!Claudia

Chapter 8

I followed a path until I heard nothing but the light gust if wind and the leaves fluttering.
"Hey Cloud, are you okay–"
"I HATE YOU!" I screamed from the depths of my lungs. I was filled with emotions.

I fell down to the ground, I feel vulnerable. I couldn't do amything...
Tears start rolling down my face, and I couldn't control it. I tried to hide everything for so long...

Gus sat beside me.
"I'm sorry you have to go through this..."
"It's my dad, he fucking ruins everything..." I sobbed, "...I thought life would be better if we were together. Turns out, a neglectful parent will always be a neglectful parent."
He remained silent.
"How come your parents are so nice?" I asked.
"They have their short comings..." He answered.
"But they're their for you..."
"Yeah... circumstance I guess." He sighed.

We took a short walk around the reserve, he even gave me a ticket to the SoS concert happening on campus.

I guess this day ain't all that bad.

We got back to his truck, and he checked his phone.
"So... I gotta buy ketchup real quick." He said.
"You couldn't have done that BEFORE you picked me up?" I glared at him.
"You were in a hurry..." He answered.
"Yes, but how long would it take for you to buy ketchup?"

Way too fucking long... I blame Karen.

I waited outside the store for Gus because of Karen.
"Finally... all that for tomato fucking ketchup..." I teased.
"I'm sorry I dragged you here..." He said.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever let's just go."

It's already night time? Was he in there for that long?
"Should I take you home?" he asked.
"Well... I don't know, should you?"
I don't really want to go home yet, but I also want to check on Aunt Laura asap.
"Hey, Cloud..." I called.
I looked over to Gus.
"Wanna eat with my family?" He asked.
"I'm not really hungry... but eh, fuck it." I told him.

He started the truck and drove out the parking lot while I text Aunt Laura.

Me:
im eating at gus's place
will you be okay?

The street lights looked grim tonight. Maybe because I'm not in the mood for optimism...

A minute later, Aunt Laura replied.

Aunty L:
I'll be fine roman's with me right now

Me:
where's dad?

Aunty L:
He left
Probably at a nearby motel

Me:
he can afford a motel?

Aunty L:
Enjoy your time claudia.

We got to Gus' house. He parked at the curb and helped me out.

"We're here." He shouted.
"Who's we?" A familiar voice shouted back.

It was Moira. Her eyes lit up when she saw me.
"Hey there, puke girl!" She teased.
"H–hi..." I started blushing. Why would she call me that?
"There's still some fish & chips left..." She said with a pretty convincing English accent. "Won't you fellas get a plate and eat with us?"
"I'll snatch some fries, we have something to work on up stairs." Gus said.
Bummer... I was looking forward for some fish & chips with the family.

Gus grabbed a plateful of fries, and pulled me to the attic.

I can't believe I'm back in Barney's anus.

He placed the fries by the window before he swung it wide open. Is swung a word?
"Over here..." He reached his hand out.
"Are you sure? Looks dangerous to me." I asked.
"Oh, so now you're scared?" He rebutted.
This lil piece of shit...
I grabbed his hand and he helped me up.

It was a cloudy view tonight, is it really summer? But the breeze does feel refreshing.

He sat down beside me with fries on his lap. He offered some but I refused.

Out of nowhere, I leaned back on him. Now we're sitting back to back.

Cloud, what the hell is this?

"Hey, uhh..." I start to feel a lump in my throat. "...thanks for today, Gus. I really needed a cool down."
"Yeah, anytime." He playfully punched my shoulder.
"Can I just... talk more?" I asked.
He nodded.
"My dad's trying to take our house away..." I sighed.
"Yikes..."
"Of course, he wouldn't be able to do that. Aunt Laura wouldn't let him take it, at least without fighting against him." I looked up, the clouds were above us. "So I don't even know why I'm angry... I know he's not worth crying over 'cause he's a piece of shit..."
I leaned back to bump his head.
"Maybe I'm mad at myself for being so naive..." I told him, "...that my life will magically be better if he's here with me."

He put down the plate.
"Yeah, no magical person can make your life suddenly better." He said.
"Speak for yourself, you have a functioning family..." I rebutted.
He chuckled, "Yeah, and I'm thankful. But I had my fair share of relationship mishaps."
"Really?" I was surprised, "Do tell."
"I met this girl a few years back. Her name was Lilac, and she was..." He paused, "...the opposite of you I guess."
"Excuse me?"
"She was posh, elegant with her movement and words." He said.
I can be elegant too, you know?
"She's smart, and she has a pretty nice family background." He continued.
"Okay, can you get to the point?" I feel frustrated.
"Point is, she was too good to be true..." He fumbled, "...I saw her with another guy at campus one day. With no remorse, she looked at me like I was only a toy..."
Damn...

He tapped me before standing back up. He went inside his room again.

When he got back here, he offered me a small bouquet of flowers.
"Are these lavenders?" I asked.
"These are lilacs." He answered.
"Oh... why are you giving them to me?"
"I only kept them because I kept holding in to her..." He sat back down, "...or at least, the idea of her. But now I'm ready to move on."

If he thinks this shit is romantic, then I can see why the girl left her.

I'm not saying it's right, but I can see WHY.

"Okay... thanks I guess?" I hesitated.
"I like you, Claudia."