Chapter 3
Buffy rolled her eyes at the lovey dovey display that her father and step-monster were broadcasting. They were sitting on the couch and practically all over each other, not caring that she was only in the other room. She supposed that it was nothing compared to a couple of weeks ago when she accidentally walked in on the two of them having sex. That’s something that would definitely scar a kid for life. The step-monster was pretty pissed off at being interrupted, while Hank tried to calm her down. She did for his sake, but really wailed on Buffy when he wasn’t around. Her father would never realize just the kind of person that he married. She was horrible and treated Buffy like nothing, but he was completely oblivious to it. The woman would be sweet and nice when he was around, but then turned the second he wasn’t.
“You know what would be a good idea, Hanky?”
Buffy cringed at the lame nickname and continued her chores. She had tons of homework to do, but of course cleaning the kitchen had to come first. Who cared if she got a good education or not? She vaguely heard what they were discussing in the living room.
“What idea would that be?” her father wondered.
“Okay, just hear me out. I’ve put a lot of thought into this and I think it would be a great idea to send Buffy away for a while. You told me that she’s always wanted to visit another country. There’s this great school program in Switzerland over the summer. I think she would really enjoy it. She would learn about a new culture and everything. It’s an all girl school, but I think it would be a great opportunity for her.”
Buffy stopped wiping the table at what she just heard. Going away to Switzerland? It sounded like a boarding school to her. That was the last thing she wanted to do. The step-monster could talk all she wanted about it being a good opportunity for Buffy, but she knew that the woman only wanted to get rid of her. She listened more and prayed that her father wouldn’t agree.
“I don’t know about that, Addie. It does sound like a good idea, but Buffy’s never been out of California before. I don’t know if she would be able to adjust to a summer in another country.”
Buffy sighed in relief, but it quickly faded at his next words.
“I’ll give it some serious consideration, though.”
Addie smiled and kissed him passionately, once again lost in their own little world.
Buffy couldn’t believe that her father would even think about sending her so far away. They hadn’t been all that close lately, but she didn’t think that he was so against being around her. Could things possibly get any worse?
* * * * *
She looked up from her textbook when the step-mother from Hell barged into her room, not even bothering to knock.
“You have a minute?”
Buffy wanted to tell her to get out, but didn’t have the energy. She only nodded and remained silent, waiting for whatever the woman had to say.
Addie pasted a fake smile on her face. “I’m sure you overheard our little conversation earlier. I mean, we weren’t exactly being discreet about it. I really love your father, Buffy. He’s a great man, but lately your problems have been getting in the way. I think it would be nice if you convinced your father that you want to go to Switzerland. It would really be the best thing for all of us. You can get away for a bit, and we can spend more time together.”
Buffy was furious and really wanted to give the old hag a piece of her mind, but she had a problem with confrontation. “What if I don’t want to go to Switzerland?” was all she managed to say.
Addie’s fake cheeriness soon turned into anger. “I wasn’t asking you, Buffy. You’re going to tell your father and convince him that it’s something you really want to do. He cares for you and probably has a hard time letting you go, but you can make him feel better about that. You put him through a lot with your issues in Los Angeles, you deciding to go away for a while could be just the thing that he needs. I know I wouldn’t mind being rid of your bratty self for a few months. And who knows? Maybe it could even become a permanent deal.”
Buffy would not cry in front of her. She already shed enough tears at school. “My father would never send me away permanently.”
The smile was back on the older woman’s face now. “He sent you away once before, didn’t he? To a special clinic where they deal with the mentally disturbed, if I’m not mistaken. You spent two months in that place. If he did it once, I’m sure he won’t have a problem doing it again. Not if he knew this was the best thing for you.”
Buffy was having a hard time stopping her tears when the subject of the clinic was brought up. She hated being reminded of her time spent there. Yeah, she had some mental issues to work through, but she wasn’t crazy and didn’t think that she deserved to be sent to that place.
Addie glanced around the room and came across a framed photo on Buffy’s nightstand. She snatched it up and glared at the blonde woman that was smiling in the picture. “Joyce was very beautiful. It’s just a shame that she wasn’t enough for Hank. If she was, I’m sure he wouldn’t have come to me,” she claimed and dropped the frame to the floor, causing the glass to shatter.
Buffy gasped and stared at the broken photo of her mother.
“So sorry, it must have slipped. You should get that cleaned up. I’m sure you wouldn’t want to cut yourself. Oh, wait. You’re actually an expert at that, aren’t you?”
Buffy didn’t have much of a warning as Addie grabbed her arm, pulling her sleeve up to reveal the scars that were still on Buffy’s wrist.
“It’s no wonder you always wear long sleeved shirts. Those are pretty ugly looking, but then again, everything about you is pretty damn ugly. I’ve seen cross dressers that were more attractive. Don’t even get me started on your hideous nose. If I were you, I would have gotten a nose job a long time ago. Do you care about appearance at all?”
Buffy pulled her arm out of the woman’s grasp, tears streaming down her face at the harsh words.
Addie didn’t even seem to care. “God, don’t be such a baby. The truth hurts, deal with it. You’ll never get anywhere in this world if you cry about everything. Now, clean this mess up and go to bed. You’ll want to get to sleep early. I have a feeling your father and I will be quite loud tonight,” she said with a wink, then left the room.
Buffy broke out into harsh sobs once the door closed. She glanced at her marred wrist and quickly rolled her sleeve back down. She cleaned the glass up as best she could, then picked up the photo and took it out of what was left of the frame. Buffy lay back down and held the picture to her chest as the sobs took over her body.