The Lake

She plunged into the water, soaking in the coolness of it. She was feeling carefree and safe. This lake was her friend. Her getaway. Her serenity. It took her away from all the bad in her life. She was the lake and the lake was her.

 

            Madison was an average teenage girl. She loved average teenage girl things. Boys, friends, lip gloss. All the usual stuff.  Only a few things were different. She had an alcoholic mother and a missing father.

            This fine summer morning, Madison woke up to the sound of breaking glass. She ran to the kitchen to find her mother throwing plates at the wall and mumbling to herself. “That B*****d!” Her mother never got over the fact that Madison’s father left. She threw the plates and cried, and threw more plates and cried some more. Then she ran out of plates and started throwing the glasses. Madison walked away and went to go write down what was going on in her journal like always.

            Madison’s mother stopped throwing things and went to see what her daughter was doing. “We need new cups and plates. Will you go get some?” Her mother left money on Madison’s bed table. Madison sighed and picked up the money. She left for the store.

            At the store, Madison picked out blue plates and blue cups. They reminded her of the lake they lived next to. She loved the lake. It was her comfort. She got five plates and five cups. It was only her mother and her so they didn’t need much. Madison walked home, being careful not to break these plates.

            When she got home, her mother was passed out on the couch with a bottle of Grey goose in her one hand and a half burnt cigarette in the other. Madison wanted to cry. She hated seeing her mother like this. It was painful.

            Madison went into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. “Will I be a monster like that when I grow up?” she felt sick to her stomach and threw up in the sink. She didn’t want to be anything like her mother. That’s when her mom got up and found Madison in the bathroom. “Thanks for getting the plates. Now go wait in your room like a good little girl. I’ll be there in a couple of minutes.”

            Madison knew this game all too well. When she was younger, mommy would become a monster that no little girl should have to know. Mommy liked to touch her little girl. She liked to kiss her little girl in ways a mother shouldn’t. Madison knew the taste of alcohol way too soon in her life because of her mother.

            Madison waited in her room, frightened. Finally, her mother came in with one of the new glasses and handed it to Madison. “Drink it all, like always. Okay?”  She did as instructed and her mother stroked her hair. “That’s my good little girl.” Her mother laid Madison back on her bed and kissed her passionately. Madison felt sick but she let it happen. She thought about the lake. Her safe haven. Her mom stripped off her clothes. Then she took off Madison’s.  Madison kept her eyes closed. She always did. Her mother ran her hands all over Madison’s body. “You’re so beautiful Maddie. Please love me.”

Madison had no choice. She just nodded and let her mother do what she wanted. From fingers to thighs, she played with Madison in the most disgusting ways. Madison tried not to cry but tears still spilled out from her closed eyes. “Don’t cry, Baby.” , Her mother said. “I’m almost done with you.” Madison was exhausted by the time her mother was finished. Her mom sighed, picked up her clothes, and left the room.

            Madison got up and ran outside, naked. She ran for the lake and dived into the water. The water cleansed the sin that just occurred. But it still wasn’t enough for Madison. She swam out farther and dived down deep into the water. There she waded, under the water, and smiled. She inhaled deeply as water filled her lungs. No more she thought. The lake was her forever getaway, her friend and her serenity. No one would take that from her. Not even after life.

Reviews

[exotic flotsam]

Nicely distilled. An incomprehisible, futilely endured horror cooked to its essence. Always challenging to be brief. My imagination ran amok with that unfortunate soul's life from the outset. A book hides within the story. While my imagination ran, you reeled me in with an unforseen silky, logical and understandable end. Well done. I like your work.