notice a thing, like always. Tina walked slowly up the stairs to her room. The craving would subside for a couple of days, then come back. That’s the way things were.
Gym in school the next day. Skip again. Wearing the gym uniform was too risky, and someone was bound to notice. She sighed. It was about the millionth time that week that she wished that she could just forget; just go back to the real Tina. But it wasn’t possible anymore, not after she had met Aaron. He had showed her a way to get out of the pain, and that was something that Tina couldn’t take back.
***
She went back to him again. In the alley. Slowly, shaking, Tina pulled back her sleeve, and looked at the row of scars. Aaron handed her a knife, and lit a cigarette.
This is for you, dad.
And added a new row.
Tina watched as the blood dripped to the ground, as Aaron coolly wiped the knife and put it away. Tina lit a cigarette too. Then watched as the ground became stained with the subsiding pain.
Half an hour later, Tina climbed into her car, backed up, drove home. Same routine.
But when would the pain be completely gone? Even Aaron didn’t have the answer to that. Tina didn’t either.