The Dark Locket

Chapter One

Hi, I want to start off by saying thank you for reading my story. This is my first time writing a something so please give it a chance and enjoy the story :)

I wake up to the sound of my alarm clock going off and just know that today is going to suck. I barely go any sleep because I was so wrapped up in love island, I just had to see what was going to happen after that last bomb shell. I sit up in bed and try to convince myself that having a summer job is worth the effort. Finally rolling out of bed I get up and head downstairs to see check on my mom, she's normally up by now considering that it is one in the afternoon. 

      "Hey baby how'd you sleep?" Mom asks from the living room.

      " I had a glorious five hours", I say as I walk around the couch and flop down next to her and lay across her and her tablet that she is always playing on.

      "Well if you had stopped watching tv at a decent time then I'm sure you would have gotten plenty of sleep." she is looking down at me with a all-knowing look.

      "Who says I was watching tv?" 

"I could hear it across the hall." she pats my head pushing me off her as she gets up and walks towards the kitchen. " Don't you have work today?"

"Don't remind me. I already want to call in for the day." I say as I get up and follow her to the kitchen. 

"You could always help me around the office." 

"And deal with all the questions about college and what happened with Steven. No thank you", I say while throwing some toast into the toaster. She just raises her hands and walks away knowing that it is a sensitive topic. 

When my toast is done, I eat is in silene looking out the kitchen window just preparing myself for the boring summer ahead of myself. Mom will be busy with work and Vivian is off to New York for a week to see family. Even if she was staying, we wouldn't be doing much besides having sleep overs and texting each other while working. Shaking the thoughts out of my head I head back upstairs and go into my closet to get something that will not kill me in this Georgia summer heat and will be professional enough to go in and get my uniform and talk to my boss about my schedule.  I look at the time and figured that since it's just a 25-minute drive I have time for a shower. 

After my shower I put my clothes on and get into my beat-up red jeep Cherokee and try to figure out some music to put on for the drive. I settle on American teenager by Ethel Cain thinking since my mood is already grey might as well lean into it. As I make my way across town, I see that someone has moved into the Johnsons old house, hopefully it will bring some new news or drama into the dull boring town that I will be stuck in for the next year. I really can't take more drama about some cheerleader and a football player or the drama club guilt tripping people to help raise funds for their fall play. 

As I pull into the parking lot, I see that the movie theater isn't busy so they will probably keep me around just to talk to someone to pass time during the quiet time in between movies. I get out of my car and head inside, the movie theater is a old building but Tim, the owner and manager, he came back to town and gave this place a real face lift. All the kids in the neighborhood used to dare each other to sneak in and sit in a pitch-black theater as long as possible to prove that they were the bravest. Since he came back and fixed up the place it has a gothic vintage vibe to it. There are red drapes on the walls as you walk down the different hallways towards the theaters, which make it easier to hang up movie posters when they are coming out. There are huge chandeliers hanging in the lobby, archways at the entrances and to the bathrooms. In some of the theaters there are fake candles that light up the stairs. This place has always been a weird comfort for me, a getaway when life gets too hard for me.

 After I step inside and look around reminiscing, the first person I see is my ex-boyfriend Steven talking to Tim. I stand off to the side by the ticket booth, hopefully avoiding him seeing me and me seeing him. I do not have it in me to deal with that awkward conversation. I watch from the sidelines as they finish their conversation and when steven walks by I slide against the wall, basically trying to become one with the wall at that point.  When I feel like enough time has passed and he should definitely be gone I turn around and peek outside. He's walking towards his car and stops. He looks at my car and then looks around like he's looking for something or someone and I am not going to stay around to figure out what he is looking for. I talk towards the employee door and go into the back to look for Tim, I find him in his office and i knock on the door even though it is open.

"Willow, it is so good to see you. How have you been? How's your mom doing?" he asks me standing up going in for a hug. 

"I'm doing good, Mom's good. She's working hard with having that expansion of her office we never have our movie dates anymore." I say going in for the awkward hug and when it is done, I put some distance between us, knowing what is about to come.

"How are you both doing since the accident?" He has the big sympathy look as he asks the question. 

I sigh and slide my hands into my back pockets, "We are okay. Sure, it's been hard and an adjustment but we are doing good." I am so tired of people asking that question, it's the main reason why I want to stay as far away from my mom's office as much as possible.

 About six months ago now, Mom, Dad, and I were on the way back from a mini camping trip. I had ruined the whole thing because I kept complaining about not having cellphone service. I knew Steven was going to be pissed that I wasn't calling him back and I wanted to talk to my best friend, Vivian about anything and everything. My dad had had enough of my complaining and mom was tired of trying to keep the peace, so we packed up and headed out as soon as the rain started falling. On the way back down the mountain we were staying on the rain got worse and when we made it all the way back down and I knew he could barely see the road by what mom was saying. The last thing I remember hearing is her asking him, almost begging him to pull the car over. Next thing I know I am upside down in the back seat of the car, there's a tree in the middle of the front of the car and mom is missing. I made it out with just a fractured arm and a couple of stiches, mom had a broken arm and a concussion and dad.........We lost dad that day. 

Shaking my head to get rid of that memory and bringing myself back to the present, I listen as Tim talk about the different ways the place is run compared to other movie theaters and what to expect while working and of course the pay. 

"Do you have any questions for me so far, Willow?" Tim asks me after his whole speech. 

"Not any that I can think of, I am more of hands-on learner so when I start, I'm sure I'll have some questions," I take a step towards him to shake his hand when I hear a knock on the door behind me.

"Hi sorry to interrupt but I am looking for Tim." I hear this mysterious voice say. I turn around and see the most beautiful man in the world.