I feel like such a fucking idiot. Like a total loser. I’m only sixteen and I gotta deal with all this grown-up shit. It’s my mom. Always my mom. My dad… he died when I was like ten, maybe eleven? Before he went, he made me promise. Like, seriously promise him – I gotta take care of my mom, always make sure she’s okay. He said she’d need me. He said I was her rock. So I promised. What else am I gonna do, right? He was my dad. And now it’s just… it’s too much. Every month I’m paying her rent. Her landlord calls *me* if she’s late. ME. Not her. And the gambling… oh my god, the gambling. She gets these scratchers, plays those stupid online casino games. Says it’s her “hobby.” Bullshit. It’s how she blows all her money and then some. Then she calls me, crying, saying she’s gonna get kicked out, she owes money to some guy, whatever. And I just… I pay it. I always pay it. Because what else am I supposed to do? My dad made me promise. It’s what he wanted. I’m supposed to be saving for a house. Like, a tiny one, a trailer, just something for me when I’m older. I do my art commissions, I sell stuff online, I even deliver food on my bike sometimes. I hustle my ass off. Every time I get close to having some real money saved, BAM. Mom needs something. Her rent. Her debt. Whatever. And it’s gone. All of it. I don’t even know why I try sometimes. It feels like I’m just pouring water into a bucket with a giant hole in it. And I feel so guilty even thinking this. Like I’m a bad kid. My dad would be so disappointed if I didn’t help her. But god, I’m so tired. So fucking tired.