"Where is she?"
That seemed to be a reoccurring question that I always seem to be asking complete strangers for the past five years whenever Kendra gets into one of her usual messes.
"She's right over there," The person who called me with her phone said.
She led me through the crack house to where Kendra was and the sad shit that I saw enroute was the saddest shit I'd seen in a long time; and that's saying something because I've literally seen men cry when they see me take my top off and THAT was sad but it was nothing compared to this.
So many young men and women were almost lifeless on the bare floors, high on hard drugs, drenched in booze, covered in their own vomit and just flat-out wasting their lives in this nut house. I mean, I understand wanting to have a good time but this was next level insanity and more than anything, I wanted to get Kendra and get the hell out of this awful place.
"Right there!" The woman pointed after we turned the corner.
And sure enough, there was Kendra; wasted beyond recognition, wearing nothing but her bra and panties and she was tonguing two guys at the same time who both had their hands all over her lady bits. The dudes seemed less wasted than she was and it would be easy to say that they were taking advantage of her because, let's face it, that was what was happening but, she was mostly at fault because she chose to come here, she chose to take those drugs and she put herself in this situation.
"Kendra!" I yelled and stormed over to her.
"Cherry, my girl, what brings you to my sanctuary?" Kendra asked and sure enough, she was as high as the most high.
"Quickly, get dressed. I'm taking you home and you two idiots, get your HIV infested hands off her before I chop them off," I said to the guys and they backed away.
"Hey, I was having fun with those guys. Why did you chase them away?" Kendra asked drowsily but I didn't have the time nor patience for her madness.
I forced her into her clothes and dragged her out of the crack house all the while yelling at her for being irresponsible and for lying to me.
"You promised that you were going to pay your debt and not take any more drugs on credit. That's what you told me. I can't believe you lied to me, Ken. I trusted you,"
I hated yelling like a parent because it reminded me of how my mom used to yell at me but unlike what I was trying to do for Kendra, my mother wasn't ever trying to keep me safe or look out for me. No, my mother only ever yelled when it benefited her because she was a selfish bitch that couldn't stand the sight of me.
"Oh please!" Kendra pulled away from my grip, "You knew I was going to buy drugs with the money you gave me. You expected me to. I would even go as far as say that you rely on me to be a huge mess so it can make you seem like less of a mess when compared to me,"
"You don't know what you're saying, Ken. You're wasted so get in the car and let's go," I yelled at her and tried to pull her toward the car but she snatched her hand away.
"No, I do know what I'm saying. I'm nothing but a pity project to you. That's the only reason you put up with me, because it makes you feel better about the fucked up decisions you've made in YOUR life when you compare it to mine.
"You literally sell your body for money and you hate yourself for it so you keep me around, bail me out of my problems and scold me about them because it gives you this false image of yourself as this responsible decent adult but the truth is," Kendra got too close and I sure as hell didn't like what she was saying, "You're a broken woman, Cherry. So broken that even your own mother failed to acknowledge you as a daughter she could be proud of and only the validation of those pathetic simps makes your misery manageable because just like me, you're trash and you belong to the streets."