The Dinner

          I can’t believe Mom actually invited him to dinner! Now, I have to sit here and pretend that I don’t despise his very presence. Look at the way he smiles at her like an idiot.
         “How was school today?” Mom asked me, like she actually cared.
         “It was ok, the same as every day.” I gave the answer she wanted to hear. Even if I did admit that I hated it, and that the other girls made fun of my clothes, she would hardly notice. Not with him here.
         I pushed my food around on my plate. My appetite left when he showed up. I wonder if he sees how fake my smile is when he smiles at me. Those perfect white teeth, tan smooth face, how does Mom find them? I know I shouldn’t hate him. Sometimes, I try not to. But they don’t understand the position they put me in. They don’t know about all of the questions I will have to answer when I visit Dad. What did they talk about? Is he really that good-looking? How long did he stay? I love my dad, but I wish he could find a way to be happy.
         Someone asked me another question. I looked up from my plate.
         “What?”
         “I asked you if wanted to go get some ice cream later on?” She always tried to make his visits seem like a vacation or something. I guess she doesn’t even notice that I haven’t eaten any of my dinner.
         “Sure, that sounds like fun.” I lied.
         He smiled at me again. I went back to my mashed potatoes. Would this night ever end? I even wished Adam was here. He may be a pain in the neck big brother, but at least he would take the pressure off of me. He’s lucky to have wrestling practice so often. Maybe I should join a sport, then I could miss dinner too. Yeah, right. Me with my scrawny body. I couldn’t get on any team anyway.
         I squirmed in my chair, swirled my mashed potatoes and waited for this night to get over with.