Donuts
The bus ride home was dreadful to Melina as she knew what she was returning home to as she ran out of time for her momentary happiness. She put her Atlantis Morsette CD on as it skipped from the jilting of the bus and one of the girls gave her extra batteries at camp so she didn't need to charge them on her jeans but middle through the skipping c d she was listening too.
To Melina this camp was an escape from her reality and she knew she had to deliver the donuts she sold to her here meaning she needed her mother to help her deliver them and she was not looking forward to the conversation asking her mother to help her with anything other than a mental breakdown.
Melina hummed to the song in her ears as the two boys from before at the camp pavilions came to fight over who would sit with Melina early on as she just put her book bag with her little items in it on the seat to block both of them as they say in front of the seats as they would whisper as Melina tried to ignore them the best she could as she mentally prepared herself to return back home.
Surprisingly her mother was at the school on time when the bus pulled up and she had her trunk open to her nineteen eighty seven Volkswagen opened as donuts were being loaded inside of the truck to the rim of the back. She dreaded asking her mother for any type of help as she knew her mother's temperament was hot and cold and never in between. She stepped off the bus as the other camp kids went to collect their donuts that was sold as well .
Melina saw Ashley fill up her mom's car and wondered why she sold them when her parents could afford the camp as she nodded and realized she took wanted to earn being here instead of being a rich privileged girl. Melina said her goodbyes and got in her mom's car as she had collected the order form with addresses and box amounts from the teacher .
Melina mom shoved the box order form in her daughter's hands as Melina knew her mom wanted her to show here where she ran off to to sale the donuts for her trip. They rode in silence as stops were made and one by one she unloaded the donuts with deliveries and when Melina reached the last of the houses and orders she looked in the back of her mothers Volkswagen and saw at least ninety more boxes of glazed dozen donuts remaining. She looked puzzled as there was no more delivery addresses and she knew she carefully gave the correct amount to the people who ordered them.
Her mother said nothing as she drove home and she made Melina unload the remaining boxes in her house as it took many trips to the car to unload them all. When Melina closed the house door she had to ask where these extra ninety boxes of dozen donuts were going to be taken .
" Mother whose donuts are these . I delivered all the ones that were on the list?" Melina said in confusion.
" I bought them. These are my donuts . " Her mother said as for one moment she was surprised her mother helped her go to camp by buying ninety boxes of a dozen donuts. If she was going to buy half of the required amount to go to camp whi not pay for the entire camp. Thoughts went through Melina head as the motive behind this. Did her mother think she wasn't capable of reaching her goal or was she tired of Melina begging for charity . Or was she so ready to get rid of her that she paid for it to get a break from her.
" From now on since I wasted my good hard earned money on donuts this will be all that you eat. You can not give them away if you are hungry you will eat this. This will be your breakfast,lunch, and dinner. If you feel snacking this will be your snack too. I don't care if they grow hard,stale ,or bad . My money will not go to waste as I have wasted enough on you already." Said Melina mother as she realized her buying these boxes of donuts were one thousand and eighty donuts in total to eat that was a lot of donuts to feed a child.
Melina realized this was a punishment as she racked her brain for why as she remembered her teacher r stopping her as she stole food from the cafeteria trays and placed them in her back pack. Melina knew her mother was cruel and her one generous act towards Melina was a punishment against hunger.
" Go on start eating. They aren't going to eat themselves. I don't care how you eat them but I want them gone before the end of the summer . " Her mother said as she opened the first box and shoved it in Melina's hands. Melina took a deep breath and began to eat as each box she consumed made her more sick each bite she made.
" And don't you dare throw up good food either if you throw it up you will eat it too. " She said as she left Melina in the living room with donuts stacked high as she had only ate three boxes before she grew sick to her stomach knowing she had eighty -five more boxes of donuts to eat.
Summer came and Melina had two weeks before summer school started for her failing two classes and her mother went off again leaving her alone again with only donuts to eat . No matter what she drank. Milk ,water,orange juice ,or soda the taste of the donuts made a vile aftertaste in her mouth. She would spend times in the woods as he hunter saw her look a bit sick as Melina didn't like donuts anymore. In fact she hated them and she dreaded going back to them . She managed to sneak him one box of donuts as she knew she had to bring the boxes back in case her mother counted them as she knew her mother was sadistic enough to do that.
She was in the woods as she heard two sets of footsteps as she put the box down and prepared her shelf for a fight as she pulled her fighting staff her hunter had commissioned for her out of the tree bank she hid it. She didn't dare bring her weapons home for her mother to take it from her or sisters break it to be mean to her.
The foot steps were sporadic and not measured like a hunters as she saw two neighboring boys walk up behind her as she was relieved to see them as she dropped her staff and recognized Adam who used to live down the street with his uncle but he moved away . She remembered the yellow dog that followed her home Everytime Adam came out to play with her. But she didn't recognize the other boy as she narrowed her eyes at him.
" Hey Adam . When did you get back?" Melina said pleasantly as she picked up the box and handed them it as she thought of a clever way to get rid of the tormented donuts.
" Hey Melina thanks. This is my cousin Curtis he is visiting with me ." Said Adam as him and Curtis tore into the donuts as Melina thought these boys might save her stomach.
" Hey I have more but I'll need the boxes back . Recycling project ." Thought Melina as she went to leave to get more but Adam waved off the offer and Melina's heart fell for the eighty boxes she had left to eat inside as she was only ten boxes down and sick of eating donuts all day long.
" Hey what are you doing in the woods Melina. Me and Curtis was just killing time since my uncle has a problem with us being under him all day in the house. " Said Adam as Melina knew his uncle as he was an odd man who never seemed to own a shirt and was overly friendly with the neighborhood kids . Melina never would go inside the house just visit Adam in the yard as his uncle lived in a two story blue house alone and he would get his nephew every summer and Adam would come to Melina's house every time.
Melina knew Adam liked her as now his cousin was with them as she knew she wasn't allowed friends in the house so the woods were her only retreat . But right now she had hunters on her she knew it wasn't safe for them if one attacked her. She looked around and lead them to a patch of the woods where it was caged by tree trunks all lined up like a wall of trees making a canopy shelter. It was where she left her hidden food and bed roll when she was kicked out of the house when Paula had her friends over .
Today was too hot for them to stay there as she went inside to get them drinks and come back to their small hideaway. Melina wanted to rest something that was bothering her when she was at camp as she began to sing and him as she saw the glassy eyes of the boys at camp now on Adam and Curtis as she grew confused how it worked.
" Kiss my hand as she tested the knee thing she saw as both bows grabbed her hand to kiss it. Then she said kiss my cheek and both boys kissed the cheek . She didn't understand this and it unnerved her. She said stop obeying me. Then the boys eyes went back to normal as she looked at them for recognition. Neither boy remembered her commands . She scratched her head as this was something she had to ask her hunter later on when she saw him.
Everyday Adam and Curtis came to see her and she grab some donuts and go to the woods as she knew her hunter would be back soon so she had to find other places to play as they walked the woods trails together and visited other houses as Melina grabbed box after box to get rid of as she brought back her empty boxes as he broke them down and stacked them neatly.
One day her sister Paula was in the house as she saw day after day these two boys come and visit me. When I went to summer school they waited to see me when Melina came home. Melina went to a summer school program where it was the community of many neighboring schools as she met a boy who stared at her named Aaron as he wore baggy jeans and chains and they didn't say a word just stared at each other across the room.
When Melina came home that day Paula was in a two piece bikini as he small a cup boobs were on display and her thirteen year old body covering nothing was on display as she took terms kissing and growing the two boys on the front porch knowing she was going to be home soon as Melina froze at the forwardness of her sister Paula . These were boys age ten and Paula was thirteen now . She smiled as she knew she took Melina only friends away from her she only got to see in the summer time.
Melina smiled " hey Adam Curtis you want to go play?" Said Melina trying to get them away from her fast sister from being ruined by her influence.
" No. We want to stay here with her but maybe next time." Said Adam as Melina knew she lost her good friends to her sister and her lose ways.
Paula was there as she seduced my two friends that was good and pure and that for two summers I was home kept me sane. I was very upset the reason she thought it was acceptable to seduce boys when she was a teenager. My sister Paula had acceptance issues although she would never admit that our abuse made it seem like the only way she felt loved was to be physical with every tom, dick, or Harry around hell even a Marcy could be considered if they payed her the attention she wanted.
These two boys were my friends. Not a shared mutual friend of my sisters. Not a boy who was neutral to our ways. Adam and Curtis was my friend that came to see only me and now she was on the front porch at broad daylight in a bikini with her itty bitty boobs committee chest on full display to the neighborhood and her narrow hip looking like she needs to eat as she flaunted herself to confused little boys who were barely reaching puberty .
It was bad enough her loser friends got high the night before my eleventh birthday and ate the ice cream cake meant for me and wasn't even sorry about it as their stupid friend tried to take advantage of me and I get accused of being sexually active. Paula was like the sin lust it followed her wherever she went and her form of feeling like she needed everyone's attention no matter the age or gender was beginning to affect even my friendships. But there was nothing I could do. You can't stop her for being so desperate I learned that lesson with Morgan. Later on in life she would justify the reason she acted that way was because she was tired of mia and me stealing her boyfriends . Another delusional reason to why she would act like a floosy. Some people only accept the truths that suit them and she was definitely manipulating the narrative of her version of the truth to benefit her own need to be loved in all the wrong ways. I had no other choice but to write them off as after they had fooled around with Paula they were no use to me anymore. The hurt of being passed over for something they could brag about sleeping with a older girl who clearly had mental issues with intimacy and couldn't stand not being in the center of attention. I went to summer school as I came home one day to see Adam alone standing there as Curtis was in the car with his uncle as it was time for them to go back home. He stood on the porch as I tried to push by him as he tossed me a side for a half dressed sister of mine. " Melina hey can we talk?" He said as I walked past him clearly mad my hand on the doorknob of my house. " Talk to my sister since you like her better now." Melina snipped in anger from him just being there. " I don't like your sister like that. I like you like that and I'm sorry that happened and I know it hurt you." He said as Melina didn't turn to face him as she contemplated if she should go inside and ignore him or hear him out. " But it did happen . And it was with my own sister. You may have liked me one time but the moment you did what you did to me you no longer have that option. I'm sorry Adam I like you as a friend but I now I don't like you as anything but my sisters leftovers." Melina said harshly as there was no easy way to express how she felt. It was gentle compared to what she truly wanted to say to him and she knew she could have been way harsher if she wanted to,but she wanted to be clear on her feelings and no make it harder than it had to be.
" I understand. Well me and Curtis are going back home now. And I wanted to say goodbye and I'm sorry." He said as Melina could hear the hurt in his voice the words she spoke to him. She didn't even respond to his goodbye just nodded at him as she turned to face him.
" So I'm going to go and I'll see you next summer ." He said hopefully as he search for forgiveness as the sky's darkened and thunder began to rumble as Melina was ferious still what he did to her. He was her friend the only one she didn't have to share and she couldn't even make herself say goodbye or give him hope everything was going to be alright. Melina had a hard time with goodbyes considering she was never allowed to say goodbye to anyone she had came across. Now Adam wanted a good faith gesture of her forgiveness from something he did and now he was sorry for.
Like Melina could forget how he rejected her for her sister and now he was admitting he like her more than a friend. But Melina knew from watching Mia and even Morgan at school friends can come in and out of your life and when they are around it benefits them at the time then when they are gone it's because they are tired of you at the moment.
Adam and Curtis doing that to her made her understand she didn't need friends because all they would do was hurt her in the end. Adam nodded at Melina obvious silence as he went to the car to leave and melina didn't even wait for them to drive off as she cut to the left into the woods as she grabbed her fighting staff as she screamed in anger and hit the tree as lighting struck above her .
Her hunter watched Melina from a distance as he saw her fighting a tree in rain and lightning as he knew he should interfere but the energy around her right now was hostile and dangerous . He watched her swing and hit and raise roots out of the ground and scream into the wind as it echoed through out the woods and then she fell down and cried. He knew this was something she had to work out and no amount of words would make this right to Melina.
He looked at her like a father wanting to sooth a daughter with a broken heart as he had watched what had been going on as he was there when she found her new abilities. He wanted to help her understand them but then she saw what happened with her sister and he knew this was something between sibblings that he couldn't interfere .
But now Melina was hurt and sad from losing her only friend she had that was hers alone he couldn't offer her any words that could make it better but watch her try to resolve it on her own. He felt helpless watching her suffer . Then he looked up as he saw blue and red lights and multiple cars pull up and he saw Melina dry her tears and then leave the woods. The police and people came into the house as Melina went inside with them as Paula screamed and mia took off running out of the house as the hunter saw the girl named mia cut through the woods.
Inside Melina was instructed by the officers to pack her belongings as they brought the black trash bags as usual as Paula screamed and fought them in the back room. Melina didn't fight she didn't even care anymore she gathered what little she had and went to the police car. She looked down at the woods as he hunter saw her sitting in the car of the police. Paula screamed and they forced her in the car as she screamed obscenities at them as Melina knew where she was going there was no use in fighting them.
" I'm not going back." Yelled Paula as she tried to get out of the car to run but the door lock on the inside. Melina layed her head down as she knew she was going back to the group home. She was going back to foster care.