The Summer Job ~ Andy Biersack *Completed

--Baylie's POV--

It was early next morning. I awoke to the sound of strained coughing, making me wince. I hurried into a pair of jeans and a soft cotton t shirt to make sure my mother was okay. She was in another coughing fit. "I'll go to the doctor's today..." She said quietly, looking off out the window. I nodded slowly. It was a tight budget, but my mother needed the doctor's visit. Her skin was getting paler and her cheeks and under-eyes looked green. Sometimes she couldn't breathe. "We have a little leftover, but we might need more for the medicine they prescribe me." She said. I nodded. "You don't have to get it right away. We'll slowly make payments." I itched the inside of my leg through my jeans. "Okay." It was a Friday. I'd dropped out of high school; it would have been my second year if I'd stayed. But with the condition of my mother, I had to stay home. We probably could afford it, but it just wasn't practical. "Do you need any more water?" I asked. She shook her head, her raspy breathing like a wolf howling in her lungs. She began to cough again and shooed me from the room.

I knew mother hated me to see her like this; ever since I was young she'd tried to shelter me from it. But after what happened to my father, the stress got to her and it worsened day by day. Her skin grew thin and pale and she was shaking all the time. It had gotten so bad now she could barely get out of bed. But she didn't like me to call it bedrest. Although she seems cold at times, all my mother has ever tried to do is protect me from everything around me. For the most part, she'd done a good job. But she'd also raised me strictly. I could never adress her as anything but 'mother' and I couldn't be out past 8:00. Sometimes, I think she forgets it's the 21st century.

I set out on the streets, looking around me at the scenery. It was a nice day, sunny and warm. I had a little money to spend, perhaps bring home something my mother could eat. I sat down on a bench and looked around curiously. A tall man with a long fur coat held a parcel close to his chest. I wondered what was inside. Knowing the people of Avery Hills, it was something lavish and extravagant. The exact opposite of my own clothes. However, I did my best not to complain. You get used to learning to deal with life rather than complain about it all the time, especially when you're in a situation like mine. I got up from the bench and wandered into the shop next to me. It was a bookstore. I loved to read, and I came here often to escape everything. It had great, tall bookshelves stacked with rows upon rows of thick novels, old and new and all for me to read. I'd read almost everything in the store.

After an hour or two of reading, I set the book down and hurried back home. There were still chores to be done. My stomach rumbled, and it reminded me that poor mother must be starved back there in her room. I peered inside to find her sleeping, so I just set a half a sandwich on a paper towel and placed it on her bedside for her to eat when she woke up. I could already see the weeds growing back beneath the floorboards. Sighing, I set to fixing the door. I'm no mechanic, believe me. I have to strength at all, and no experience on the subject. I'm really just guessing. It'd been on my list to pick up a book about it, but I never got to doing so. "Have you made an appointment yet?" I called to my mother as I scrubbed the dishes. "3:00. We have half an hour." She replied, a hoarse tone to her voice. I tiredly poured some hose-water over the dirty dishes, adding a thinning bottle of soap to the mixture. A doctor's appointment is $60 for just an appointment, and god knows how much her medicine will cost. I frowned as I dried off the cups and put them back in the shelves.

•

I helped my mother into the car, easing her over the step. Her legs were shaky. She was only 45, but what she had caused her aging to speed and her organs to prematurely develop, meaning she really had the heart, lungs, stomach, and other bodily functions of a much older woman. They had offered transplants at our last visit, but it was much too expensive. Mother and I both hoped a cheaper remedy came along, but nothing was helping. I learned to drive at a young age. My father taught me. I was sort of a taxi-drivers for my mother as she got older and less capable, but she rarely went out anymore.

I dropped my mother of at the doctor's, finally having a little time to myself for a nap. I hadn't gotten adequate sleep in what felt like ages. I sighed and curled up in the backseat of our tiny, trash-filled car and began to sleep.

Notes

I KNOW THINGS ARE BORING RIGHT NOW IM SORRY I PROMISE THINGS WILL HAPPEN SOON