The Word of the Day is Bogart (made famous by the actor of the same name and meaning to consume all or bully someone)
Bogart
“Give it back!” Selisha screamed. Even with her chocolate skin the hints of anger flush still showed in her cheeks. Her thin arms strained, looking comical given the frills of the pink dress and matching pink glitter shoes. Her hair was done up in pigtails adorned with hair ties that were, unsurprisingly, pink. In fact the only thing she had to complete the ensemble that wasn’t pink was no longer in her possession. And Selisha very much wanted it back.
“Not a chance.” Said Clay, her older, but apparently less mature, brother. He was braced against the doorframe straining against her surprising strength. In his hands was a light brown teddy bear with a pink bow around its neck. He had the bear by the legs. As she continued to scream he adjusted his grip, finding purchase on the things soft belly. He wasn’t planning to let go.
“You better give it back right now!”
“You better back up before I rip it apart!” She only had hold of the bears head in one hand, the other clinging to an ear the way her mother scolded Clay when he acted up. Except she wouldn’t be scolding him today. She wouldn’t be scolding him ever again.
“No!” Her screams had that frantic edge to them, as if she screamed to keep herself from sobbing. “Give me Mr. Bear!”
But he wouldn’t give it to her. Slowly his power overwhelmed her. In moments he had the bear by the head and worked to pry her fingers away, each moment fed by grunts and whimpers. He shoved her hard and she fell back against the floor. He stood over her then, smirking. He said, “It’s my bear, punk.”
She didn’t respond. She stared up at him, eyes wet but unwilling to release the tears, knowing that if she started she wouldn’t stop and there was no one left to stop her, not anymore. She wiped at her eyes, watching him. He continued to smile, taking a step back and then another. Finally he turned and ran off deeper into the house.
It was fine. She didn’t need the bear. She had to not need the bear anymore. She had to not need a lot of things anymore. Selisha climbed to her feet and brushed at her dress, hoping she could smooth out the wrinkles. She needed to go to school soon and she wanted to look her best.