Morning came and she was still awake. The light of the morning slipped through the little cracks on the boarded windows. She got on her feet and hid behind the doors when she heard footsteps coming down to the basement. The landlord came in, turning the lights on while checking if anyone was in it. While he was doing that she slipped through the closing doors, making her way to the 7th floor for no reason. She sat in the silent staircase thinking about why her dad had hit her? And if she had done something? But she couldn't remember what she did to make him angry. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that when people started making noises she got startled. She sat in silence listening to people's footsteps until a the sound of heels echoed in the stairway.

"Gabriel wants your ass back in the house." Vivian walked towards her. "Gosh your dad is a fucking failure." Vivian laughed.

"Not much different from yours, oh wait." Joseline sat up. "My dad got married to your mom." Vivian smacked her hard across her face.

"You got to go back or get your ass beaten up again." She then made her way downstairs to go to school. Joseline made her way towards her apartment, knocked on the door for someone to open it. Her aunt/step mom opened the door and eyed her.

"It's only you." Joseline walked into the apartment and headed for her room but Gabriel was watching tv on the couch.

"Where were you?" He asked.

"Nowhere." She walked past him and closed the door to her room. She grabbed a long sleeve green shirt, worn out blue jeans and shoes and walked out of her room to go to the bathroom. She walked past her dad and stepmother who was in the kitchen and rushed into the bathroom. She locked the door behind her. She started undressing when she hit one of her bruises on the sink making her grunt in pain. She didn't need a mirror to know that she looked in bad shape and that most of her bruises showed. When the cold water touched her body she felt the sting of each bruise, hoping the cold water to ease the swelling. When she got out of the bathroom she ran past Gabriel. She threw her stuff on her bed, grabbed her schoolbag and ran out of the apartment because she was late for school.

Her teacher had promised that she was going to suspended her. While Joseline was in the dean's office she didn't know what was going to happen. Once Gabriel stepped through those closed doors, she didn't know what he was going to do to her. She waited until finally Gabriel walked in, the first thing he did when he entered the room was to make her stand up while pulling her hair.

" Damn you really are a piece of shit." He shoved her hard against the chair making her trip and fall on the floor. She got on her feet and tried to look when in truth she was cowering and crying in the inside.

The door to the small apartment opened and in came Joseline who lost her balance and landed on all four. Gabriel took off his belt while ordering her to kneel while he hit her with the belt repeated times. He kept on hitting her even while she begged him to stop, even after she peed on her pants but he kept on going. Gabriel was violent but it only started after his wife's death. No one did anything to help Joseline including her stepmother and stepsister, all they did was just watch or ignore. Gabriel got bored of hitting her, grabbed a beer and started to watch tv on the couch. Joseline got on her feet, went to her room before going into the bathroom. The cold water against her burning skin didn't bring any relief or comfort.

She walked out of the apartment and made her way to the first floor when she heard voices. She recognized one of the voices as her stepmother's but the second one she wasn't familiar with. Joseline looked down and saw her aunt hugging a man about Gabriel's age and more built.

"Are you going to my apartment, baby?" He asked as he kissed her neck.

"I can't , baby, I have to go back and look after the stupid son of a bitch."

"Why do you prefer a drunk asshole over a well paid hit man like me?" The man asked.

"For the thrill." She giggled as she kissed him before walking out of the staircase.

"Didn't your parents ever taught you it's bad to lurk on people?" The man asked while looking up.

"They don't care about me." She kept on walking down the staircase.

"How come?" Joseline didn't trust the man because his face was somehow familiar to her.

"I don't know." She sat down on the last stair step.

"Weren't you going somewhere?" He leaned against the wall.

"Not really." He leaned closer to her.

"Can I ask you a question?" She nodded.

"Are those birthmarks or bruises?" He leaned closer to look at her face.

"Who did this to you?" He asked concerned as he almost touched a visible bruise on her cheek, she flinched.

"No one." She lied.

""Was it your dad?" She didn't answer him but he could tell the truth from lies in her eyes.

"Do you have any family members?" She nodded.

"Why don't you go to them?"

"They hate me like my parents do."

"Does he kick you out of your apartment?" She didn't answer him.

"Where do you go when that happens?" She didn't answer him again.

"Don't you have friends?" She shook her head.

"Where do you stay when you get kicked out?" She shrugged her shoulders.

"Do your parents know you're here?" She shook her head.

"What time do you have to be home."

"I don't have a curfew." She didn't want to cry in front of him, a stranger, but her tears fell.

"Do you wish for a better life?" She nodded.

"Then come with me." He held out his hand not expecting her to take it but she did. She was desperate for something better than drunk hurtful words, belt beatings.