Ficlets

Her Childhood

William Smith lies on the couch watching tv while his daughter, Kelly, sits in her cousin’s room working on her calculus homework.

“Why do you bother,” yells Will, “you’re not gonna become anything anyway, you won’t do any better with your life than your mother or I did with ours.”

Kelly continues working diligently on her homework, empowered by the idea of being able to one day get away from her father and prove him wrong. Her father, who has leeched off of his brother for as long as she can remember while receiving welfare and unemployment. The few times she can remember him getting off the couch were either to get more food from the kitchen or to go wait in line to receive one of his governmental checks.

Will yells again, “Do you hear me Kelly? You will never do any better, life is hard and it will not throw someone as unworthy and stupid as you a break.”

Tears begin to slowly slide down her cheeks. Your wrong, I will make something of myself.

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