as i walk back into my blank room a thought strikes me.
i never got grayson's number. fuck.
"sol?" my mom calls from the kitchen. i sigh and get up, walking back out.
"yes mom?"
"where'd you go?" she stands at the marble counter with her thin brows pulled together.
"out." i shrug.
"i know you're upset but you can't just leave like that."
"upset? i'm not upset, cristi, you ruined my happiness for the second time in three years. don't you get it?" a fury builds up in the pit of my stomach and her eyes widen.
"don't you dare call me that. i am your mother whether you like it or not."
"not in my book."
"go to your room." her wrinkled lips pull down into a prominent frown and i raise an eyebrow in victory.
"that's what i was doing, until you called me out for this bullshit."
"SOL KARINA! YOU DO NOT TALK TO ME IN THAT TONE." her voice booms above mine, i know when she calls me by my full name it's serious.
"k." i roll my eyes and walk back into my empty room. flopping down on the bare mattress, i ignore the loud comments coming from the kitchen.
my phone dings and i look at the notification.
snapchat from WHORI!!1!1!😩😩
my best friend, tori, back in roseville. i open it up and it's a disgusting picture of her with about 7 chins. i send one back of me with flared nostrils and i throw my phone on my bed, flopping down and shutting my eyes. eventually i fall into a deep sleep, thoughts running through the pathways of my mind.
-
white walls surround me, sounds of trumpets fill the small room. the noise intensifies as i near the wall to my right, pushing my hand through the white paint. my fingers pass through the wall like water and my whole body steps through.
a wired skeleton blares my eardrums with a glowing trumpet and i attempt to yell yet no sound emerges from my gargling throat. he stays turned around, his long bony fingers playing away.
a giant silver dog jumps up to join him from the blank ground with a screaming bark.
"SOL!" the skeleton turns around, opening his mouth wide to reveal his black sharp teeth.
"SOL!" my mom shakes me awake with her surprisingly strong hands.
"jesus christ what do you want?" i squint at her, the light blinding me from behind her heart shaped face.
"i was trying to tell you, were all going downtown to check out an art event at the gallery."
"when?" i rub my eyes slowly and she backs up, cleaning random things on my dresser.
"we're leaving in half an hour. get ready, you're coming with."
"okay. give me a second." she nods and leaves the room, of course leaving my door open because who the fuck knows how to close the door in this house.
i get up, throwing on a red hoodie from my hometown and a pair of ripped jeans. i slip on my vans and grab my phone, shoving it in my pocket. since i wasn't wearing makeup today i just swipe some black mascara to my lashes and jog downstairs, still groggy from my nap and hair in a messy high pony.
"you ready?" my mom smiles from the island.
"yep. let me grab a snack and we can go."
"hey sol!" richard fakes a toothy grin as he enters the kitchen with a glass in his hand. i ignore him, reaching into the pantry to grab a granola bar.
"how was your day, kiddo?" he tries again.
"fine. don't call me 'kiddo' please."
"be nice." my mom chimes in, turning from the counter.
"sorry, it's just hard for me to be nice to people i hate." i bring my shoulders up in a sarcastic shrug and fake a smile, briskly walking out the front door and getting into our car.
-
the car ride to the gallery consisted of mostly my mom getting on my ass about being rude and richard trying to be nice. i would mumble a few words here and there before just keeping my mouth shut altogether. it's what i've been taught to do. never speak with your mouth full, even if the words are overflowing. because my mind has always been full of forming sentences and growing ideas, i've quit speaking any of them at all. it's just not 'ladylike'.
as we pull up the the gallery a familiar face catches my eye.
"wesley!" i shout, hopping out of the car and jogging up to his figure.
"hey sol! haven't seen you in forever." he jokes, pulling me into a side hug.
"good to see someone who can actually make me laugh."
"awe, good to see you too. even though we literally met a few hours ago." he chuckles.
"well, you want to go see some art?"
"yeah in a minute. i'm just waiting for grayson, he's visiting his brother." his eyes stay trained on the parking lot and i nod, looking around at the wandering people.
"where does his brother live?"
"no he doesn't-"
"wes!" a deep voice interrupts us and our heads snap to the sound.
"grayson." i smile at his soft features as he makes his way through the groups of elders.
"hey sol." his hand reaches out to mine, bringing me forward and pulling me into a hug.
"good to see you again." my warm breath hits his chest.
"good to see you too."
"so, let's go see that art yeah?" wesley chimes in as i pull away.
"let's go."
-
the gallery's halls fill with mostly middle aged couples and older people as we walk through the endless walls of paintings and sketches. of course there are hardly any teenagers, if any, because the adolescent have lost interest in anything more important than kylie jenner and victoria's secret. grayson, wesley and i are the only people younger than 20 gazing at the colorful canvases.
"i mean, these artists are talented but they're all the same really." i shrug, strolling alongside grayson.
"that's why we just need to get to the back." wesley says with a smirk.
we continue to the end of the hall and turn left, coming face to face with the beautiful wire sculptures by g. the skeleton with a large dog brings flashbacks of my nightmare to my mind.
"that's so weird. i had a dream about this one." i point at it, staring into the large hollows where the eyes were supposed to be.
"what kind of dream?" grayson's arm brushes mine when he stands beside me.
"he was playing the trumpet but the sounds... and the dogs bark..." i trail off, recalling the terrifying noises emerging from the dogs wide jaw.
"creepy." wes states bluntly.
"yeah.. come on, let's go see more." grayson gently tugs my arm to follow and i break gaze from the wire skeleton.
once we walk a bit more i snap out of my daze, checking out the darker art beyond the main halls.
"so gray, do you go to high school?"
"i'm an online student." he replies.
"that sounds so much better than public."
"it's okay. it's nice to be able to get away from everybody but sometimes it's hard being alone. it used to be better with ethan."
i'm about to speak when wesley shakes his head from behind grayson, urging me not to ask about him.
"yeah." is all i can manage to say. we walk in silence for a bit, slightly tense. wesley and i too afraid to interrupt the quiet.
"sol?" my mothers voice calls for me and i spin around. she stands with furrowed brows at an extremely basic painting of the ocean. exactly her style.
"what?"
"we were wondering where you went." her thin lips spread into a pursed smile.
"i'm just with grayson and wesley." i gesture to them and they both awkwardly smile and wave.
"oh. well we're leaving in a bit so if you want a ride home you better stay with us." she looks at wesleys tattoos and makes a face, she looks as if he's some dirty rat that crawled out of her toilet.
"i'm gonna stay with my friends for a bit, i'll uber home." i give her an equally nasty expression.
"i suggest you come with us." she raises a harshly plucked brow and i frown.
"i'm gonna stay longer, mom."
"sol. don't back talk. you're making a scene."
"i'm making a scene? okay mom, i'll see you later." i wave sarcastically and pull gray and wesley along, leaving her behind even when she's shouting my name.
"sorry about her. she thinks she controls my life. i mean, i'm eighteen and she moved me again when i'm so close to graduating. i love her and all but sometimes she just drives me nuts."
"i get it. moms can be annoying." grayson laughs, casually snaking his arm around my waist. heat rises to my cheeks and i nervously laugh as well. something about his touch gives me butterflies.
and flashbacks.