| abstract
| - "Mommy," a little girl cried. "Mommy," The girl was five years old, and was thinner than the average girl her age. Her white shirt hung loosely on her shoulders, and the tattered magenta skirt was two sizes too large for her. The couch she was sitting on was filthy and stained. The room was dirty, and littered with pizza boxes and old bills. The girl's mother hadn't come home in eight hours, and the girl named Diana was hungry. She sniffed. She peered out of the living room window to see a young lady walking rapidly down the street. "Mommy!" Diana squealed. The young woman reached the door, where Diana was waiting for her, jumping up and down. The woman opened the door, and gave a tired smile to Diana. She bent down and kissed her head. "Hello Yana," she told her, calling her by her nickname. The young woman rubbed her eyes. It had been a long day at the factory she worked at, where she worked for a minimum wage. She handed Diana a red box. "I got your favorite: chicken nuggets!!" "Weeeee!!" Diana squealed, and she took the box and skipped to the kitchen. Alone, Erin Martinez surveyed the room. She took in the dirty floor, the broken TV, and the flickering light bulb. She sighed. She hadn't been able to clean the apartment, as she was working overtime to earn enough money for the month's rent. I'll clean the place tomorrow, she thought, and went to join her daughter, who was happily eating a chicken nugget dipped in barbecue sauce. "Come on, Yana, time for bed," Erin told her daughter. Diana stiffled a yawned as she said, "Bu--(yawn)--I'm no' sleepy, Mommy...." And with that, Diana fell asleep on the table. Erin chuckled. She picked the fragile girl up, concerned with how light Diana was for her age. She tucked her in their bed, which was just a mattress on the floor of their small apartment bedroom. Erin, without changing into her pajamas, fell asleep on the mattress. The sun's rays felt warm on Diana's face. She smiled. She loved the sun's rays. She ran in circles, singing. A couple of yards away, her mother and father laughed. A happy family, Diana thought. But Daddy's gone, she remembered. All of the sudden, storm clouds loomed ahead. She was alone, away from her parents. She was in a cold, bad-smelling room, enclosed. Yells and screams were heard from the next room. Diana started crying. They'll be okay, she assured herself. Daddy and Mommy are still together. Diana woke up with a start. She started crying. Stop, she commanded herself. She needed to be brave, very very brave. She got up, dusted her shirt off, and walked to the kitchen barefoot. "Let'ssseeeeee...." she yawned as she look through her Happy Meal from last night. Some leftover fries were at the bottom, and Diana grabbed them and stuffed them in her mouth. As she chewed, she threw the empty box in the overflowing trash bin. At that moment, her mother walked in. She clicked her tongue. "Well... this is certainly not fit for, err, living," she grabbed a broom. "Yayy!" little Diana knew what this meant: Spring Cleaning Day! (Even though it isn't spring at that time.) She runs/hops to the bathroom, and carries a broom to the kitchen, where her mother had already started. She was sweeping, yet dancing to the beat of the song on her radio. She cheerfully sang along. All that day, they sang and cleaned the tiny apartment. Around 6 o' clock, they both flopped down on the couch, tired. Neither knew how tragic the next day would be.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)