The 'day' had ended just as soon as it began. Pine had finished her work and was now cooking her family, Pasta. Normally Leon would cook but he was in his room working on his freelance work. He was an online digital artist, the main income to the house. Pine would work, in fact, she wishes she could. But another rule in Melancholy Heights is you have to be 19 before you can work. Because then you're an adult, and no one is responsible for you and if you have an out of house job, only the trained men are caring for you. There are only a few job selections in town. Everyone is informed of the job listings when you start secondary school.
And, you have to choose which job you want when you start high school. Pine had chosen to be a freelancing programmer. That way she can leave the house and be escorted to meetings with the head council once a month. According to what job you choose, your school curriculum teaches you everything you need to know. Her original choice was a nurse but her grades were lacking too much for her to pursue that.
Pine made the plates and put them on a cart. Pushing it down the semi-long hallway. She knocks on her brother's door first and waited. Soon the tall black-haired male looked down at her with bright blue eyes. "Thanks, Pineapple" he takes the food from the cart and retreats to his room, closing his door. Pine then walked down to their mother's room and opened the door, pushing the cart in. She puts it next to the bed and wakes up her sickly mother.
"Mama. I made dinner"
"About damn time, if you take this long to cook forever your future husband won't be happy"
Pine sighed and fed her whining mother. Pine's mom, Marlee, has been sick ever since her husband died. She came down with polio in her late fourties. Now since she is pushing sixty her kids have to feed her. Marlee stopped complaining as she ate her pasta, noticing her daughter's pink hair "you dumb bitch, did I say you could dye your hair?! No man is gonna want you when you look like a slut!"
Pine sighed and put the food on the cart and left. She refused to deal with this today. She knocks on Leon's door "Tag your it!" She goes to her room and locks the door. "I'm not a slut, better to be confidently ugly than a old hag like her anyway." She sighed and laid down on her less than comfy bed and closed her eyes, she had lost her appetite so she saw it best to sleep.