MARIE ✔️

S I X T E E N

J A S M I N E

Right when I step in the door, my bag is thrown on the grown and my shoes are kicked off, one landing in the living room and the other in the kitchen.

"Annalise?" I call out, my words slightly echoing off the walls. I hear footsteps upstairs, but nothing else.

I go to the kitchen and toward the pantry. I have to go to the store before work. And lucky for me, I have another night shift. Yay.

Last week, I was able to get morning shifts, but it was only on the weekend because I had school on the weekdays.

And it has also been two weeks since Kaden slammed the door without a goodbye.

Fun times.

"Annalise, are you hungry?" I reach for a bag of chips on the top shelf. Once I'm on my tippy toes and finally able to grab it, I get a plastic bowl from the cabinet and pour a good amount of chips into it.

Annalise still doesn't answer me, so I go ahead walk up the hardwood stairs, a bowl of chips in one hand and my phone in the other.

"Annalise?" I get closer and closer to her room, until I'm standing right in front, my fist coming up and making a soft, little pounding. And when I hear a few stumbles come from inside, I knit my eyebrows and bring my ear to the door.

I know it's wrong, but come on, I'm nosy okay.

"Annalise, I'm coming in." I wait a few second and sigh, slowly twisting the door knob and pushing the door open. Annalise is facing the window, her back turned to me. Once she hears my footsteps, she swings around to face me. Her pink lipstick is smeared, and her eyes are droopy. "Annalise," I feel my shoulders drop and eyes widen. "Please don't tell me-"

"I didn't!" She says before I even finished what I was going to say. I hope she realizes that just makes me more suspicious.

"Annalise," I walk more into her room and set the bowl of chips on her desk. "Don't lie to me."

"I... I'm not lying." She crosses her arms over her chest, tipping one side of her hips up. Her curly hair is frizzed up, probably due to someone running their hands through it.

"What did I talk to you about-"

My phone starts ringing, drawing my attention away from how mad and confused I am at Annalise. I look down at the caller ID and I think my heart just jumped from my chest then slammed back into me.

Without hesitation, I slide the green button across the screen and put the phone to my ear.

"Hello?" I say, turning around and walking out of the room. There's a few seconds of silence, before the familiar deep, raspy voice, fills my ears.

"Hey, ma."

I let out a small breath and smile. "Hey, Kaden."

"Do you work tonight?" He asks. I feel myself frown.

No, is what I want to say. I'm still salty about our last interaction because that motherfucker had the audacity to leave without giving one explanation!

I close my eyes and begin to tell myself how stupid I am. "Yea, I work tonight."

"Come outside."

I don't get to say anything else, cause right after he said that, he hung up.

So he walks out and doesn't talk to me for days, but now he calls and wants me to go outside.

Sounds about right.

I walk down the stairs, making my way to the front door. A cool breeze blows my hair back, but I continue to walk out.

It's been raining all day so it's gloomy and dark.