"Welcome to The Shack! What can I get for you?" I looked away from the menu and right into the face of Jessie. Good for him for having an afterschool job, but did it have to be here? Plus, whatever he was doing in the back with the other server was definitely a violation of the health code.
He stopped walking a couple feet away from the counter, a look of irritation when he realized it was me.
"What do you want?" His voice was flat and cold. Nothing unusual, but it was starting to irk me that he was so rude all of the time.
"Ice cream. What do you think? This is an ice cream shack." I looked up at their menu and then back down at him. "I want a scoop of The Reese's Runaway." Giving him a small smile, I quickly added, "Please."
"Why would I get you anything after what happened today?" He just stared at me dumbfounded as if he actually thought I was the one in the wrong. He was the one who hit Chrissie with the door and then refused to apologize. He was also the one who was rude to me anytime we interacted.
"Maybe, because you work here. It's your job, and I'm paying for it." I snapped back, unable to hide my irritation.
"Well, we do have the right to refuse service to anyone..." My mouth dropped open when he said that, and I couldn't seem to pull enough words together to form a response.
He continued to stare at me with a look of confusion and irritation. "What?" I asked.
Why was he looking at me like that? He shook his head before bending forward to scoop the ice cream, despite his last comment.
"Nothing. Did you do the homework in math?" I knew it! I knew he would try to get me to give him my work or something.
"Why?" I didn't meet his gaze, no matter how much I wanted to give him a dirty look. Even though it was clear that we didn't like each other, it still stung to know that he was probably only talking to me so he could copy my homework.
I bit back the urge to throw some choice words at him. I don't like to be mean unless that person did something to really piss me off. Even then, I was never a bitch to people. I'm just me with a slice of attitude, but he was getting really close.
"I was just trying to make conversation. Figured maybe we started on the wrong foot.” He didn't look hurt or mad…or any emotion really. His face was just blank. What the heck was with this man? It was like he was a statue with how little he showed any emotion.
"Oh." Boy! That was the smartest thing I have ever said.
"So, why are you so quiet all the time?" Is this his version of small talk or something? It kind of sucks.
"I don't know." I mean, I see what he means. I always knew I was a loner, and I liked it that way but that didn't make it a good conversation topic.
"You should really talk more. It would help you make more friends." Is he trying to give me advice? The new guy that made me dislike him in the first five seconds of seeing him on campus?
"I prefer not to." My head was still down, watching as he mixed the Reese's in the scoop of ice cream.
"Why not?" He stopped and looked up at me. I noticed the woman from before as she returned and set up a few feet down the counter. She smiled when she saw me looking at her, and began to mix Chrissie's ice cream.
"Because . . . I don't know . . . I've gone to school with a lot of them since the 1st grade. I've seen it a hundred times. No matter how good of friends you are with them, they seem to always find a way to turn on you or stab you in the back. I have never been in that position, but I watched it time and time again. It's just unnecessary drama." I pulled my hands out in front of me and began to fidget with them on the metal counter.
"Well, you know, everyone gets hurt eventually, but they always have someone to stitch them back up." Is he trying to be sweet now? I'm not sure who I am talking to at the moment. Maybe Jessie had a twin brother who didn't come to class today, and that was who I was talking to right now. A quick glance at his nametag ruled that theory out.
After today with the attitude and the door incident, is he trying to be nice? Really? The thought briefly passed through my mind, and I couldn't help but wonder if he was bipolar or had some personality disorder that could explain his mood swing.
"Not everybody wants to have to put someone in the position to stitch them back up." Is that really that hard to understand? When you are putting them on the spot to stitch you back up…what if they think it's a waste of time or that they have better things to be doing? What if you become a burden or seen as annoying?
"I wouldn't mind stitching you back up." He said with a smirk, his eyes not leaving my ice cream as he continued to fold in the chopped-up Reese's into the peanut butter ice cream. "So, in the middle of the night, when you get lonely and sad, you can just come on over. I would happily make all your pain go away and replace it with instant pleasure instead." My jaw dropped open as he glanced up at me with his irritating smirk. I knew him being nice was too good to be true. It was all a set-up for him to pick fun at me.
The girl making Chrissie's ice cream next to him lost her rhythm as she folded in the brownie batter, and a look of hurt flashed over her face.
He handed me the scoop of ice cream, and I gave him the twenty to cover both bowls of Ice cream. He was quick to give me my change, so I took it and walked away.
"What, no reply?" He asked as I approached the table that Cole was waiting at. He always came with us because he wanted to spend time with Chris, but he never ate anything because he was lactose intolerant and hated sherbet.
I turned to face Jessie once again.
"I don't want to hurt your feelings." I said as I pulled out the chair to sit down and took a small bite of my ice cream. I didn't bother looking over my shoulder to know that Chris was trying to start a conversation with him, much to Cole's dismay. She wasn't very quiet about her interest in him earlier in the day, and she made it clear that she wanted to know more about the new kid.
"Why the fuck would you think that?!" Jessie suddenly was almost yelling. His voice dropped, and I couldn't hear him anymore. He said something back to her, and by the look on his face, it wasn't pleasant.
"I don't know… I'm sorry." She grabbed her ice cream and walked over to the table.
"Bye, Julie!" The ten-year-old screamed with laughter as she ran into her bedroom, slamming it behind her to prevent her older brother from getting to her with his can of silly string. A smile stretched across my face at the sight of my family celebrating Bri's birthday. It had been a relaxing day enjoying the barbeque and pool party with all of her friends and family. Ryan and Terry had been present, and while we were civil for the sake of Bri, we tended to avoid each other at these types of events. Ryan held a grudge against me for being such a troublemaker and reflecting negatively on their family name. Meanwhile, I held a grudge against them for trying to put me back into the foster system to find a new family after I was released from the hospital. I knew it would happen eventually, but that didn't make it hurt any less. They never made it that far. I had been able to petition for my independence and emancipation as I was only a few months from turning 18. Luckily for me, this
I woke up as the door slammed open, and the lights came on, peaking in from the edges of my blindfold. I would have tilted my head back and looked over to see who walked in from under the fabric, but I still couldn't move."Please! Why are you doing this? Why can't you just kill me? Don't do this please! Don't do this to her!" Mark's voice would have been calming if it wasn't full of panic and fear.The sound of someone approaching was followed by the blindfold being ripped off my face. I could see three men pulling Mark into the room from the corner of my eye. I wanted to tell him I would be okay, but couldn't. He had to know that I was stronger than anything they threw at me."She had nothing to do with it! If you're going to kill me, just kill me! She wasn't even there! Please, I'm begging you! Don't touch her!" He was slammed down into a chair that another man dragged in behind them, and was quickly tied down to it.A hand wrapped around my ankle, but
Julie's P.O.V.I took a deep breath to relax as I felt the SUV pull to a stop after at least half an hour of driving. I heard doors opening, and I tensed back up. Someone grabbed my legs while another pair of hands reached for my arms.I squirmed and struggled. They had pulled me halfway out of the car, and I started screaming. A cloth was shoved into my mouth, but I kept hitting and fighting with all I had. I felt a sharp pain in my leg. Not even thirty seconds later, my leg went numb, followed by my other leg, abdomen, and everything else as it worked its way up my body until I couldn't move or speak, but somehow felt everything.I collapsed onto the ground with a thump. My limp legs were lifted up off the ground, and I could feel my back and hands scrapping against the hot concrete as they pulled me to our destination. I heard the door open, and I was dragged once again.My back held a searing pain, and if I could, I would have screame
As I made my way to the door of the classroom, my eyes eerily glanced to the parking lot on my right. This building was the closest to it, so I was worried. I picked up my speed a little bit when I heard footsteps quickly following behind me at a faster pace than my own.The logical side of my brain was telling me that someone was just late for class, but the panicked part of my brain told me to run. The footsteps grew louder as the person got closer, and I turned my walk into a brisk jog, my backpack bouncing as I did so. The door to my classroom was only four doors away, and it was open. I just had to make it a little further before breaking down and having my panic attack.The squealing of tires caught my attention and sent the hairs on the back of my neck standing straight off of my body. My breathing came out in small pants as I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins.A large black SUV came into view and slammed on its breaks not more than 50 ya
I backed up towards the door. Unfortunately for me, we didn't keep the cleanest room, and I tripped over a pile of clothes landing right on my butt. When I looked up, Mark was smiling at me, the humor of me falling taking away from the seriousness of the situation…for him at least."Mark? W-what . . . what the fuck is going on?" I stammered as my throat closed up. He stood with the gun still in his hand and walked toward me. I started to shake. He stopped a few feet in front of me and looked down at me with his other hand outstretched in my direction, palm up.When I didn't take it, he narrowed his eyes in confusion. "Julie, I'm not going to hurt you. I would never, ever hurt you." He said as he crouched down next to me. "Why would you think that I would?" He sounded honestly hurt."You just pulled out a fucking g…" He placed his hand over my mouth."Julie, no one can know. Please, just let me explain. Plus, this gun isn't mine. This gun is
His Adam's apple bobbed harshly, and I met his stare as he scanned my face over as if judging how serious I was. Then, he nodded his head to the side and turned to resume walking. I moved with him, knowing that he needed a minute to collect himself. We made our way back to our dorm slowly, but he stopped me before we reached the front doors."I know what you mean. It was so hard…everything we went through, but we did it together. I don't think I'm ready to let you go yet, but I know I have to. I can't keep holding onto you and what we used to have, because that's gone now." He nudged the tip of his shoes against mine, and I looked down just as he pulled his foot back. "You do seem happy with him. I don't want to be in the way of that.""I really am." My voice was soft, as I didn't want anyone to overhear us.Jessie cleared his throat, and I fiddled with the hem of my shirt between my thumb and forefinger. He gave me a sad smile and let out a chuckle while