I knew it was bad for me. I knew it was a hard addiction.
But every time I saw that deep green inviting me for a swim, every time I saw that raven black screaming for me to tangle my fingers in the soft locks, I had to get another hit.
Like today.
Today I was sitting in my favorite coffee shop at my favorite table where the sun shines just right on my face. It’s the perfect start to the day.
It was made even more perfect when he walked in. The shop’s bell announced his arrival with a sweet song.
He walked in and I saw nothing but his firm gaze and his smooth glide.
I promised myself I would stop. There was no reason to keeping talking to him when it was always going to end in heartbreak.
But I broke that promise as I stood up.
Just one more conversation. Just one more chuckle.
“Hey, funny running into you here!” I announce, sidling next to him in line.
He turns to look at me and his smirk makes it all worth it, “Hey, you. Funny that you are in the same place you are every morning”.
I shrug, trying to ignore my racing heart, “Eh, I’m like a cat. I like the sunspot!”
He chuckles and I have to resist grabbing his hand and leaning closer.
“Well, that makes SK much sense! By the way, Cathy’s outside if you want to say hi”.
Cathy. His girlfriend. My best friend.
We always talked and gossiped about the best looking guys in class, which ones we would ask out if we got the courage.
She got the courage much sooner than me.
I smiled, “I might just do that!”
But she was still my best friend.
I walked out the doors, the sweet chimes celebrating my resolve to walk away.
“Hey, girl!” Cathy squealed as soon as she saw me.
“Cathy! Still not getting within 10 feet of coffee shops?”
She wrinkled her nose, “gross. I don’t need to go smelling all of the sickening caffeine. It’s one of Carson’s fiancé responsibilities to grab my tea and spare me the suffering”. She opened her arms, “now come give me a hug! It’s been TOO long”
I go in for the hug and ignore how my heart skips a beat at his name.
Cathy’s hugs have always been warm and comforting.
It reminds me of when we met in middle school because we were forced together for a stupid group project.
It reminds me of when she would comfort me time and time again. For the big things like my parents’ divorce and for the little things like a failing grade.
It reminds me why she has been my best friend since forever.
I solidify my decision.
The constant desire to be with Him, to be His. The addiction to the possibility.
It’s easy to let go now.
Cathy is worth letting it go.
God humans are stupid.
I mean it with all due respect… however little that my be.
I mean, SERIOUSLY! Here I am watching one of the bigger ones about to leave on some stupid dangerous mission! And even then, the other humans are training to go on one as well. To make matters even more confusing, they are EXCITED for it?
Yeah, there is a reason that I have to stay and protect these idiot humans.
The sun feels warm and light on my fur. It helps me remember the first time I found these morons…
_
I used to live in the forest on my own. I had to hunt my own food, find my own water, and bathe my own fur.
I was actually in the middle of hunting a really plump mouse that would have been a perfect meal, when an explosion ripped through the trees.
Ok, it wasn’t ACTUALLY an explosion. There was no fire or accelerant, but most of the nearby trees were absolutely decimated in less than halft of a second.
It was annoying more than anything because that beautiful juicy meat either got spooked or blown away with the greenery.
Anyways, I dug my claws into the ground to give myself a little bit more stability so I stuck around.
When the dust cleared there were two of those humans throwing their limbs around and hitting eachother. A classic human fight, which is way more petty than a cat fight, so I stuck around to watch the silly show.
One of the humans flung the other human right high and far, and the forest was quiet once again.
And then THAT human passed out.
These stupid humans have no idea how to regulate themselves. NO IDEA WHATSOEVER of how to simply take care of themselves.
So, being the naturally benevolent and kind cat that I am, I walked over to that human and did what I could.
First: I batted at his face until he starting opening his eyes.
Second: I started telling him off about how reckless he was and how he should be grateful that I took time out of my day to help him.
Third: I started pushing his face so he would roll over and get up.
Fourth: I walk and he follows to the nearest group of human dens.
Fifth: He gets other humans to help him and I go back to hunting.
Okay, that fifth step was what I was PLANNING to happen, but it didn’t happen quite like that.
The human picked me up and went inside one of the human dens. Normally I would be appalled at the audacity of such an action, but decided to spare the human until he was well enough to take it. Inside the den, another human put the first human on a soft, flat surface and gave me a small bowl of fish. Normally, I would sniff at such a lowly offering, but considering how hard it is to get fish in the forest, I bestowed my grace once again and accepted the feeble amount of goodness.
I decided to stick around until the human I found was able to get off the soft surface. Since that was the only comfortable thing in this den and the human was on the majority of it, I took it upon myself to have a nice cat nap on the human’s chest as a compromise.
Almost as soon as I woke up, though, the human was awake! He was just staring at me in awe.
I jumped off so he could get up and watched as he sat up and held his hands out to me.
I know that he wanted to thank me for helping him heal, so I let him.
Unfortunately, that led to him carrying me from one group of dens to another that ways on the top of a VERY tall mountain.
It was there that I was able to witness a bunch more humans just as stupid as this one.
I couldn’t with a good conscious leave them all to their whims. So I’ve been here ever since.
And now another human is leaving.
I stretch before I walk over to be bestowed upon his shoulders for the journey. After all, I am a blessing.
Well that’s not good.
To catch you up, my name is Jill. I am your average teenaged girl, so I don’t exaclty know how I ended up in the my own wrecked house with the knowledge that my parents are spies.
Looking back, it might not have been a good idea to attempt to hack into a secretive USB file that I found lying on the kitchen counter…
… but in my defense, that thing was just asking to get broken into.
It had some descriptive stuff about kill codes and had, like, a bunch if symbols. ‘Supposed to be really important stuff, I guess. Next thing I know some weirdo came through the window and tried to wrestle it out of my hands, like, hello? Rude, much?
I ended up throwing the drive into the garbage disposal and glared spitefully as I turned it on full blast. He didn’t like it, kidnapped me for ransom or something, then my parents come get me cause they’re spies or whatever, some intense stuff happened during the escape, and here I am.
My parents left just a little bit ago after I told them I memorized the different symbols and letters on the file, kind of leaving me here. I mean, they weren’t that complicated and I have long learned how to memorize those types of things to pass exams.
I honestly don’t know what to do at this point, standing in the middle of my ruined home while the radio is still going. It was soft instrumental stuff that my mom always puts on making the entire scene super ironic.
“Ok, this is what we need to do!”
I jumped when my best friend was suddenly bursting through the door with a large black duffle bag slung kver her shoulder.
“Uh… what?”
She rolled her eyes and shoved the bag into my arms, “you remember the codes in that drive because you are still on a study high from midterms. That means you are in danger.”
I scoffed, “in danger of boring myself by remembering multiple x’s in a row?”
She looked me in the eye, clearly not amused, “in danger of a secret organization dead set on destroying the entire world with atomic weapons that can only be disabled with those ‘multiple x’s in a row’. We need to leave, and you need to relay those codes so that we can use them to put a stop to the utter destruction.”
Hmm… thats difficult.
“Okay…” I start, dragging out the last syllable, “but, and hear me out, what if we did it… tomorrow?”
She looked at me. She just looked at me, as if i was a first grade question on the highschool finals. “You… CAN’T be serious”.
I shrug, “I don’t know. I’m pretty tired, and- uh… i have a bunch if homework to do so…”
She shakes her head violently, “wha- We BOTH know you aren’t going to work on homework! You are a CHRONICH procrastinat- oh, no… Oh. No.”
“What? I do my homework! Plus, atomic weapons sound like a lot of work, and a lot of work takes a lot of time! I can wait a few days!”
She just keeps shaking her head, with the added effect of a maniacal laughter bursting from her throat, “God, this is the worst possible time for you to be you”.
Ouch
“Okay, this isn’t going to do. Jill, you are going with me. You have no choice in this matter, and it can’t be put off. I am taking you to the bunker where you will write down the codes you remember and hand them off to one of our agents. If you don’t, you will have to input the codes yourself. Considering how dangerous it is, this is NOT something to procrastinate!” She was getting hysterical at this point. It was kind if funny, and I would have toltally teased her if it didnt seem like she would punch me in the throat for something like that.
“Okay! Yeah, I’ll go with you. Don’t need to be so pushy…”
I couldn’t even take a step before she grabbed my arm and pulled me along as if she was afraid I would change my mind last second. Which, by the way, is totally rude! I’m not THAT bad!
She drags me into the back of a van (not creepy at all) and tells the driver to step on it. Like, seriously? I thought we had time! It’s not like I’m procrastinating when I’m literally STUCK IN A VAN!
The entire ride is silent as she looks at me like I’m a child in need of supervision. Of course, I start to feel sleepy about 10 minutes in since I have nothing else to do. I am very thankful that Bestie decides to leave me alone as I doze off.
I am NOT very thankful when I am literally yanked awake by her pulling me by the arm out of my seat. Unfortubately my legs didn’t figure out in time that it was their cue to shine. I took a few minutes to peel my face off of the floor of the van, all while hearing my best friend shoutibg various combinations of “the world is at stake” and “we are running out of time” and “faceplanting is no excuse”. I mean, she never actually said that last one, but it was heavily implied.
She starts dragging me again when I finally stand up. I am too exhausted to actually pay attention to where we are going, but had enough brain power to realize and underground bunker when I saw one.
“Okay. We are here. Now sit down”, she shoves me into the closest chair, “and write down those damn codes!” She slams a piece of paper and a pen on the table.
“Ummm… I’m pretty tired…. Do you think i could rake a nap first?” It is a genuine concern that i might pass out at this rate. My body didn’t wake up correctly, and now feels like it needs a second chance.
By her face, I’m guessing she was not ammused. Which, okay I get it, but I wasn’t joking in the first place.
“You need to sit and write. If I could stay here and supervise you the entire time, I would. Unfortunately, I have other things to attend to, so PLEASE! PLEASE Jill, just write the damn codes!” She finishes with a dramatic flair before inching out of the room, her eyes on me.
I pick up the pencil, and she sighs before closing the door behind her.
I drop the pencil.
“I have time” I can’t help but mutter under my breath. Hence begins the waiting game.
I don’t know how long it’s been when my best friend bursts through the door.
“JILL! PLEASE tell me you got it done!”
I only blink. It hadn’t been THAT long. I was almost going to do it before she interupted my though process… probably.
I saw her face reden so quick she could have been mistaken for a traffic light. “Jill…”
I throw my hands up in a quick, but flimsy defense, “Wait! I WAS going to do it! I swear I was! You just broke my concentration!”
Jill release a sigh heavy enough to start weighing my shoulders down. I WAS going to do it.
“You’ve been left along for 12 hours, now.”
….
What?
“Oh…”
She rolled her eyes, “yeah, and now we’re out of time. You will come with us to the base we discovered and will disarm the weapon. You will have a team of eight men to protect you, but we can’t help you navigate the technology because we don’t have the codes. I’ll let you think on why that is.”
“Whoa, woah, woah, wait! I can’t do somethin like that! I can barely make my own breakfast in the morning without breaking the toaster! THE TOASTER! If you leave this in my hands, everyone’s going to die!” I don’t know if my voice is yelling or screaming, but its loud. You can’t blame me, though, this was pretty sudden and nervewracking. Not to mention how I perform under pressure… Stage fright is a real disease.
“Yeah, well, we don’t have much of a choice right now! Get up and get moving before we miss our chance!” And suddenly I am practically being manhandled by my best friend to my death. For some reason it sounds more reasonable that I would think.
Everything turns very fast-paced too quickly. I swear I get whiplash from the force that pushes me back into the van where I can just barely recognize a group of robots before the van peels off and speed that are probably bot healthy for the human body.
The van twists and turns through the maze of streets before it stops abruptly and I fly forward because of stupid Newton and his stupid laws.
I am tugged out if the van and pushed to an unassuming building by my best friend as a circle of heavily armed guys (not robots) surround me while somehow marching in pace with each other.
I was expecting some evil dude in a chair or a group of identical goons but instead it was an empty room with my parents staring at me with hopeful eyes.
“Uh…. Hi?”
They completely ignore me and turn all of their attention on my best friend, “Well? Did she do it?”
All it took was a shake of her head before my parents deflate and look at me with dull eyes.
“What? I thought I had a second chance with the code things! I’m going to put them in myself with my best friend and her army’s protection!” I don’t know why I was trying so hard to defend myself, I just know I do NOT like that look on their faces.
They kind of kept standing there before my dad waves his hand and all of the armed people start leaving. One of them stops before the door and turns back, “so… are we getting payed through PayPal, or…?”
My mom just shakes her head, “just wait outside. We need to have a talk with our daughter first.”
One nod and then it is just us four in the room.
“Jill, you have a problem.”
It was such a simple statement that packed a huge punch. My mother just said what people have been telling me for a while, but it had never been her before.
I only nodded because my throat is too tight to make any legible sound.
Dad steps forward to put his hand on my shoulder, “we have tried so hard to get you to realize how dangerous this procrastination will be for you. It just never clicks”.
And then it clicked (ha). “Wait, this was all staged? The USB! The underground base! My best friend’s badassness!”
“Nope, that parts real”, Bestie quickly interjects.
Mom shrugged, “well yeah. We got a call from your school and you passed your finals by a hair. It was a close call considering you will be living on your own soon in this world.”
I was at a loss of words. Then ⟊ heard a snicker.
“Hold on, Jill” my best friend started, “did you just refer to me as your best friend?”
“Uh…. Yeah? ‘Cause you’re my best friend…?”
She covered her mouth with one hand and a sparkle in her eye, “I know. What’s my name, Jill?”
Shit.
At first, there was nothing. She felt stuck in a void that clung to every part if her being, restricting even the slightest twitch.
And then, there was burning.
Everything burned.
She could have sworn she was screaming, but silence was the only thing echoing in her ears.
It felt like an eternity. Invisible claws tore at her chest. Invincible strings wrapped around her wrists and her ankles, pulling relentlessly. It was as if her very being was being unraveled.
It all came to a head as the darkness sank into her veins and she felt the evil take over.
And then, she felt nothing. It was as if her very consciousness was floating.
In her state, she could only think.
She could only think of how her parents abandoned her. How they left her to die in a forest at the young age of 7. She thought of how she was forced to adapt to survive the bloodthirsty creatures who stalked the night. How to feed herself herbs and fruits that wouldn’t pound on her. To hunt the weaker creatures who scampered through the day.
She could only think of how she met her friends. How they found her as a feral teenager fighting off one of the predators that chose them for its breakfast. How they offered to take her with them so she would never have to fend for herself again.
And then she was forced to think of their betrayal. How they left her behind in the battlefield, fighting a force they had no chance against. How she laid bleeding until she was met face to face with the very being that drove away her friends.
Just when she couldn’t bear to think anymore, her vision cleared up. She still couldn’t feel anything, but she could see. She could hear.
Her friends—no, those TRAITORS—were bruised and bloodied at her feet. Her arm was raised, ready to bring death to the sorry sights. She could feel her are swing down, but she felt the gratification.
She felt that, unlike everyone else before, the evil would not abandon her.
Everything was red.
Well, technically not EVERYTHING that would be ridiculous…
… but everything that mattered was red.
It was always my favorite color. I never knew why I was drawn to it, but it always made me happy.
It was the color of my mother’s favorite lipstick.
It was the color of my most comforting teddy.
It was the color of my prettiest dress.
It got to the point where I wanted everything of mine to be red. My clothes, my school supplies, and I even insisted on adding red dye to everything I ate.
I NEEDED everything red, it just made me comfortable.
So I made sure everything was red. My mother, my father, my dogs and my cat. Then they helped me paint the entire house red too.
Some scary men came up to me wearing blue, ruining the pretty scene. The took me from the place I worked so hard on.
So I had to fix it. I made the scary men red too. They also helped me paint the car they were trying to force me in.
In was so happy!
Everything was red.
God, this was so humiliating.
I don’t even know how I got this low in life, to where the only place that called me back was an elementary school. I got hired as a janitor.
My first day and there was snot covering the walls and unidentifiable stains in every other inch of the carpet.
I barely even started yet and I was tired of it all. I could feel the weight of it all start dragging my feet and curving my spine.
I was allowed minutes to get settled in the break room before I needed to get started on tidying the entire building for the school day to start.
The break room was surprisingly empty, with a stray jacket here and there. The floor was scuffed into oblivion and water damage was prominent on one of the walls.
The one thing that really caught my eye was a simple drawing on one of the tables. It was very crude with scribbled stickmen holding hands. One was holding a long stick with a couple of lines on one end that I assumed could be a broom. The other had a circle above its head and quite a few clustered ovals on either of its sides.
I could guess where the old janitor went.
Regardless, it filled me with a sense of dread. There was no way I was going to survive the year.
And thus, it was time to start my day of scraping boogers off the walls and poop off the bathroom floor.
By the time I found myself in the break room 5 minutes before classes started, my legs were affected by gravity twice as much and I had to actively switch between using my hands to support my weight against the wall and rubbing my eyes to keep them open for just a little longer. The kicker? It’s only been 2 hours in to my first day…
The break room chairs just looked so comfy, I found myself gone after letting go of keeping my body useful. My mind welcomed the sweet nothingness of sleep.
“What’s he doing?”
“Are we allowed to do that?”
“Does this mean he gets overtime?”
“Guys shut up. You can’t be quiet for the life of you!”
I slowly blink the bliss away as I heard voices overlap and saw various silhouettes surrounding me. The were my new co-workers.
The teachers.
I realize that I have no sense of time, which pulls me out of my chair pretty quickly. “WHAT TIME IS IT?”
One of them, she wore a cardigan and glasses, leaned back, “just after school. We had a staff meeting, but wanted to stop by for some drinks and saw you lying there.”
“What? Why would you just watch me sleep?” I couldn’t help but ask. That was WAY too creepy for my taste.
“Well, technically we weren’t just… WATCHING you sleep…”
One of the guys tried to speak up. He reached up to rub at his head bringing my attention to how SHINY it was. I have never seen a bald head up close, but it was kind of mesmerizing in a way.
He was pushed away by a lady with her black hair up in a pony tail, “Yeah, we were watching you sleep. Dude, it’s INSANE! Today was your first day, you haven’t even made it through half of the way, and you take a nap from the sheer exhaustion? Don’t tell me that’s just sad”.
Her words lit some kind of fire inside me.
“For your information, lady, these kids are menaces! And they don’t have to worry about cleaning up after their decisions, I DO! You don’t fully appreciate a booger free wall until you have to spend 2 hours scraping, wiping, and vacuuming to get it all off!”
They all looked at me. It was a weird look. I was kind of expecting expressions of disgust at my description, maybe shock at my outburst, or even anger at my tone.
I wasn’t sure how to read this look on their faces, but it was none of that.
“What? Shocking? Disgusting? Trust me, that is one of the most mild things and elementary school building collects over months without a janitor”. I don’t know if i was trying to save face, but whatever the weird look they had was too close to pity. I would not stand for being pittied.
Some chuckles tang out among the group.
“Oh, we know what those little menaces can get up to” the ponytailed woman smirked.
There were various noises of agreement, I’m pretty sure I heard an “Amen” in the mix. It was a little comforting, in a way.
“You dont have to tell me. At least you guys are there for the fun parts. I have to deal with the aftermath”, the cynicism was too natural to hold back. The comfort could only last so long before I remebered their pity.
The one in the cardigan scoffed, “And we’re there for the worst parts. You’re lucky you dont have to deal with all the screaming and hitting and basic lack of social awareness. We are supposed to help them get integrated, but there is a reason there is a degree”.
There was no reason to continue arguing. I let out the building sigh.
“Fine. Sure. You got me. Now I’ll go do another sweep while you deal with paperwork”.
“Hey!” A teacher called out, stopping me before I close the door, “when you’re done, you should stop by The Bar on 9th Street. We can fully initiate you on your new job!”
I allowed a quick glance back at him and a quick little shrug before I continued on my journy to the supply closet. The truth was, i could always use a drink.
The bar looked super rundown and dingy. I guess it was the best you could do on a janitor’s salary, so I wasn’t going to complain… Too much.
Music was blasting through the thin walls and lights were shining through like they were paper. The door was splintered and a small dude in sunglasses with the thinest limbs standing in front. He kinda looked like a bouncer if he didnt look like a high five would break all the bones in his hand and arm.
I walked up regardless, looking forward to that drink too long to walk away now. “Hey, can I… get it?”
The man looked at me over his glasses, “Ya got and ID?”
Ok, weird. If anything I would thibk I would look older because of my new job. That kind of stuff can age you.
With a huff, I hand over my driver’s license.
The man takes it and snorts, “what do you think this place is? A joke? No ID, no entry”. He handed my license back to me.
I took a deep breath, careful to hold on to my card so that my fist doesn’t fly out to meet his face. “Sir, this is a real ID. I am way past 21”.
“That dingy little thing only tells me that you can drive. Good for you. I dont care how old you are. No Id? No. Entry!”
“You’re not making any sense! Listen, bucko, i am at least two feet taller than you and have enough muscle to overpower your spaghetti self on a bad day. Let me in, I need a beer!”
“Ohoho, boy. You dont know what you’re talking about. I have enough chemicals in my pocket to do some serious non-fatal damage. Do you like having a face? Back off! If you want a beer, go to a normal bar!”
I had to blink a bit to finish registering his words.
“A… ‘Normal’ bar?”
At that moment a familiar face opened the door and practically lit up.
“You made it!” The bald teacher exclaimed. I cringed at the realization that I never got his name.
The bouncer looked at me warily, “You know this guy, Bill?”
His name was Bill. That was so fitting for some reason.
“Yeah! He’s the new janitor at the school! Come on in!”
The bouncer’s eyes widen as he wuickly ushers me through the door, “Aw, man. I’m so sorry for the misunderstanding, sir! Please, right this way!”
I dragged my feet a little in apprehension as ⟊ followed Bill inside. This was just getting weirder and weirder.
This inside was not like your average bar. I would say it gave off more club vibes, and an exclusive one at that. There were many people mingling in a variety of outfits. Some were more like lounge clothes while others looked like they cam straight from work. There were hard-hats, coveralls, and muddy boots strewn about or hanging off of people.
“So,” I had to yell to try and get heard over the music, “What is the deal with this place?”
Bill hardly looked over his shoulder, making me strain to hear what he said, “This is the Unsung Heroes Club! Everyone here works for people or the city, fixing their problems without any recognition!”
That… that sounded kind of nice.
“And, I’m allowed? In the club?”
“Well duh,” Bill glanced back like i said the most stupid thing ever, “you said it yourself! Children are menaces and you clean up after them. You are, like, and MVP. Though we dont really do that since we all make unnoticed contributions to society, but as a teacher I have a special appreciation for your line of work!”
This whole club was making me feel a little better about my new place in life. Like it will still make a difference. For the rest of the night, i meet construction workers, teachers, garbage men, and even more people working jobs I didnt even know existed.
The next day, I practically skipped on the way to the school. Being a janitor didnt sound so bad afterall.
Am I ready? Before I go, can I say goodbye? Countdowns are overrated. Do I deserve to say goodbye? Everyone will probably be better off without one. Forevermore oblivious. God, why is this so difficult? How could this even begin? Isolation is the best decision. Joy will still exist, right? Knowledge will still matter, right? Love will still be relevant… right? More people are being disillusioned. Never realizing the true danger. Over time, will anything be fine? People need to stop. Quit while they can still make a change… Right? Save me. This is stupid, why am I thinking like this? Until now, I have been fine. Very happy. What happened? X-rays, needles, and pain. Zenith.
“I was gone for five minutes! What happened here?”.
I scanned the room, doubtfully that I could actually get an answer.
Almost all of the cushioned seats were on fire surround by at least an inch of water flooding the area. There was a hole in the wall and a hole in the ceiling, big enough to leave just the edges to justify calling them a wall and a ceiling still.
I stared down the two teens who looked at me just as confused.
“Uh…” Mara started speaking up, “we… don’t know”.
I couldn’t hold back the groan that has been building up since I opened the door. “You don’t… know?”
Marcus shrugged.
“GUYS! You are always asking why I don’t leave you two alone when you hang out with each other. While it’s not exactly what I was worried about, I feel this answers your question.” I started towards the kitchen where I could open the mail. Five minutes…. These kids are going to be the death of me.
What was weird, is that the kitchen was actually spotless. Going into my room and peeking into Mara’s, proved to be equally untouched. It was JUST the living room, aside from the water that could have just spread.
Going back into the living room, I find Marcus and Mara sitting on the couch with a discarded fire blanket. They were watching the news.
“An update on DudeBro’s battle with his infamous nemesis BroDude! They have finally left the urban area, taking this exciting brawl towards the surrounding suburbs!”
The news kept going as it flashed up pictures of various buildings that withstood damage. For a split second, I saw my building.
“God damn it!” I quickly find my phone and start dialing up the DudeBro support network. This better be covered by insurance.
In every argument you always cross a line Each win you get still feels like mine
Silence is abundant when we dine The food you prepared still tastes like it’s mine
You sing off key sounding more like a whine Those broken notes still sound like they’re mine
You douse yourself in perfume, getting a shine The overwhelming scent still smell like it’s mine
When you stress you turn to food and wine All the extra pounds still look like they’re mine
Though we are not always fine I know you’ll always be mine
“Do not go home tonight”.
I stared at my phone and the excessively shady text. There was only one thing to do.
(Mama?) (Is that you?)
I just had to text back, there is no way I was letting this moment go to waste.
“Do not go home tonight”
The text was resent. Ok, this guys was being smart.
(It’s ok. I know you have sleepovers with people who aren’t my daddy.) (But I’m hungry!!) (Cant you make me some dinner?)
Almost immediately a reply was sent, and it all unraveled from there.
“I know who you are Jenny. And you need to listen when I say you can’t go home tonight”
(Of course, mommy! I’m Jenny!) (What’s for dinner again?)
“DTOP IT!” “*STOP” “This is serious. Don’t blame me for what happens if you don’t heed my warning…”
(But MAMA!! I want nuggies!”
No reply.
(PLEASE? I won’t tell daddy about your sleepovers!)
No reply.
(Killjoy)
Still no reply.
At that point I just blocked the number. It was fun while it lasted, and hopefully the creep won’t go around texting random girls that they can’t go home. I mean, who does that?
I was just finishing up my cup of coffee anyways, ready to go on with my day. It was a weird occurrence, but it didn’t mean anything and today was going to be busy.
I thought about the text message again as I was clocking out for the day. For some reason, it was giving me the chills.
As I walk out to my car, I dial up my more reliable friend, Katie. She picks up almost instantly.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Katie. Would you mind if I came and crashed at your place tonight?”
“Sure! It’s been a while!”
“Yeah it has. I’ll be there in about ten minutes.”
“Awesome. See you soon!”
It was a short conversation but it immediately filled be with relief. I don’t know why I was so bothered.
The next day, it was all over the news. 53 bodies all found simultaneously…
… in my house.
Well, damn.
