The Player Broke My Leg

Chapter 25

"I gotta go. Love you," I tell her before hanging up the phone. By the time I slid it into my back pocket, Evan was opening the back door for Hattie. "Did you get them?"

Hattie rolled her eyes and pointed to one of the bags Evan was holding. "Yes. Basically every gas station sells Cheetos."

"You don't know that," I say with a chuckle. "Did you call your grandma yet?"

"Not yet," she says as she shakes her head. "I'm going to do that when I get in the car."

I nodded. "I'm going to run in and use the restroom, then."

Hattie nodded as she reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. "I'll be in the car then."

I started walking towards the store without a word. Just as I reached the door, I glanced over my shoulder to see Hattie closing the door behind her. With a sigh, I turn ahead and grabbed the door handle and yanked the door open.

The store only had a few other people in it. There were a couple of kids roaming the candy aisle, a guy was looking at the chip selection, and there was an older woman trying to work a slushie machine while her husband stood behind her snickering when the blue concoction overflowed all over her hands.

I quickly turned my attention away and pushed open the bathroom stall. The restroom was empty, and I quickly rushed into an open stall to relieve myself. When I finished, I stepped out to wash my hands before stepping out into the store.

However, when I stepped out back into the store, I saw Evan standing by the coffee machine with his back turned to me. I narrowed my eyes in confusion and turned to look at the car out the window. I could see Hattie sitting in the back seat with her phone to her ear. I walked up behind Evan  and spoke.

"Since when do you drink coffee," I say sarcastically as I grabbed a cup from below and started to filled it up.

Evan turned to me and frowned. "I've always drank coffee. You don't know my life."

I chuckled as I pulled my cup away. "Did she get a hold of them?"

Evan shrugged. "Don't know. I came in here to give her some space."

"Space?" I questioned. "I thought she would be happy to see you?"

"I thought so, too," he said. "I mean, I was when I saw her, but that quickly faded when I saw that bruise on her cheek."

I let out a sigh. When they came out, I noticed that there was still a faint outline of a hand on her face. I wasn't sure who had hit her, but I didn't want to bring it up. At least, not with her. "I think her mom did that. You heard what Hattie said had happened."

"You think Hattie's mom really hit her?" Evan asked as he popped the lid on his coffee.

"Probably," I sighed. "Something's not right with her mom."

"I wouldn't know much about it," Evan started to say. "When I first met her, I was taking food to their house. I guess the two of them were supposed the eat dinner that night together, but she left a minute after I got there. I could tell Hattie was upset about it, but she played it off like it didn't hurt her."

"Shit," I say under my breath as I stirred some sugar into my coffee. "Ever since her parent split, her mom was never the same. Every time I saw her after that she had a drink in her hands."

"Alcohol, huh," Evan said under his breath. "Makes you a shitty parent."

I nodded before looking up back out the window. From what I could tell, Hattie was no longer on the phone, but by the expression on her face I could tell that she was sad. With a sigh, I turn back to Evan.