Frustration Does That To You

"Left, left, left, right, left!"

You hear that big idiot screaming orders at us on how to march? Meet my platoon commander, Lieutenant Hastings, the loudest person on the face of the planet. But I have to put up with him along with twenty-six other members of the male species. Besides myself there are only three other girls here. Have you figured out where I am yet? Yup, that's right, in the Army. And yes, it was my fault that I ended up here but it was my parent's fault too, if they weren't so, ahhhhhh! You'll see what I mean...

^^^

"So, are you coming tonight?"

"What?" I asked snapping out of my trance, I might've been thinking about Price Morgan, the sport's star of Rossdale High, but then again and oh, I almost missed what Karen was saying...again...

"The party at Rosa's? Tonight? You'll be there, right?" asked Karen, "around tenish? We'd have to arrive fashionably late, of course."

Fashionably late? We'd have to arrive fashionably late? Who is this person and what has she done to Karen? She goes to Paris for one summer and comes back, not only, with a new wardrobe and hair make over but a new attitude as well. When did she get so fashion conscious all of a sudden?

"Doesn't the party start at seven?" I asked her. "If we left at ten then we'd be three hours late and you know how my mom is."

Ah yes, my mother, good old mom. Trish McCullough. Worrier extraordinaire. And that's not even the worst part, my dad? Is exactly the same! If I go anywhere I have to be calling them every hour I'm gone to reassure them that I haven't been kidnapped, raped or murdered, or all of the above at the exact same time. Oh yeah and my curfew? 9:00PM, 9:30 if I'm lucky. And if I'm going to be even three minutes late I have to call them. I'm sixteen years old!

"So just sneak out," said Karen.

"Huh?"

Oh, crap wasn't paying attention! Maybe I should stop thinking to myself so much.

"Pretend to go to bed like a good little girl, and then sneak out your window. I'll pick you up at ten!"

Oh dear lord, I don't like where this is going. If I get caught my parents will chain me up in the basement. They are SO overprotective.

"Wouldn't arriving at eight be a bit better because then we'd only be an hour late," I tried to reason with her, "and then if people arrive later you can make fun of them for missing half the party."

"Hey that actually makes sense! Eight it is then, but you're not skipping out at nine are you?"

"Have you met my parents?" She had and she knew what they're like, but I guess the "new" Karen has forgotten.

"Bridget relax, I'm sure if you beg a bit they'll give."

Beg? Where was she going with that? Was that a dog comment or am I just being overly paranoid?

Sliding off the bench, we exited the Quad and went in search of our lockers.

"This is going to be great!" Karen squealed, "Joanne, Megan! Bridget's coming with!"

Joanne and Megan (the cherry blonde twins as everyone calls them) started squealing just as loudly as Karen which made me ask myself 'Why, oh why am I friends with these people?'

^^^

As soon as I had gotten home, I headed straight to the kitchen where I knew my mom would be.

I dropped by bag noisily onto a chair and went over to sit on the island counter behind her.

"Mama?"

"Hey sweetie, how was school?"

"Uh, good, but I need to ask you something."

"About?"

"Well, you know Rosa's birthday is tonight and she's starting it at seven. Karen and the Cherry Twins are picking me up at eight and then we're walking."

"Why are you going so late dear?" my mother asked. I couldn't see her face but I could definitely hear that quiver in her voice that she gets when she starts to worry; I swear both her and my dad are going to give themselves ulcers.

"Karen wants to be 'fashionably late.' I don't get it but then that puts me there at eight and that only leaves me an hour there and maybe I could stay until it ends?"

"How long are we talking?"

"Uh...midnightish?"

"Midnight?!" she screamed and turned around. It looked like something was going to jump out of her chest. I remember in that Alien movie...

"Bridget, don't you think that's a little late?"

"Mom, I'm sixteen. Some parents let their kids stay out till one."

"Yeah horrible parents who don't care about their children's safety! You could be kidnapped or raped or murdered or..."

"Mom, Rosa lives six houses down the street. Nothing's going to happen to me."

"You could get drugged or something. What is that drug? GHB? They slip it into your drink and you pass out. And walking?! You're walking?!"

"I told you that I..."

"I remember, I saw it on Oprah. There was this little girl who got abducted by a child molester in front of her own home. And you want to walk the block in the middle of the night?"

I hate bringing my curfew up to her, but it's better if I can get her alone. When my parent's team up against me it really sucks.

"Can I at least stay until ten then?"

Sometimes I don't even know why I try to fight them on these things but then I remember. I have a life! I have friends who like to do things, to go out, we're teenagers.

My parents don't seem to understand that, they'd rather keep me under lock and key. And by doing this I get to tell everyone how sorry I am for not being able to go with them because my mommy and daddy said, "No."

My ego takes weekly beatings, and now most of my friends have stopped asking me out anywhere. Can't my parents see that their insane protectiveness is ruining my social life? Their excuse: as long as you're safe you shouldn't care what other people think. Okay my ranting is making my head hurt. Oh, my mom stopped talking. Guess that means I have to say something right?

"Mom please just till ten?"

"Nine-thirty, and you'll call me when you get to Rosa's and at nine and when you're coming home or if you're going to be late. If you don't I'll send your father to look for you."

Oh My God how humiliating! They always do this to me! I'm reaching my breaking point, one of these days.

"Fine then." And I caved as usual.

^^^

Karen and the Cherry Twins dropped in at eight fifteen, making that fifteen fewer minutes I get to spend with my friends. The three of us walked six houses down to Rosa's with my mom standing on the sidewalk watching us go.

"I can't believe she still watches you leave from the sidewalk," said Joanne as we walked out of earshot.

"She just worries that's all," I said, trying to defend her actions. I may not agree with them but hey, she's still my mom.

"What-Ever!"

I rolled my eyes and rang the bell beside the door. Rosa's smiling face greeted us seconds later.

"Hey guys! Come on in, coats can go in my room, and Bridge you know where the phone is."

And here comes the heat rushing to my face. I'm blushing so much right now that I probably look like a tomato. I swear I'm the only person in school whose parents

subject their "vulnerable" daughter to constant call-ins. One of these days they're going to hear about this.

After setting Rosa's gift on the table with everyone else's, I followed Karen and the other two to Rosa's room to throw our jackets on her bed. After that I headed to her kitchen to use the phone. And of course, there's like a billion people in there (yes, I know I'm probably over exaggerating) getting drinks and more chips or whatever the hell Rosa's serving. I pick up the phone and dial the familiar number.

"Hello?"

"Mom, you know this is me."

"Hey honey, is everything alright?"

"You told me to call you once I got here, so I called, and now I'm hanging up, because I look like a loser."

"Bridget, you shouldn't put yourself down like that. You know I heard Dr. Phil say..."

"Okay mom, I really have to go!"

"Is someone pressuring you to get off the phone?"

"Mother, please, it's Rosa's birthday and I'd like to actually interact with her and some other people from school. You're trying to keep me on the phone until I have to come home aren't you?"

"Honey just..."

"Be careful, I know."

"And don't take open drinks from strange boys or even boys you know, I heard on the news..."

"I'm fine and I'll see you later. Bye mom!"

I slammed down the receiver and went to find people I knew. You see how over protective she is? I always feel like a big bubble whose getting squished.

I took off into the living room looking around for a bright red head. I found her of course among the multitudes of people. Was it just me or did someone jack the music a lot higher? And where were her parents? I haven't seen them yet.

"Rosa! Happy Birthday!"

"Thanks, what did you get me?" she asked cheerfully.

"Little, flat, green thing on your present stand. How many people did you invite?" I was practically shouting over the music. Why did she have to sit so close to the speakers?

"Just a couple but then they invited a few people and so on!"

"Where are your parents?"

"They are here. My dad's playing pool with some of the boys downstairs and ma went to get more food. How did you get away from your mom?"

"I promised I'd call at nine and be back at nine-thirty. Why do they do this to me?"

"They're crazy that's why!"

Rosa got up off of the giant pillow she was sitting on and turned the music down so you could barely hear it. The people around groaned and whined but shut up when Rosa screamed them into uh, shutupedness? Whatever.

"Yo people! Let's move the couches and table to the sides so we can dance easier!"

Cheers went up around us as everyone started moving the furniture to the sides.

When everything was moved out of the way, people started crowding into the cleared center of the room. Rosa cranked the volume back up. But did she really have to do it when I was standing right next to the speakers? The girl nearly blew my eardrums out. I tapped her on the arm and motioned that I was leaving the room. I headed for the kitchen.

Now where did Karen run off too? The "old" Karen and I would usually stick together at parties, I want to know what the hell happened to her over in Europe, she came back thinking she's too good for everyone, and by everyone I mean me. Her attitude is really starting to piss me off. Oh wait, starting? Did I say starting? Oh, I am way past starting. As I crossed to the hall I heard my name.

"…Oh, no Bridget can't do anything at all…"

Karen? I stopped abruptly; Karen was on the other side of the wall talking about me.

"My God, her parents are so over-protective. She has to call them every half hour to check in and if she's even two minutes late, they freak and call the cops. It's such a hassle to have her with us so no one wants her around anymore. But that's not even the worst part about Bridget." Who was she talking to?!

"…she is so stuck up and lost in her own little world that she doesn't pay attention to anything. She'd could probably bounce off a wall and not know what she hit. And she sneaks out at night off to God-knows-where..."

That bitch!

"You bitch!"

I came around the corner glaring at my EX-best friend. She had some nerve.

"Hey Bridge we were just talking about you."

Just the way she said it made me want to hit her.

"Yeah, I heard."

I looked around at her audience. The Cherry Twins, and three other girls from school. A couple of guys were even taking notes.

"I can't believe you, of all people, would do something like this!"
"Truth needs to be told you freak. You are such a drag and…"

I hit her. And I think I might've broken her nose.
"BRIDGET ELAYNE MCCULLOUGH!"

Don't let that be my dad. Please don't let that be my dad. I slowly turned around and saw my dad standing right there. Wishful thinking never got me anywhere before so why would it now? I quickly checked my watch and it read 9:47. Oh God, he came looking for me; but did it have to be at the exact moment I slapped Karen. Okay, so 'slapped' isn't the word I'd really use. It was more like hit, punched, totally knocked her to the ground.

"Outside right now!" And I think I heard him hiss.

Karen was holding her nose in a towel someone had gotten her. I knew I was going to get it. The only good thing about the night was when Rosa grabbed me before I left and told me that seeing Karen get knocked down was her favourite birthday present. At least I hadn't ruined her day.

^^^

"You punched Karen Hoffman?"

"Mom, she deserved it but it wouldn't have happened if you two weren't so paranoid!"

"And exactly how were your mother and I responsible for you punching your best friend?"

"She's NOT my best friend! She has been different ever since she came back, and it's your faults because you're so over-protective!" I ranted. "You think all these bad things are going to happen to me so you don't let me do anything, and if you do, I have to call you every five fucking minutes!"

"You watch your language in this house young lady!"

"I always have to check in and if I don't, you come looking for me or call the police! Remember last year? I feel like you have me chained down, it's so frustrating! It's like I'm some sort of antique china doll that you think is going to get broken! Yeah, there are a lot of bad things out there but it's my life and I'll deal!"

"Bridget, we worry about you!"

"No you don't. Worrying is what normal parents sometimes do. You two obsess about it!" All the frustration had finally got to me and I just felt like I couldn't stop. "All the bad stories you hear on the news or Oprah or the radio you think it's automatically going to happen to me! You talk about ratios and things happening when I'd least expect it, no one else has to call their parents every hour or get home by nine. What if I wanted to go to a late movie, huh? Or maybe to a club or something. Are you going to do this to me when I'm thirty?"

"Hon, if you'd just hear from our perspective..."

"No! I always have to listen to your perspective why don't you listen to mine?"

Yeah, I know my parents don't want to see me hurt but they can't protect me forever. And they're making me claustrophobic. I wanted to DO something and then it came to me.

"I'm joining the military."

"Bridget!" screamed my mother; I could already see the look of horror rising in her eyes. She's going to go on about those women who said they were raped in the

United States Air force, or that I'm going to get drafted for war, or the drill sergeant's are going to push my face in the mud when I'm doing push ups. Right now I was beyond caring. And I was right. As soon as I made it too my room, she started screaming about all the things previously mentioned.

But wow. It felt good to get all that out.

And that's pretty much how it happened. I went to school the next day and after it was done, I headed to the city's Military Base.

Walking into the building, I felt sort of…liberated.

The receptionist gave me a small tour of the building, classrooms, and outside courses. We came back in and she gave me the application form. As I was filling it out, the back door swung open and a swarm of about twenty soldiers came marching in. They were quite young probably new recruits like I was going to be. But these guys were singing as the came in:

"They say that in the army, the cookies are divine, but one fell off the table and killed a pal of mine. Oh I don't want no more of Army life, please mom I want to go back to Saskatchewan please ma I want to go ho-o-ome!"

Oh, what have I gotten my self into?

***

Well? Did you see what I mean? How unreasonable and obsessive my parents were? I had to become an army brat just to stop them from worrying. They still do, but I think they're getting better. But I'll probably have to worry about them thinking I can do anything just because I "survived" the army.

"Companyyyyy.....HALT!"

And we stop. I've been here every other week since I signed up. And when summer came we started our seven-week basic training course. Every day we're up at 5AM and down at about midnight from obstacle courses, weapons training, first aid, and classes. It's fun actually, compared to the titanium steel safety net of my parent's constant fears, and I feel good.

I get to live on base, and roll my eyes at the guys. They're not that bad though, glancing at the brunette beside me...and I thought Price Morgan was hot? He's got nothing on Trooper Recruit Keifer Hicks.

~*~*~*~

A/N: This was a Creative Writing challenge thing that my CW teacher made up do. We were supposed to "revamp" the teen rebel, in other words make a rebel that didn't have any of the rebel cliche's.