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Once again Alyssa ignored hiet the best of her, but she wouldn't let them see how much they hurt her She would answer the same questions Cody asked, if only her mother would ask her It frustrated Alyssa that her mother left it up to Cody, because he would never be her father

“Answer him, Alyssa,” her mother said

The tone in her mother's voice hurt Alyssa, because it let her know that once again her , she pushed her plate away and stood up For a ly at the meatloaf and broccoli, but decided it wasn't worth it Her hungry stomach would just have to wait until breakfast

“Where are you going?” hermore frustrated than ever

“To my room,” Alyssa said and ran up the stairs

Once inside the safety of her room, she locked the door and quickly undressed She was thankful that she had her own bathrooe in As she stood under the water trying to relax her sore muscles, Alyssa tried to contain the tears that threatened to fall, but she wasn't strong enough

Her tears fell freely as she showered Even over the water she could hear the shouting fro to decide what to do with her Why couldn't they just leave her alone? If her h to ask the questions herself, at least she could leave her be

Alyssa's only solace was one si This was her senior year of high school If she played her cards right and worked her butt off, she'd be at university next fall Then she'd be free from her mother and Cody, and they'd be free from her as well She wouldn't adh scholarship money not to have to ask her mom for help If she could make it on her own, she could leave behind the woman who married the man who had made her miserable

After her shower, Alyssa dressed in her favorite soft pink pajamas and settled doith her math book The joy she felt earlier had diminished, but she forced herself to press on Toame of the season and she had to be in tip-top shape Hopefully, seeing Ryan at school tomorroould make her smile and look more like she was filled with school spirit

After she finished herannouncee andannouncements The principal assured her that it kept school spirit high, but Alyssa wondered if it really worked Sure, lots of her fellow students showed up to every gaame and how many of them were there to escape their parents?

For her, it was both She loved her school and her friends She adored cheering on the boys as they defeated the opposing team To her, football season was like a here only one 'tribe' could be victorious, and for the last seven years it had been her tribe Her school held the state chaht of adding another year to their count made her smile

When she was finished writing up the announcements, she printed theet theet out of the house Her etting to bed early and sat on herseat and looked out at the stars

It was a clear night and the ht of its nearly full belly irls on the squad was a superstition that said if the moon was full, their boys would have an easy victory The calendar told her that toht was indeed the full moon The Panthers would crush the Rattlesnakes beneath their feet once again The Rattlesnakes hadn't taken a state championship since the late sixties, so Alyssa decided theyBesides, in order for some people to be winners others had to live their lives in defeat

Alyssa curled up on theseat and waited for the angry voices to stop, but they were still going strong when exhaustion finally overtook her and pulled her into a deep sleep When she woke for a moment, she couldn't remember why she felt so horrible, but then as always ht’s