Another time

The girl stiffened herself as the belt came down another time. This happened so regularly, she was used to it. She knew the drill. All she had to do was sit there and take it, without screaming, and he would stop soon. Then she would sit in a warm bath for awhile, and wear baggy clothing for the next couple of days. 1

No one seemed to notice this, minus the occasional question of whether she was too hot or if she wanted to change into shorts and a t-shirt. She would refuse kindly, then walk away, glad she didn't have to explain her actions. She avoided the embrace and occasional push of the other students, so she wouldn't be in pain. she took music instead of gym, so she didn't have to worry about changing. Now all she had to do was stay on her father's good side until the summer, when she would be off to camp for three weeks. Then it was off to summer school, where she taught kids how to relieve stress that is caused by the work-load of high school.2

The last time her father had taken a belt out was because she had mentioned what it was like when her mother was around. Her mother had died of cancer when the girl was 10. Now, at age 15, she had learned to live with the beatings. It happened so often that it was nothing new when she had to take out the baggy clothes. She hid the evidence well, making sure she didn't leave clues to the reasoning behind her clothing. 3

It wasn't just a belt. It was his fists, chairs, books, walls, and doors. He would shove and throw, not to mention hit. No one knew, and she was fine with that. She didn't worry about the occasional second glance as she walked. It didn't bother her that people were always asking why she didn't want to go home. It was always that put that she didn't want to have to wait for her father to get home. She wanted him to come home first so she could surprise him with her making dinner. What she didn't tell people was that she wanted to shorten the amount of time she actually spent with her father so he had minimal opportunity to actually commence in the act of child abuse.