River I run out of my room and down the stairs to my father’s study, where I know he will be with a bourbon in hand. “Why did you lie to me all these year’s father? Why did you tell me she left us because of me?” My father just looks at me like I have lost my mind. “You don’t want to come at me, little girl, because I will hurt your feelings worse than knowing your pieces of shit mother didn’t leave you for drugs.” “Why didn’t you just kick me out with her, I ask him?” “Because that bitch wasn’t getting a dime of my money and I knew if you went with her, I would have to pay that bitch half of my pay. But River, didn’t you have a good life? Here you have a jeep, a roof over your head and food to eat. Forgive me for not being here because I must work.” “No, father, let's be real with each other for once. You are never here because you can’t stand to be in the same house as me. You keep me as a go fuck you to my mother. But we both know you hated me more than you did her? But wh

River "My mom is back in my life," I share with my therapists. "How do you feel about that?" she asks. "I'm not sure yet. It's still a bit strange to have her back in my life, especially knowing that it was my father's fault, not mine." "What do you mean?" my therapist inquires. Ugh, it frustrates me when she does that. "My mother left our family because my father constantly gave her drugs and made her an addict. My father wanted to reconnect with his high school sweetheart, but she was already married. There's a suspicion that my father may have done something to Rock's dad, according to my mom and Rock." "That's a serious accusation," she responds skeptically. "No kidding," I reply sarcastically. "Alright, let's shift gears and talk about work. Have you returned to work yet?" "Yes, but I still experience extreme anxiety." "Is the medication I prescribed helping at all?" "Yes, but sometimes it feels like the dosage may not be high enough." "Well, I can prescribe a slightl

River Things seem to be returning to normal after my dad's arrest and the charges against him. It turns out he was involved in some illegal activities, including assaulting a miner and attempting to sell crystal meth. Apparently, he had planned to involve my mom in his scheme when he went to Gabs' house that night. I don't know much about my mom, so I can't say for sure if it would have worked. I'm back in my house now, in my old bedroom. It's a bit unsettling to have Rock right across the hall from me. Lately, he's been acting strange and I don't like it. I even talked to Brody about it, but he just told me to give Rock a chance to prove himself. It seems like Brody has taken Rock's side, which makes me think he doesn't like me anymore. It feels like Rock is trying to push everyone away who shows any interest in me. Thanks to Rock, I don't have many people who like me anymore. In fact, they enjoy tormenting me and calling me names. I can't understand why Rock wou

River "It's prom day," Sydney says with excitement. I never knew that my best friend liked events like prom. Sydney is usually more antisocial than I am. She could easily be one of the popular kids, but instead, she has chosen to stick by my side all these years, even fighting my battles against Rock and his friends. It's still strange to think about Rock and me. "Come on, River, let's go get our hair and makeup done," Sydney says, grabbing my hand as we rush down the stairs and out the door. "Wow, where are you girls off to in such a hurry?" Rock asks, laughing at us. "Apparently, we're getting our hair and nails done for tonight," I tell him as Sydney drags me past him and into her car. Once we're in the car, Sydney starts the engine and backs out of the driveway. I glance up and see Rock waving at me, so I wave back at him. "Hey Sydney?" "What's wrong, River?" "Nothing's wrong, I just have a question." "Go ahead, ask away." "Well, do you think this thing with Rock a

River Today has been a fun day so far. We have been having outside festivities for the seniors during the last couple of months of school. It's nice, but it doesn't make much sense because we still have finals to deal with. I'm ready for the finals, but I'm not sure about the football jocks. I have a feeling that Rock is going to want to cram for the finals during the last week of school, and I'll probably have to help him. As I'm thinking about this, Rock sneaks up behind me and grabs me by the waist. He starts running with me, and I can't help but squeal. I ask him what he's doing, and he says he's getting me wet. He's started calling me "little River" instead of the water girl, and I find it kind of cute. I protest, saying that I'm not wearing the right clothes, but Rock insists that I should let loose and have some fun for once. I give in and we slide down the slip and slide together. We also join in the tug-of-war games that are happening. We end up on different teams,