Damsel in Distress

[Eeti Mehta]

Dear Mr. Swag,

I have a friend whose parents just got divorced. She lives with
her dad because her mom doesn't have a job. Her dad is the kind of
person that is intolerable and unreasonable. He leaves his house
whenever he wants and comes home late every night. He is an alcohol
addict, whenever he gets home he is always dead drunk, so he goes
straight to bed. They don't have that much money either and he spends
most of it on cigarettes and alcohol. At the age of fourteen my friend
basically runs the whole house. She wakes up in the morning alone and
comes home from school to find herself alone again. She has to feed
herself and do all the house chores and then take care of her dad too.
Her dad thinks that since he brings the money in the house, she has to
do all the other things. If she doesn't do something his way she gets
a scolding. She never told me this but I think that her dad might
result to some physical violence as well, because I have seen bruises
and fingerprints on her skin before. She doesn't even get enough
sleep; there are dark circles under her eyes all the time. Her mom
loves her but she can't live with her own daughter because she doesn't
work. I'm scared that by the time her mom finds a job, my friend might
not be able to hold on. What should I do?
Sincerely,
Scared out of my Mind