Chapter 3
The answer is no.
Two weeks before Halloween, Grandma Kane takes me and Tyler to the big shopping mall.
She wants to buy some yummy snacks and fun stuff.
And that’s where we run into Marcus and Molly.
He’s being all lovey dovey, helping her fix her scarf and everything.
From behind, they look like perfect movie stars together.
Tyler squeezes right up next to me and brags all proud: “See? THAT’S the kind of person who should be with my dad.”
‘If you had any brains, you’d just leave already, deadweight.”
Jgh…
Tyler always calls me deadweight. Like, all the time.
bite my lip and I’m about to pinch his cheek and tell him:
isten here, little guy, I can be pretty scary too.
‘m not someone you wanna mess with.
But then I look up and my eyes meet Marcus’s.
When he sees me, he freaks out totally and jumps away from Molly super fast.
He tries to explain real quick: “Uh, Ellie, it’s not what you think! Me and Molly are just…”
Before he can finish, I nod.
‘m not mad at him.
Really, I’m not.
ver since that dream, I knew that after Marcus met Molly, he wasn’t gonna be just MY Marcus anymore.
just didn’t think Molly would take him away so completely.
ecause that night, I got really really sick with a fever.
faybe because I didn’t wear enough clothes during the day. Usually when I get fevers, Marcus makes me hot lemon with honey and sits with me and tells me
tories to make me feel better.
ut this time, Molly calls him on the phone.
hear her crying voice: “Marcus, I hurt my ankle real bad and it hurts so much. Can you take me to the hospital?”
Marcus leaves right away without even thinking about it.
¡efore he goes out the door, I try one last time:
Marcus, can you please not go? I feel really yucky too.”
Marcus is holding his car keys and doesn’t even turn around, just says whatever to make me stop talking: “Be good, Ellie. I gotta take Molly to the hospital first. he really needs help right now.”
I’ll bring back those candied nuts you like when I come home.”
Marcus leaves.
After he’s gone, the house is super duper quiet.
There’s no sounds at all.
I roll over in bed without saying anything, and tears start falling down my face.
I’m crying because once again, I don’t have any family.
Yep.
Marcus isn’t my family anymore.
I know I’m not very smart.
But when Mommy was still alive, she told me something:
No matter what happens, family will never leave you alone when you really need them.
When Marcus said “she really needs help right now,” what he really meant was…
Molly is way more important than me.
I curl up into a tiny ball on my bed.
I wait and wait and wait.
Marcus doesn’t come home until really really late at night.
My fever makes me feel all dizzy and my mouth is super dry.
I have to get out of bed by myself to get some water.
I guess I really am pretty dumb and clumsy.
So dumb that I trip over my own feet just trying to get water.
My head smacks right into the cabinet.
It makes me see sparkly stars everywhere.
Now I finally get why in that dream, Marcus got so tired of me.
just like Tyler says, I really am just deadweight.
I’m just a burden.
I can’t do anything right.
try really hard not to cry out loud.
Ow…
t hurts so bad. My forehead really hurts.
try to talk to myself like Mommy used to when I was little:
Ellie doesn’t cry.
Ellie is a good girl.
Ellie is super brave.
Ellie is…. is really strong.
But while I’m saying it, tears keep falling down.
But Mommy, I miss you so much.
I miss you and Daddy
Only you and Daddy never thought I was stupid.
I sit on the floor and cry and cry.
Tonight, the moon and stars are all covered up by dark clouds.
1 go to my closet and find the dress that Mommy made for me.
I hug it like a pillow and fall asleep.
