Blood ...
Blood ...
Blood ...
"Remember, you promised." He coughs.
Blood ...
Blood ...
On my hands ...
On his face ...
Chapter One:
Growing up in Trickett, with an absent father, was like offering a piece of steak to a starving tigress, for the gossipers. Everyone knew everyone's first, middle, and last name. They knew who your family was just by glances at your face. It was impossible to go unnoticed in this town, let alone keep a secret or any form of privacy.
Our family never disappoints in delivering our fair share of scandals to talk about.
Teenage mother...
Never finished high school...
Father left her with two kids...
The only positive thing that has ever come from everyone knowing everyone was that when Finnic saved Liz Walker from being robbed in Eastern Park everyone knew. Everyone praised him.
When Finnic was made valedictorian, everyone was sitting in the bleachers listening to his speech.
When he scored ninety percent of the touchdowns his senior year, he was deemed a football legend. Trickett's citizens love their football, and the football players even more.
By the time I came into Trickett High, all the rumors about my parents had been washed away thanks to my brother. I was no longer the poor little girl with no dad. I was the sister of Finnic Hansel the man destined for greatness.
I thank him for that every day.
Unlike my social butterfly of a brother, I was riddled with social anxiety. Plenty of therapy visits and medications later me and my family realized that it was just part of who I was at this point.
I didn't like hanging out with people or meeting unfamiliar faces, I would rather stay inside and read so that I could feel all the emotions of living without having to risk doing it for myself.
Sad, I was aware of this, but I didn't just stay inside all the time, I did have a job and took some classes at the local college. Part of this fear of socializing was the inability to say no so it always ended up putting me in situations that I would prefer not to be in.
Such as this one...
Tom: Are we still on for, Olive Garden tonight?
My co-worker at Peaches Bakery had asked me out on a date and being the weird character that I unfortunately am, tripped over my words and somehow said yes.
If it wasn't for the fact that we would have to see each other every week, then I would have just not responded.
My part-time job at Peaches wasn't much on income but it did cover the bills and gave me experience and a little extra to put in my fund for my bakery.
I type out a response and then delete it, repeating this cycle until one is created that didn't make me cringe as badly as the previous one. I detested the idea of having to tell him no and hurt his feelings. Just dating him wasn't an option even if it would appease my brother and Liz. I didn't date, there was just too much baggage there for someone to be expected to unpack.
Me: Sorry, Tom. I don't think I thought this through when I said yes. It's nothing to do with you, I'm just not ready to date.
After reading over it too many times to count, hitting send was all that was left to do. Mustering up the courage through a few deep breaths I press my thumb down on the button. Then threw my phone face down on the bed not wanting the anticipation that watching the three dots would cause. It would just fester up some unreasonable panic and that was the last thing I needed any more of in my life.
When the phone dings I don't hesitate in rushing over to it, sitting back down beside it causing my lavender-scented covers to bunch around me.
Slowly I pull the phone off the comforter and face the lit-up screen my way. I squinted my eyes barely leaving me any room to see the words he had replied with.
Tom: Oh Okay.
A sigh escaped me, reassured me because he wasn't being mean or rude. Deep down I knew that it was unreasonable to think that Tom, sweet Tom, would message something back vile. That was the thing even if I knew it was unreasonable, it didn't stop it from being in my thought process.
Was I rude? Did I hurt his feelings? God, I couldn't stand this. Questions, very unreasonable one swirl around my brain pestering me, wanting to crawl their way in until they are all I can think about. It just makes me want to hibernate in this apartment forever. Never to be seen again, I wonder how long it would take my mother, Finnic, or Liz to come knocking on my door, to force me out into the world I was no good at living in.
It was my nineteenth birthday and I had started it off with all this doubt and anxiety. Probably should have just postponed replying. We wouldn't have to see each other at work tomorrow because it was a Friday. It would have given me a short delay, before having to see him again and more time to procrastinate.
Eighteen had been a confusing year for me. I had decided to move out on my own and take local college classes for culinary arts. Something my mom and my brother encouraged despite it not being a sure-fire employment.
My family was normally always supportive if what we were doing was for the improvement of themselves. If it made us happy and didn't hurt anyone, our mother didn't have any protest.
She just wanted us to be what we wanted to be, and I knew we were lucky for that because there were a lot of people that didn't have that kind of acceptance in their life.
I didn't have any friends from high school, breezing past all the kids in the hallways trying my best not to be seen. So, there wasn't anyone my age to compare my life to. Sure, there was some gossip that went around about my classmates every now and again.
Andrew got married to a girl from out of town.
Ansley went off to a foreign college.
Still, there was no real way of knowing exactly what they were all up to. It was kind of shooting in the dark hoping that I would hit satisfaction one of these days.
This bakery, the bakery that I'm saving up for will give me that, I know it will.
Ever since I was little, baking was where my passion was, the smells that it filled the house with, watching the color change from the oven window. It was the core of all my good memories growing up.
My heaven would be this bakery.
The phone that was forgotten about when I started daydreaming flashes and vibrates against my palm. The sudden sensations cause me to startle back into reality.
It was Finnic, my brother and I shared a birthday even though we weren't twins. He was turning twenty-four today so there was exactly a five-year difference between the two of us.
We looked nothing alike even though we were full-blooded siblings. I had chestnut brown, nearly black hair that had a curly frizz to it and green orbs with a dust of freckles everywhere.
Whereas Finnic had bleach-blonde hair and blue orbs with only a freckle here and there. My mother says he looks just like our father, a fact that Finnic hated but she still held our father in this forgiving kind of light like he didn't leave us when I hadn't even turned one yet.
I take a deep breath eager to win the bragging rights for this year.
"Happy Birthday, Finnic!" It came out high-pitched and quick as I won again this year. I and my brother had this tradition where we would race to wish each other happy birthdays. When we were younger the prize would be to blow out the candles on our shared birthday cake.
"Damn it!" He curses and I wince at the use of foul language. Cuss words were not my forte. They remind me of my ex-gym teacher, Couch Derek. My younger cousin
Willow mentioned him three weeks ago. I guess he never got fired for cussing at minors. This was more than likely because he was golf buddies with the principal. As I mentioned, a small town equals a lot of pull.
"This is the second year in a row, Finnic. Getting rusty? I wish I was there to rub it in." We have an amazing relationship; I don't know what I would do without him. He has been with me through a lot more than any brother should have had to. Our relationship was one that I cherished and held close to my heart. Finnic was my rock, forever and always.
"You'll get your chance when you get here. You are still coming right?"
"Is that even a question?" He should have already known the answer to that. We've never missed a birthday together. Ever since I was born, we had never been separated for this day. Even when he was laid up in the hospital for breaking his big toe.
My mother and I took a cake to the room and blew out the candles then and there. Even though I won that year too I had let him blow out the candles.
"I invited a few people over, is that okay?" He asked because he knew how it was for me, how ... awkward I felt around people.
"How many?" I ask skeptically.
"Like ten or so. It will be me, Liz, and Harley, he's in town, I forgot to mention it. Then there will be a couple of Liz's work friends and Asher." I can practically see him holding up his fingers as he names off people.
Finnic and Liz have been living together recently and I have seen how happy it made them. Ever since he saved her from being robbed that night, they have kind of just clicked.
Harley was my brother's high school best friend; they used to do everything together. He moved away after graduation and was some hotshot in the bigger town forty-five minutes away from us.
Asher Jet, was a little younger than my brother but not by much and he tries to flirt with me when given the chance. He was persistent even though I never returned his advances.
So, I already knew the majority of everyone going, they all knew I didn't talk much and wouldn't make too much conversation. This wouldn't be too bad. My inner thoughts soothing down the panic in my gut that was trying to claw its way out to the surface.
"I don't mind I'll be there in a couple of hours. Love you, Finnic."
"Love you." He says before the line goes dead.
-.-.-.-.-
It's roughly edited so I apologize for any mistakes. I hope you enjoyed it❤️