Nobody was home when Ximena reached her front door. The shadow of The House loomed over the scabby patch of land between them. It seemed to press against her back as she opened the door. Creepy, Ximena thought, as she shrugged off her jacket and hung it on a hook.

Carefully, she unpacked her school books onto the table, the only work surface in the trailer. This one was so small it didn’t even convert to a bed. Buried among the books was a note from the school providing information on the cost of the senior prom. Ximena knew better than to ask Mamá for such money. Even if they could scrape together enough for the ticket, where would they get cash for the formal dress? Then there was the cost of new shoes, of doing her hair – no, she was at school to learn, not to socialise.

“Why don’t you come over?” many of her classmates would say.

Ximena was touched that they even bothered to invite her, after all this time. “Sorry,” she’d say, “but Mamá would end me if I don’t keep my grades up. And we may be moving soon.”

“Where do you think you’re going to go?” her classmates would say. “Nobody ever gets far from here.”

Maybe I will be different, Ximena never said. To say such words aloud would be to tempt fate.

Ximena opened her books and got to work.

Time passed. Her stomach grumbled, but she remained focused. Sounds drifted in: cars blaring their horns, children laughing, dogs barking, balls bouncing. Ximena paid no attention. These were the everyday noises of her life, their normalcy as comforting as a soft, warm poncho in winter.

Tick, tick, tick…

Ximena began to hum. At first the melody was indistinct, but gradually the notes began to form a familiar tune. She put her pen down and really began to listen. It was music, that banjo again, coming from the direction of The House. But this time there was the distinct sound of a man singing, and he was singing it all wrong.

“No, no, no,” Ximena muttered, as she stood up. “That’s all kinds of messed up.” The House might give her the creeps, but such travesty had to be corrected.

***

Tell us: Is it healthy for Ximena to never hang out with friends or classmates?