Another Five Years

Good Times Bad Times

David edged down the narrow hallway that separated the shop from the back room listening carefully to Anna argue with his hulk of a boss.

"Daddy, stop. You know damn well it's Darryl," she pleaded, her hands out to her sides.

"Watch your language, Anne. Darryl's been here longer than you two put together," he growled.

"And how long has money been missing?" she asked, now crossing her arms. There was a pause when the bells on the front door rang and Anna's voice drifted from the back room. "Could you get that please, David?" she asked sweetly.

He didn't hesitate before hurrying out into the shop, only to be confronted by a pissed off Darryl wearing a ratty Iron Maiden shirt. "Oh hey," David said smoothly.

Darryl only grunted and barged behind the counter, close enough that David could tell he was sweating and shaking. David stepped back and watched as Darryl opened the register and lifted the cash tray, sifting through the checks underneath when Anna's dad appeared in the doorway. "You," he snarled. "In the back. Now."

Darryl jumped upright and began to spew excuses, following his boss into the tiny office in the very back. Anna slipped behind the counter and gently put her hand on David's arm. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. "He knows it wasn't you."

"I think Darryl's high," David whispered back, a little worried Darryl would put up a fight.

"Yeah, he's a junkie," she said, leaning back to make sure the back room was empty. "Gives me the creeps."

David was about to reply, but there was a crash followed by yelling in the back room before Darryl burst out into the shop. "You don't realize who I am, old man!" he bellowed. "You don't realize who my parents are! This place will be shut down in a week!" He stumbled back down the aisle and out the door, trying unsuccessfully to slam it behind him. 

"Idiot," her father said, unimpressed by Darryl's empty threat. "Sorry, kids."

"It's okay, Dad," Anna said softly, leaving David's side to hug her dad.

"No, it's not okay," he shook his head and looked up at David. "I shouldn't have blamed either of you when the evidence was right there in front of me. The guys back on the force would love to hear about this!" he chuckled a bit and headed back to his office.

"I'm going to assume he doesn't mean the Star Wars force," David finally said once he and Anna were alone again.

She laughed at that, effectively ridding the room of the awkward tension. "No, though that would be way cooler. He was with Metro PD when I was little, then had a scare and my mom made him quit. That's when we moved out to Arlandria and he found this place."

"Yup," her father appeared in the doorway again with a goofy smile. "Got a couple bullets in my ass and decided to buy an old porn shop to turn it into a record store! Living the dream!"

"Oh my god, Dad," Anna groaned but smiled back at him as David laughed.

"Your mom's working late tonight," he said to her, turning to leave again, "Trying to pass that goddamn Reagan bill. Dinner's at six, though. Night, kids!"

"Did someone really shoot him?" David asked once they heard the back door slam shut.

"Yeah, he interrupted an armed robbery at a gas station," she shrugged as if everyone's father had been shot at their job. "He was buying me candy on his way home from work."

"Harsh," he replied, not sure what else to say.

"It was a long time ago, but I still think of it every time I have candy," she muttered, leaning across the counter to pick through the jar of lollipops.

They sat together behind the counter for the rest of their shift, discussing music and their families, school and their friends while listening to Led Zeppelin's entire discography. She was attending a prestigious private school just a few blocks from his public high school and was in several AP courses, on track to graduate early with honors while he had to be talked into getting in the car every morning by his mother. They were so immersed in conversation that Anna gasped when she noticed the clock behind David's head.

"Holy shit we were supposed to close fifteen minutes ago," she giggled.

They went about their closing duties with Anna teaching David how to count out the till and how to work the safe. He was shutting down the stereo system when she came out of the back room with her coat and bag. "All set?"

"Yeah. Hey, what are you doing tonight?" he heard himself ask, not really sure where it came from. 

She threw her purse over her shoulder and turned to him with a slight smile. "I've got plans. How 'bout you?"

David felt himself blushing and just hoped it wasn't noticeable. "Yeah, same," he said unconvincingly.