"So.... Did you spend that money I gave you?" My mom asks, as she stands in the doorway of my room.

I look up from my math homework, and my moms green eyes meet mine before I even have time to answer." No?" She smiles really big and I get the flash of the popular cheerleader she used to be. She still has the aspects of one. The long blonde hair that is always styled to perfection, big green eyes that can hold your eyes from however long she wants to, the slight tanned skin that seems to have a glow at all times, but she also had the cheerleading body. Small hips, thin stomach, and curves in the right places.

"Well let's go shopping before your father shows up for your lessons." Mom thinks that dad just spends hours teaching me how to defend myself if I'm at the wrong place at the wrong time and that he mostly does it for Father and Daughter time. She doesn't know that we're bonding by him teaching me how to fight and be ready for street fights.

I bite multiple to suppress a groan. Why now? I look around and let out a small death before deciding to agree. Besides this is a good way to keep my mind off everything." Can we stop at hibbett sports? My training clothes are starting to get to big."

"Only if you promise to change from those clothes and put that outfit I bought you on."

My eyes instantly widen and I look at the bag that holds the outfit that my mom had bought me. Truthfully I haven't even looked at it, so I have no idea what I'm getting into when I say,"Fine." I put my papers inside my folder before getting up and going to the bag. I might not like what's inside but I really need those clothes. I don't need my pants falling off as I try to block my dads punch from hitting me in the face. No that would cause a whole lot of problems that I don't want to have to face.

"Goody, goody." She says before sitting on my bed." Go on, try it on." She waved a hand to me, as she smiles encouragingly." I picked something out that I thought you would like to."

"You want me to try it on here?" She nods and I look at her, my eyes wide as she looks at me expectedly.

"Oh come on. I changed you diapers until you were two, and bathed you until you were five. It's not like I haven't seen you naked before."

"Yeah but that was before puberty."

She rolls her eyes and says," So? Us cheerleaders used to change I front of each other in the locker rooms all the time."

I grumble under my breath and take out the clothes from the bag. I don't even glance at them before I peel my shirt and jeans off. My mom gasps and my head whips to her.

"When the hell did you get abs? And second, where did that gigantic bruise come from?"

I shrug, not really even knowing I had abs. I mean I saw them progress and become more toned over the months but I don't know or haven't paid attention to how long I've had them. And as for the bruise, it's from when I punched the punching bag to hard and it come back and hit me right in the stomach, forming the nasty green bruise my mom seeds right now." Umm.... When I was at Hana's, last weekend I had fallen and my side hit the corner of the table."

She nods even though I never left the house last weekend." You really shouldn't hide your body Asher. I would've killed to have a body like yours when I was your age."

I quickly slide into the shorts and shirt my mother had given me, uncomfortable with this conversation." I'd rather not. Why would I show my body to get unwanted attention, when I could stay covered up and keep my real friends?"

I feel her staring at me and I turn back to her to see her staring right through me, her eyes glassy for some unknown reason." You look beautiful. You are beautiful inside and out." With that she gets up and pulls me into a bear hug, making everything inside me to give off signals of danger and to do something. I shake them all off and hug her back before stepping out of her hug." I wish I was like you when I was your age. Didn't care what people would think. I was always worried if I looked good enough, or was popular enough. I remember not going to school because I couldn't get my eyeliner just right, or I didn't think that my uniform fit my body right. I also remember partially starving myself if I even barely passed the average weight for my height. I know I keep pushing you to be like me when I was younger, but I'm not trying to turn you into that girl. I want you to show the world how great you are. How amazingly beautiful you are." She sniffles and with that begins to walk away." I'll be in the car, oh! And there's also a little shaw in the bag. I know how you don't like showing that much skin."

I stare at her in shock as the door closes behind her, and her footsteps begin to slowly fade away.

What the actual freaking hell was that?

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