Hide Your Fires

11: Emergency

“Hallie, I’m going out tonight, okay?” Matt calls down the hallway as I’m in my room and he’s in the living room, probably on the phone with one of his friends.

“No, you can’t,” I say apologetically as I walk into the living room. It’s been three weeks since the whole ordeal with Matt and it’s now Friday. “I have to go in to work tonight.”

“But you don’t work tonight,” He reminds me slowly.

“I know,” I agree with him. I usually did work on Fridays but sometimes, I’d get a Friday off here and there and this was supposed to be one of those Fridays but plans had changed. “But I’ve been pretty slow with my orders lately so I took some extra hours.”

“Hallie, I can’t miss this,” Matt tells me pleadingly. “Tate said that this party will be the best of the year.”

I shrug. “I already told Taylor that I’d take the shift. I can’t change it now. Anyway, my job is more important than your party so you’re going to have to stay home until I get back from work.”

“When are you getting back?” He wonders with a loud sigh.

“I don’t know. Probably around eleven,” I tell him. “But until then, you have to watch Jude.”

“Hallie,-“

“Seriously, just a few hours, Matt,” I say as I’m slipping on my shoes. Jude is sitting on the couch watching a movie and coloring something in his coloring book, completely oblivious to the discussion I’m having with Matt right now. “I’m sure you can handle it, okay?”

“Fine,” He sighs. “Whatever.”

“Awesome,” I roll my eyes at him as I walk over to Jude. “Be good for your brother, Jude, alright?”

“Mhm,” He mumbles absentmindedly, not even lifting his crayon from the page that he’s coloring.

I kiss the top of his head and then walk back over to Matt, grabbing my bag from the coat hanger by the door. “You’ll be able to make it to the party just fine after I get back. No drugs, no getting drunk.”

“I know the rules,” He assures me as I’m heading towards the door.

“I love you both!” I call just before shutting the front door behind me and going towards my car to start my drive downtown. It takes a lot less time than I’m used to to get downtown because there’s a lot less traffic on Sundays so I get there early but I don’t go to the diner or anything since it’s not really time for a meal or anything.

“You aren’t supposed to be here for another ten minutes,” Andrea reminds me from behind the counter. Andrea is another lady that works here- she is usually working Sundays with Marla who I’m covering for. I’ve met her before because on rare occasions, we do work together, and I like her. Andrea a few years out of college, working here until her boyfriend graduates from college (it took him a few extra years because he changed his major so much at the beginning) and then they’re going to move to New York together. That’s about all I know about her. Taylor doesn’t really work on Fridays so I’m not surprised to see that she’s not here at all.

“Yeah, traffic wasn’t too bad,” I inform her, clocking in and taking off my coat since it’s gotten pretty cold outside now and it’s almost snowing outside now, so I wear have to wear a heavy black coat over my pink floral skirt and black blouse. “Have you been busy?”

She scoffs. “This is the first silence since lunch rush. You got here just in time. It usually kicks back up after dinner, so we have about an hour or so of peace and quiet until they come back.”