Kay had managed to convince her parents to take Angie in without any difficulties. Mostly, as Kay pointed out savagely, because this way she'd have no further reason to get out of the house.
Angie had first thought Kay might be exaggerating with the whole house arrest thing, but after a week there, she could see it plainly. Kay only left the house to go to college and various classes, always chaperoned by Danny who seemed oblivious to the hate pouring out of her every pore. Her parents were nice, civil, stiff as a board. And William, Kay's older brother, had apparently disappeared. The family was in ruins.
And Angie tried her best to keep her mouth shut and mind her own business. Because Kay had warned her that her parents stayed civil only as long as no one disagreed with their crazy decisions. Angie disagreed, but she needed a roof over her head more.
The living arrangements were to her liking. She had use of the rooms in the house, but that was about it. She would have to fend for herself when it came to cooking and cleaning and she was okay with that. It was better than anything she could've secured on her own. And she could actually focus on studying properly.
Unfortunately, her B was still a pressing issue. She'd talked to her professor, explained the situation, offered up extra work to improve her grade. Oh, the twisted look on his face when he'd realized just how needy she was. He'd only promised to consider her statement and think of something. It made Angie shudder.
"You should report him," Kay said outraged when Angie confided to her.
"And tell them what? That he's looking at me funny? That I'm sure he's imagining me naked when we talk?" Angie rolled to her back on her new bed and stared at the ceiling. "I have no proof. And it's his word against mine."
Kay snarled as an answer, but didn't press the issue. This was one thing Angie loved about her friend. She knew when to insist and when to just drop it.
What she didn't like about Kay, was how serious she was. How quiet and reserved, locking herself in her rooms for hours. Sure, Angie did the same, but she had work to do. Kay, on the other hand, just stayed in bed, staring at the ceiling. And it broke Angie's heart.
But one fine evening, two weeks after she'd moved in, Angie heard something unusual. She was in the middle of her latest Biology assignment, trying to cross chromosomes correctly, when she heard it. Kay's voice, and it seemed like she was talking to someone.
Angie froze, listening carefully. She was pretty sure Cassandra and Jonah were downstairs watching TV. There was no one else in the house and Kay didn't have a phone. Who was she talking to? For a few seconds, Angie debated whether to butt in or not, but she didn't want Kay to get into trouble, and if she could hear her, then so could her parents.
So she put her pencil down, eased out of her chair and tiptoed out of the room. The voice sounded lower in the hallway, but Angie pressed on and opened the door to her friend's room as quietly as possible. The lights were off.
The little light coming from the streetlamp outside Kay's window showed her lying on the bed, twisting something between her fingers. It looked like a credit card.
"It sucks, you know," Kay mumbled to the card. "I still can't believe they can actually do this. And you? Where are you? Why haven't you found me yet?"
Angie squirmed. Even in the darkness, she could see the tears on Kay's face.
"I miss you so much," Kay sobbed. "It's been five months. It should be easier. Why is it harder?"
Tears filled Angie's eyes. This wasn't fair. Kay shouldn't be in this much pain. And she was going to do something about it. So she pushed the door open to announce her presence.
Kay barely glanced at her, eyes full of tears, not bothering to pull herself together, not looking surprised.
"What's that?" Angie asked, walking to the bed and nodding towards the card.
Kay didn't answer, just handed her the object, using her newly freed hands to wipe her eyes. Angie stared at the red card, Ferrari written all over it.
"You have keys to a Ferrari?" she asked shocked. Her practical mind already made calculations about the objects' value. Though it was probably priceless to Kay.
"Kyle's. Never got to give it back."
"So he has a name." A pretty cool name, she'd give him that.
Kay frowned in confusion. "Did I never tell you?" She sighed and took the key back, handling it with unusual care. "Not that it matters. My parents would probably stop giving me food for a week if they heard me speaking the name."
"You have to get out of the house," Angie said.
"And do what?"
"Live, Kay." She hesitated a second. "Do you think Kyle would want you to be like this?"
For a moment, she feared an explosion of tears. Instead, Kay frowned and sat up. Her eyes seemed to dry instantly, and she cleaned her face with her sleeve.
"No. You're completely right. Let's go somewhere."
"Now?" Angie asked shocked. But, then again, she'd rather not give Kay the chance to change her mind. "Okay, I know this nifty club where they don't ask for ID. They have really good music."
"Yeah, dancing's fine," Kay mumbled, already opening her dresser.
Angie changed into a new t-shirt herself and the two of them sneaked out of the house through the window of Angie's room which was right above the garage. The ease with which Kay climbed down made Angie think she'd done it before.
The club was three blocks away. Angie knew about it because she'd worked there for a few weeks. But all the noise and the long hours didn't work for her. After she'd fallen asleep in school once, she'd quit and found a job at a diner instead. Lousier tips, but she could actually scrape some leftovers and eat something. And the number of losers trying to pick her up had decreased dramatically.
The bouncer at the door recognized her and let them in without a word. The place was packed as usual. The club itself was a cavernous hall with a bar in the back and many small stages against the walls. The dancing crowd took the middle, and it was filled with teens. Strobe lights made everything feel in slow motion and Angie's head started pounding. This was another reason she hadn't liked working there.
"Not bad," Kay yelled over the music. "Let's find a nice place to dance."
They did. After the initial discomfort brought on by the lights and too loud music, Angie had to admit she was actually starting to have fun. She loved dancing and it had been so long. Kay also looked happier than Angie had seen her, swaying and turning to the beat. She was a really good dancer, finding the rhythm with ease. It took her five songs to suddenly start crying again. It was discreet, just a lone tear drifting down her face, but Angie saw it and felt like screaming.
"Want to go home?" she called over the music. She could understand getting sentimental over love songs, but GDFR, really?
Kay shook her head, but didn't look any better. "I'm sorry, it's just, the last time I danced to this..."
She was with Kyle. Angie could fill in the blanks with ease. "Should I go ask the DJ to change it?"
"No. My prom was like five months ago. The same music is inevitable. I'll just have to get used to it."
Yeah, sure, but Angie would do anything to make her stop crying, so she waved and headed towards the stairs she knew led to the DJ's station which was in what looked like a glass container above one of the stages. She'd make the guy play 90s hits all night if she had to, but Kay wouldn't shed another tear. Not on her watch.
Once she reached the door, she knocked, before realizing it was impossible to hear from inside. So she just pushed the door open, sneaked in and closed it behind her. It was so much quieter in there. The guy sat in a roller chair, with his back to her. All she could see was black messy hair and his feet crossed at the ankles placed on the turntable.
"Um, sorry to barge in," Angie said.
The guy totally ignored her, and by the way the chair was bobbing up and down, he was jamming to something. Not what was playing outside, because it didn't match the rhythm. That's when she noticed the huge headphones on his ears.
Rolling her eyes, she marched to him and turned the chair. Her movement seemed to scare him, because he jerked the chair in the opposite direction and it toppled over, leaving him with his back on the floor and sneakers in the air.
Angie bit back a giggle. Then her heart did a funny thing that resembled skipping, but wasn't quite that. Because the guy seemed about her age and was hot, even upside down. The way his black hair fell over his forehead with messy grace, how his simple t-shirt hung to his frame, the lines of his face. He worse sunglasses, even inside, and for a moment, she wished she could see his eyes.
"Can I help you?" he asked from the floor, his voice rich and pleasant.
I don't know. Can you?
🔱🔱🔱
Greetings and happy Monday!
So, we're back to Angie in this chapter. I'm actually going to have alternative POV chapters for this one.
I'm interested if you got a better feel for Angie after this chapter. I can already assume that you've all guessed who the DJ is. Do you find the story interesting/enjoyable so far?
Thanks for reading, and if you liked it, consider leaving a vote and comment!
PS: the song is awesome. You should totally check it out.