bitter | e.d

| twenty-five

I'm parked behind rosie's.

it's one of those vintage diners from the nineties that this town never got rid of because of its charm. it has that warm and cozy diner feel that never gets old with time, and their milkshakes and curly fries are to die for. this place still sees tons of customers on a daily basis.

the sad thing is it's really only popular nowadays to serve people's instagram accounts. teens, mostly, waltz in to snap a photo with their aesthetic, cherry-on-top milkshake and then waltz out. not even taking a second to look up from their fucking phones and leave a tip.

it's very under appreciated.

my parents met here. that is, my mom and biological dad. my mother told me the whole story. I can look through the back window and see the exact booth where he swept her off her feet and then took her home. she was so infatuated with him she would've done whatever he said, but it was a one night stand. she didn't get to see him again after that.

that is, until she found out she was pregnant with me.

she told me that my biological dad was the first person she told. she saw it as a chance to become something more with him. she imagined he'd be over the moon and they'd get married and have more kids. they'd have a good life.

obviously, that isn't what happened.

his reaction to the news was not pretty. he was angry and scared. and when he found out she'd be keeping it, he practically despised her. he thought it'd ruin his life and his plans. he kept saying they were way too young to raise a child. he tried convincing her to have an abortion relentlessly. he even offered her money. but that only broke my mom's heart.

they never spoke again until I was born. that was when he finally came around and moved in with my mom to help take care of me. and it worked. for the first month or so.

but then things got really rough. the stress of being a parent and not a teenager without responsibilities got to him. my dad was coming home ragingly drunk every night. he treated my mom like crap and always blew away all their money. he was gone every weekend off doing drugs and drinking some more. almost like he was doing whatever he could to hold onto his life before me. it was bad for all of us.

so it ended. three months in.

that same booth where he swept her off her feet was also the same one where he left her. he walked out of that diner never giving my mom a goodbye or even a warning. he just fled and left her to get home to empty drawers and a baby to raise all on her own. he never loved her, not even for a minute.

thus, he was named the biggest mistake of her life.

which kind of insults me and my existence, but I'm willing to ignore that part.

my eyes scan the dark parking lot in front of me. there isn't a single car in sight. the town is asleep by this hour. which is why it's so odd being here at two in the morning parked in my car just waiting for someone who left me a mysterious note with no context.

it could be a kidnapper or murderer for all I know. or a rapist.

my hand grabs the key and turns it to shut off the car. the darkness outside becomes very prominent now.

I grab the blue stickie note and unfold it, rereading the words to make sure I read it correctly. I've been here ten minutes already and no one has shown up.

almost as if on cue, bright headlights become visible in the distance. I watch as a car pulls into the parking lot behind rosie's, where I am. my eyes narrow to try and see what kind of car it is and whether or not I recognize it, but the headlights are blinding.