6
Sleeping had become something of a chore over the last couple of weeks. It seemed as though no matter what I did I could just never sleep through the night. I was always waking up, always restless, always waiting. So, I was wide awake that night when Dad came home. Even if I hadn't heard him coming in, the sound of hushed arguing filtering in through the thin walls of our tiny apartment only moments later was a dead give away that Dad was back. This had to be the third time he came home sloshed in the early AM and by the sound of it, Mom was pissed.
Shifting around beneath my covers I buried my head in my pillow, trying to muffle out the familiar noise. At this rate, I'd never get to sleep...
My inner griping was instantly silenced as soon as I heard his heavy footsteps thumping down the short hallway, toward my room. It had to be around four in the morning. Usually, he just slunk off to their bedroom after they were done arguing. So why was he...?
The door to my bedroom swung open quietly and I held still beneath the thick blankets, feigning sleep. What is he doing? What does he want?
Mom was quick to chase after him. "What do you think you're doing?" she demanded in a harsh whisper before he could take a step in.
"I'm telling her the truth," he hissed back, a soft slur in his voice. "She needs to know."
"Not about that person she doesn't. Not now. Not yet."
"What do you mean not yet? She's going to find out eventually."
"Eventually, maybe. But not now."
"She's going to have questions when I leave," he reasoned. "And God only knows what you'll end up telling her about me."
"Well maybe you should have thought of that before," she snapped.
My father's temper was back and I could only assume he was glaring at his wife. "Either you tell her or I do," he growled back. "There's no in between."
The longer the silence hung in the room the heavier the tension grew. What were they talking about? What did he mean leave? Where was he going? My head raced with questions but I couldn't move my lips to speak and was too scared to sit up and face them. All I could do was lay there in my bed as my head buzzed and my heart hammered.
With a small sound of annoyance, Dad took a step forward, the old floorboards creaking beneath his weight.
"Fine!" she finally relented. "I'll tell her. Just not now."
"Then when?"
"When I think she's ready."
"You mean when you're ready."
I could feel the rage radiating from both of them. "When she's ready," Mom sneered, "I'll tell her all about what kind of man her father was."
Dad let out an angry huff of air but retreated from the room all the same.
"Where are you going now?" she demanded, trailing down the hall after him.
"On a walk. I need some fucking air." His curt reply was punctuated by the sound of the door opening and closing behind him as he abandoned the apartment once again, likely in search of a bar and another bottle of beer.
What was going on? Was Dad leaving? I knew he and Mom had their fair share of arguments but I didn't think it was that bad. And who was that person they were talking about? Did Dad have someone else? Did Mom? Could I -if I had bothered to pay more attention- have stopped this from happening? Did I have anything to do with this?
Dad's leaving?
Dad's leaving?
Dad's leaving?
Dad's leaving.
Oh my god.
Despite how angry she had sounded only moments before it wasn't long before I could hear my mother in the living room, quietly crying. The sound burned a hole in my chest and no matter how hard I tried to drown it out, her quiet sobs continued to ring inside my head. Before I knew it it was morning once again.
Dad still wasn't home.
"Will you quit squirming already?" Chloe griped, her rouge lips turned down into a small frown.
"Sorry." I forced myself to sit still on the toilet's hard seat as the girl continued to beat away at my bruised and aching face with a spongy little beauty blender. We all huddled in the girl's bathroom, just down the hallway from Sam's room. Today was Visitation and I was positive my mother would be there. So I had to make sure I ready before she saw me. This was the third day of living with this bruise and it wasn't getting any better. If anything, it was getting worse. Or at least, that's how it felt. "It still hurts."
"I'll be done soon," she assured, her tone a touch softer than it was a moment ago.
"Besides," Sam eyed me as she tore a paper towel out of the dispenser and began running it under the tap. "You wouldn't want your Mama to see that shiner of yours right?"
I nodded my head softly, careful as to not to interfere with Chloe's work again. "Right."
She added a dab of soap into the wet paper. "Then quit your bellyaching and let her do her thing."
"I'm not belly-aching," I argued.
"Sure." With a soft chuckle, the girl scrunched the wet mess into a ball and threw it upwards. Much to her satisfaction, the soggy heap clung to the ceiling. "Oh yeah, that's a sticky one."
"How many of those have you thrown already?" Chloe turned a questioning gaze to her friend.
Sam shrugged, a smug grin on her face. "Lost count."
"You delinquent," she smiled.
"But isn't that why we're all here in the first place?" she reasoned. "We're all society's trash. I'm just living up to the name."
"But at least we're together," Chloe giggled.
Her lips quirked into a tiny smile. "I guess."
After a few more pats the blonde pulled away. "Alright, you're done," she announced, satisfied. She stepped back out of the small stall so I could stand and check out the results myself in one of the mirrors hanging on the opposite wall. Just like last time the bruise had disappeared without a trace. Mom wouldn't know the difference. I turned to smile at the girl. "Just make sure you don't go rubbing at your face and you should be golden."
"Thank you, Chloe. You're amazing."
A playful smirk touched her lips. "I know."
"Alright, alright. Can we get going already?" Sam asked. "I don't want an officer or anyone coming in and accusing me of messing up this place."
"But you did do it," Chloe replied. "You're literally holding a wet paper ball in your hands."
Without any hesitation, Sam threw the ball upwards where it obediently stuck to the ceiling. "What ball?" she grinned. "C'mon, we need to head to the cafeteria if we're going to be in time for visitation and personally, I'm starving."
"Ditto," I agreed. "Let's get out of here."
Chloe packed up her supplies and we all left the bathroom, leaving Sam's masterpiece behind for the next person to find. At the very least, whoever heeded mother nature's call next was going to walk in on quite a sight, that was for sure.
As we made our way out of the girl's dorm a rush of heat swept across my skin. It was as if I had walked straight into a comforter fresh out of the dryer. I suddenly felt horribly overly dressed in my jeans and Slytherin Hoodie.
"I hate heat waves," Chloe whined, raising her hand to block out the sun peeking out over the buildings menacingly.
"It's September," Sam replied back. "Pretty soon it's gonna be rain, snow, and cold and you're gonna be wishing for this sun and warmth." Nevertheless, she peeled off her jacket.
"Pfft. Everyone knows the cold is better than the heat." She wiggled her brows. "Nothing is better than cuddle weather."
Sam rolled her eyes. "And who you planning to cuddle up with, Einstine? Thompson over here?"
"Maybe." With a small giggle, the blonde threw her arms around my shoulders, snuggling up close. "Ella es muy linda."
"Too hot! Way too hot for this!" I managed to squirm my way out of her embrace and used the collar of my hoodie to fan myself. We had only been out in the heat for a few moments but I was sure I could feel my fingers begin to sweat inside their soft leather tomb. "Wasn't it like sixty degrees this afternoon? Are sudden heat waves normal around this time of year?"
"Sure," Chloe shrugged. "Indian Summer can last for weeks here."
"So you'd better get used to it."
"Brilliant." I allowed my shoulders to slump. I could handle the heat no problem, switch out thermals for t-shirts and sweatpants for shorts and we're all set. Whatever, I could deal with it. However, that didn't mean I wanted to. Especially with my arm as it was. With a small sigh, I pulled off my sweater, revealing the long sleeve underneath it. The material wasn't very thin but it was much less suffocating to wear than the hoodie.
I was working on tying the thick material around my waist when Chloe's voice cut in softly, "Who's that?" I turned my attention to where they were looking. A lone girl wandered around outside of the main school building, a confused look on her face as she searched around for something.
"Who knows?" Sam shrugged. "Let's keep going."
"I don't think I've seen her around before," she continued. "What if she's lost?"
"Then let's go before she sees us and starts asking us for help. I want food." She hooked her arm around her friend's elbow in an attempt to pull her along.
"But, Sam-"
"Food."
"Excuse me!" Before Sam could pull Chloe more than a few feet the girl had already spotted us. She waved as she jogged forward, a bright smile on her freckled face. "Can you help me?"
"Oh, fuck me." With a groan, Sam released Chloe's arm, shoving her fists into her pockets instead. Her quest for food would have to wait a moment more.
"What do you need?" I asked as the girl stopped before us.
"I'm looking for the cafeteria," she replied. "Do you know where it is?"
"You're headed to visitation?" Chloe smiled at the girl. "We're on our way there now, actually. You could come with us."
"Thank you so much," she smiled back. "This place is just so big, you know? It's so easy to get lost."
"I feel you," I replied with a small sigh. With all those stairs and empty rooms, I still have a hard time finding my way around. Together we turned back on our track across the courtyard.
"So, who are you going to see?" Chloe asked.
"My brother." The freckled girl's grin was so bright it rivaled that of her long honey-colored locks. "I haven't seen him in a while, so it's gonna be great. How about you guys?"
"Food." Sam griped. "I'm here to see food."
Chloe nudged her with her elbow, a quiet command to be polite. "Don't mind her, she just gets crabby when she gets hungry."
"Oh."
The conversation dropped off into silence after that. Luckily it wasn't that long before we had made it the double glass doors that lead into the cafeteria. Inside I could see crowds of people ranging from children to grandparents filling each table as everyone got ready to eat. People laughed and hugged their family members, exchanging jokes and talking normally about their day. For a moment it didn't even feel like I was standing in a reform school.
"Everything looks so... Normal?"
Sam shrugged as she pushed open one of the glass doors for us to step through. "Despite this place being built for teenage monsters and underaged criminals they like to believe a sense of home is essential for a growing kid. Only the good kids get to attend Visitation so having family come by and see us make us work to be better."
Freckles turned to look at us, a strange look in her bright eyes. "Wait. You guys aren't...?"
"What is it?" Chloe asked.
"Do you guys... go here?"
"Don't you?"
She shook her head.
"Oh. Uh, well then..." I began but trailed off awkwardly. Obviously, she had thought we were visitors while we believe she was just another student. What did one say to a girl who just found out she had been chatting alongside three jailhouse kids?
Nothing. There was nothing any of us could say because hardly a half a second later a familiar voice called out, "Emily!"
Startled by the sudden shout we each turned to see Daren trudge and shove through the horde of teens, kids and their parents to make his way through the crowd. He grabbed a hold of Freckle's arm once he was in front of us. "Jesus Christ Emily, where the hell were you?" he demanded.
"Hey," Chloe barked, wedging her way between the two. "Who the hell do you think you are, grabbing a girl like that?"
"Her brother," he snapped back. Releasing the girl's arms he glared at my friend, his eyes like hard flint. He stepped forward, forcing Chloe back. "Who the fuck are you?"
She opened her mouth for a soft beat before closing her lips tight once again, swallowing whatever words she was about to say down hard. Chloe's fists were tight against her sides, her knuckles white with how hard she was squeezing. But it wasn't anger that coursed through her body, it was fear. The look in her eyes was one of pure fright as she stared up at the boy before her. From where I stood only a few feet away I could see the tremor in her legs as she fought to keep still, heard her soft shallow breaths as he loomed over her. I turned to look at Sam but she was the same as Chloe, frozen in place unable to do a thing. It was as if he were an animal and if either of the girls moved so much as an inch he'd devour them both until there was nothing left but blood and bones.
Whatever he did to get arrested, it was enough to scare them into statues.
Just what the hell did he do?
"This girl fucking with you?" Daren asked in a soft snarl. Though his question was directed at his sister his eyes never left Chloe's face. "Because if she is..."
"Knock it off." Stepping up, I shoved my hand against Daren's chest forcing him backward a step. "She didn't do anything wrong."
His eyes sliced downwards until they met with mine. Recognition filled their powder-blue depths. "Thompson," he greeted, his voice laced with more than a bit of irritation. At least it wasn't that menacing growl it was a moment ago.
"Hawthorne." I slipped between him and my friend, giving her a bit of room to back away to a safer distance. It wasn't long before I could hear her retreating, likely to stand beside Sam. "My friend was just helping your sister find her way to the cafeteria."
Daren turned to Emily for confirmation and she quickly nodded. "I got lost coming back from the bathroom," she told him. "They were the only ones walking around and I flagged them down for help."
"You flagged them down?" He narrowed his eyes down at the freckled face girl but all animosity was gone from his gaze.
"Yeah."
"You do realize this isn't a normal school, don't you? These girls are criminals. You know that, right?"
"Well... I mean, I do now." Emily shuffled awkwardly on her feet. "I thought they were visitors, like me. And it's not like they were mean."
"Gutierrez is very nice," I agreed.
Daren stared down at his sibling, his lips pressed into a stern frown. "Next time you decide to run off in this place I'm coming with you. I don't care if you have to take a piss or not."
"Daren!" Emily's face flushed red. "They don't need to hear that you asshole!"
"Everyone pisses, Em. Live with it. Now, come on. Dad's probably freaking out right about now."
I grabbed his forearm before he could turn away. "Not yet."
"Watch that hand," he warned.
"Apologize."
A groaned, his shoulders dropping with the weight of just how much that one word annoyed him. "You're still going on about that?"
"Not to me. To Gutierrez."
"Christine..." Chloe's voice was a soft whine behind me, a silent plea.
"Let's just go," Sam agreed, her voice barely more than a murmur.
I wasn't sure what it was about Daren Hawthorne that terrified them, but he didn't scare me and I wasn't about to let him leave without an apology. It was one thing if he didn't want to say he was sorry to me, but he had threatened Chloe for no reason whatsoever. She didn't deserve to be treated like that and he knew it.
As though in agreement Emily nudged her brother. "Go on," she agreed. "You were a jerk/ Just say you're sorry."
Daren looked between the face of each girl before him, and for a moment I saw the edge in his eyes dim. "Fine, fine." With a sigh, he turned to face Chloe and Sam, just a few feet behind us. "Sorry for being a dick. I didn't mean to scare you."
He one hundred percent meant to scare her. But Chloe accepted his apology anyway.
"It's fine," she quickly assured. "No problem."
"Happy?" he growled, turning back to face me.
"Ecstatic."
"Glad I could be of service." With a huff, he turned away from our small group. "Let's get out of here, Em."
"Sorry about him, you guys.Sometimes he just goes full big brother mode, you know?" Emily's smile was like that of a parent after their child threw a massive tantrum. And, uh, about before. It was really nice hanging out with you guys, by the way. Sorry for kinda acting weird when I found out about... you know. You all just weren't what I was really expecting."
"That's fair. I didn't expect Daren to have a sister as nice as you."
"With how he treats me sometimes, you'd think he was more like a bodyguard than my brother," she snickered.
Daren was already moving past the crowd of people, on his way to find their seats once more. "Hurry it up, Emily!"
"Coming!" she called back before turning her bright eyes back to ours once more. "Well, I gotta get going. But, hey, maybe we'll see each other next Visitation."
"Yeah," I agreed. "That'd be nice."
With one more bright smile and a wave goodbye, Emily turned and chased after her brother, disappearing into mosh pit of people.
Once they were gone, I returned my gaze back to my friends. "You guys okay?"
Sam nodded her head. "We're fine."
"Thank you for doing that, Christine," Chloe began, her voice soft. "But you really shouldn't have."
"It's not like I haven't had my fair share of run-ins with that jerk," I reasoned. "It's fine."
"What Chloe means is that while it was pretty bad ass of you to step up to that guy, it was stupid and reckless." Sam shoved her fists into the pockets of her jeans, in an attempt to hide her discomfort. "We already told you before, he's a dangerous guy. Next time it'd be better for you not to involve yourself."
"I'm sorry if I ended up worrying you two. I didn't mean to."
Stepping forward, Chloe wrapped me up in a big hug. "Thank you for standing up for me, anyway Christine. You were really cool back there."
I wrapped my arms around her in turn. "Me?" I laughed. "You're the one who went all Mother Hen on him first!"
"Alright, you're both superheroes. Congratulations. Can we grab some grub now?"
"For such a skinny girl, you're always so hungry," Chloe giggled.
"I like food. Deal with it."
"Alright, guys. Let's grab our food and go find our families."
"Let's do it," I agreed.
In tandem, we each turned toward the direction of the lunch line and came face to face with a familiar woman, dark curls framing her olive face and warm brown eyes.
"I thought that was your voice." Her voice cracked with emotion as she spoke, eyes filling with tears.
"Mom."
Dear Readers,
If you're enjoying the story please don't forget to VOTE, COMMENT, and ADD to your public reading lists.
And before we continue to the next chapter, here are some much-awaited character aesthetics.
Chloe Gutierrez
Samantha Green
Thank you! ^^ -Charlie