Jay looks at me, biting his lips. That look tells me to be quiet. That I let him handle the situation. I broke Ma’s favorite vase and she told Pa. Jay admits to Pa that he was the one who broke it. Pa doesn’t say anything. He leads Jay to our room and shuts the [...]
Since Jay died, Pa always came home drunk. He and Ma would fight. I could hear them in their room, shouting. Throwing things. Later they also fought outside their room. In the living room, while eating, while getting ready for bed. Soon Ma stopped sleeping in their room altogether. She’s lay out the mat by [...]