Run from his Shotgun

Chapter Three- To Be Invisible

"The kid looks like he's 12. That should be illegal!" Anna and Jenny hollered at the screen. 

"He's meant to be a teenager," I took up my position to defend him.

"He's definitely fourteen at the most." Jenny yelled at the kissing scene, "Move away!" She instructed the unhearing character and then squealed, covering her eyes. "How are you guys watching that?"

The movie, in question, was the Karate Kid, and Daniel LaRusso was probably meant to be 16 or 17. While my two best friends bickered and giggled, I decided to Google the facts. 

"Aha!" 

They both looked up, and for a moment I was struck at the difference between them. Jet-black, straight hair, and then a mess of strawberry-blonde curls. One face, small and round, slightly heart-shaped, and the other more bigger and arguably longer. 

Jenny flicked her charcoal hair out of her eyes, and impatiently asked, "What?" 

"The actor was 22 when he played Daniel."

There was a silence between us, while the musical score kicked off in the background. Anna was the first to react, grabbing my phone. She read through the web page and shrieked, "No way!"

I watched as they both, almost comically, turned to gape at the screen, and then back at my phone in Anna's hand.

"You guys have watched this movie before, you should know this already," I said.

"Yeah, when I was six." Jenny retorted. "I couldn't even recall anything beside the 'wax on, wax off' scene."

Just then Jenny's mum popped her head around the door. "Girls, I've made a beef stew. If you're hungry, you're more than welcome to join."

Jenny got up. "Come on, you two."

As she left, Anna and I looked at each other and then back at the empty bowl that had been overflowing from popcorn. I winced, patting my full stomach, "I don't think the popcorn was the best idea, particularly before eating dinner."

"How is Jenny still hungry?" Anna yawned and stretched, and then reached down to tug me up. "Come on, I'm sure we'll manage."

Jenny, like me still lived at home. She wanted to save up until she could afford a full deposit on an apartment downtown. Still, her mum was a sweetheart who loved cooking and ensuring that her daughter had everything she needed, so that she could focus solely on her studies.

Dinner tonight was lovely, and even though my stomach was trying desperately to keep things in, I couldn't resist finishing my full plate of stew. "That was delicious, Mrs Raine. I've never had a beef stew like this one before. It's definitely one of the best dishes I've ever had."

"Oh that's really nice of you to say, Isla," Mrs Raine laughed. "I can give you the recipe if you want."

I did and copied it out onto my phone after helping to wash up. Now, an hour later, I sat on the bed in the spare room and couldn't help my thoughts going to Danny. I hadn't spoken to Danny since the day he'd explained everything to me. I kept having to check my phone constantly, waiting for a call or a text, but so far there had been nothing. It had been quite difficult to think about anything else in the first few days but spending time with Jenny's family had offered me a reprieve that I wouldn't have expected.

*****

The next afternoon, I was on a bus travelling to a motel on the other side of Vancouver. As I sat in one of the back seats, gazing out at whatever I could glimpse through the rain-streaked windows, I wondered just how long all this would take.