“Momma, I love you,” I whisper, smiling brightly as her fingertips caress my forehead.

She smiles, beautiful green eyes dancing wildly. “I love you too, Kat.” She leans forward and plants a gossamer kiss on my cheeks. Her medium-length, light brown hair tumbles forward and embraces my face. I can smell her flower-scented shampoo. Sun-kissed Petunia.

She pulls back reluctantly and a frown tugs on her forced smile. The stars leave her beautiful eyes; the dancing ceases.

“Do you have to go, Mommy?” I ask, feeling like a child as I utter that word in such a whiney, small voice. Here I am, sixteen and still calling her ‘mommy’ instead of ‘mother.’ When will I ever grow up?

She sighs heavily, smoothing my hair back gently. “Please don’t start.”

“But, Momma, you’re never home!” I protest.

“Kat, you’re not making this any easier on me.”

I sit up straight, my eyes hardening. “You think this is easy on me?! You think I enjoy being left behind all the time while you’re out being some suit’s bitch?!”

“Kat, you know it—“

“‘It’s only business’,” I mock, spitting out the words. “When are you going to turn into a mother and start taking care of real business? You know, like your family?!”

She doesn’t respond, which only adds fuel to my fiery temper.

“Ya know, I don’t even think you care anymore. I’m sure Daddy would adore if he knew how you’re “taking care of the family” now that he’s gone. I’m sure he’d highly approve of your degradation of becoming everyone’s whore.”

“Kaitlyn!—“

“Well, you know what, Victoria? I don’t like having a mother who fucks every suit that calls! I hate not having a woman in the house! I hate being the only damned adult in this house!”

“You’re not being fair, Kaitlyn Louisa,” she whispers in a deadly calm voice.

“Excuse me, Your Highness,” I retort sarcastically. Daddy always called her royalty for her luxurious name: Victoria Black. He used to always tease her of being related to the Queen Victoria. Back when they were dating and still madly in love. Before they married, giving her the new title of Mrs. Victoria White, wife of Robert White.

“Get out,” she whispers again in her deadly pacified composure. “Just get out.”

“Gladly, milady,” I say, standing up and taking a deep bow. “I hope you enjoy fucking this weekend’s new tuxedo. Perhaps you’ll finally find the Prince Charming Daddy never allotted in your eyes. Perhaps he’ll give you the little Prince you wanted instead of me, the bastard peasant of your late servant, Highness.” I storm out of my room, grabbing my backpack and slamming the door. I loudly make my way down the stairs and walk out of the front door into the pitch black neighborhood, pausing only to grab a jacket and a handful of twenties she always kept under the never-dying bouquet of red roses.

“I’ll never return,” I vow silently to the night sky. The stars glisten, acknowledging my promise. “Never, never, never, never,” I repeat, the hollow words swallowing up any doubts still lingering in my hollow heart.

I regain consciousness and reluctantly open my eyes. It is nightfall and the hospital wing is appropriately dimmed. I hear the faint echo of the staff’s shoes as they go up and down the halls, pausing to check on other patients’ progress. Three minutes pass before one sticks her head into my doorway and notices I’m awake.

“Good evening,” she says quietly, not wanting to awake my roommate.

“Hi,” I say, offering a fake, faint smile. “How long have I been out?”

“Oh, about three days.”

“How long have I been here?”

The lady smiles. “A while longer than that.”

I nod my head knowingly. That would mean about two weeks in the very least. I glance back at her and ask, “Can I have something to drink, please?”

The nurse beams. “Of course. What can I get you?”

I smile shyly and blush as I request a strawberry milkshake.

I observe the small cubicle making up my room as she leaves. There are posters of baby animals all over the walls. Stuffed animals are on the top of the shelves around the room. Teddy bears, lions, puppies, kittens, elephants, giraffes, and tigers. It reminds me of the maternity ward and all the newborns where the preemies are kept in the incubators. That room, too, is decorated with the sterilized, fuzzy things. The walls are smothered by pictures of families and jubilant parents.

My gaze falls upon my roommate. When had she been brought in here? She looks no more than fourteen. She hardly looks alive at all. Her bones poke out under her skin, making her look so frail and sickly. Her blonde hair looks dull and ultra thin. And sickly, too. Her head rests on a pink pillow with blue lace. Her blanket, also pink and blue laced, has the letter “H” embroidered on it. I assume it stands for her name. Heather? Holly? Helen? Helga?

The nurse interrupts my thoughts as she reenters the room. She helps prop me up ever so gently and places a large, cold, Styrofoam cup in my hand. I carefully wrap my lips around the straw and suck. The strawberry flavor rushes over my tongue and drips pleasantly down my parched throat as I swallow mouthful after mouthful. The nurse watches me, pleased, and leaves as quietly as she entered. I continue gulping down the street elixir until I can drink no more. I reach over and push the button next to me, and the nurse appears. She takes the unfinished milkshake, lowers me back down into the bed, and quickly adjusts the feed of the IV. Seconds afterwards, I feel my eyelids become heavy as the powerful drugs overwhelm my system and sleep envelops me in its thick blanket of black.

PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO READ THE FOLLOWING:

A/N: Finally! Another chapter! Sorry, I didn’t mean for it to take this long before updating again. I’ve been swamped with homework and blah blah blah … yeah, that isn’t an excuse, but Imma use it for once. Yeps! So, here’s this chapter. I’m thinking I have about six chapters left before “Kaitlyn” is finally complete. And I’m thinking about rewriting chapter one (if you haven’t noticed, I deleted the introduction so it goes straight into the story. Reason being is that a lot of people would only read the introduction and assumed that was the end, which, obviously enough, wasn’t so. So, yeah. I’m greedy and like people reading this. So, yeah. ;;)

So, leave a review and tell me what you thought about this. I’m excited now that it’s all coming together and everyone from Kaitlyn’s past is becoming revealed. Until next chapter! I don’t intend on taking too long on the next one, so please review and that’ll prompt me to update sooner next time! Thanks again! –Damaged—