by Bruce Thomas
My phone buzzed in my front pocket of my jeans and I answered it once I saw who it was. "Where do you wanna meet?" I asked the person on the receiving end.
I hummed in acceptance before ending the call and hopping into my car to change into a fresh pair of pants. Anna's POV
It was a dream that I was use to.
The scenery was always the same along with the demons that roamed the nightmare. It shouldn't make my heart race or my body tremble but it usually does. My subconscience hated me in that way. I woke up drenched in my own sweat. My breathing was quick and choppy, my head pounding from the night before. Dropping my head in my hands I steadied my breathing.
What happened last night? The sun shone Annaghtly through my window making me close my eyes again. It was too much for my aching head to decipher now.
I could hear the tv buzzing in the livingroom indicating that Janet was up. I turned over and checked the time on my phone.
11:20
I couldn't suppress the groan as I pushed the covers away from my body to find that I was wearing only my bra and panties. I froze.
"Janet!" I called, my voice sounding hoarse and raspy. All I got was silence. Pushing off the bed I made my way to my closet, throwing on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts. "Janet," I said again making my way into the main room, finding her doing yoga in front of the television. She had pushed all the furniture to one side of the room making space for her to stretch and bend any way she pleases.
"Goodmorning sunshine," she chirped folding herself into the
downward dog position.
"Did you undress me last night?" I tried to keep the panic from seeping through my words.
My roommate tilted her head up at me raising her eyebrows in a knowing manner. "I couldn't have you sleeping in sequins and heels now could I? Imagine the damage that would have done." She lifted her hips upward, shifting her body back and keeping her arms straight.
I lowered myself to the floor and laid next to her so she could see my face and because standing just made my head hurt more. "So you did?" "Yes, silly." She laughed making her face even more red from the effort. "Who else would have?" Fred.
Did she see him leave last night? I'm almost positive that we almost kissed before...
"Oh God," I groaned sliding both hands down my face. Janet hovered over me in her yoga stance.
"What?" She asked looking at me from the corner of my eye. She knew something, I could tell by the way her caramel eyes glistened like she could see right through me. "I'm never going clubbing again. You can't make me."
Janet patted my shoulder sympathetically. "Duly noted."
She reached over my body to grab the controller and shut off her workout tape. Getting up, she walked into the kitchen and filled up a glass with water leaving me alone to gravel on the floor. "So, you got plans tonight?"
I rolled my head in her direction dramatically, giving her the meanest I'm-so-done-with-you glare I could muster up. She grinned down at me evilly. "Just thought I'd ask."
Tonight, I planned on staying in finishing some course work that needed to get done and maybe watch a few episodes of Drop Dead Diva on Netflix. I couldn't even imagine going out into the city that never sleeps because this girl definitely needed to sleep.
"Well, whatever you plan on doing tonight is fine because I have a date."
I bolted up and looked at her. She was standing by the sink, a hand on her slim waist, trying to hide her smile by taking another sip of water.
"A date?" I repeated standing up and moving towards her.
She set the glass down on the counter and let out the squeal she's been containing since she brought it up. "Yes! Elmer finally asked me on a real date."
"I thought you said Elmer doesn't date," I said trying not to ruin the mood but sensing I did with that comment. Janet just shrugged her shoulders.
"There's a first for everything, I guess." "This is great!" I took her hands and started tugging her to her room, wanting to Annang the smile back on her face after my little slip. "What are you going to wear?" I was trying be as girly as I could about this.
Katy has had the same boyfriend, Tyler, since grade school and obviously I never had one so I really didn't know how to go about this.
"That's what I like to hear!" she cheered reversing the role and dragging me into her room. It was about two o'clock before I decided to actually get showered and dressed. My stomach was growling and we still managed to make it another day without much for groceries. I decided it was about time for me to venture out by myself.
Grabbing my house key and a big satchel purse that Cathie got me for my nineteenth birthday I headed towards the door.
"Janet, I'm going to get something to eat! If I'm not back in time for your date, have fun." I heard her shout something from the other side of her closed door but I didn't catch it before I shut the front door. =================
9
Fred's POV
I pulled up the long driveway to my father's home. I don't come here often, if ever, not since I was eighteen, but I really didn't have a choice after the phone call from him this morning, waking me up from a dead sleep. Last night sucked the life out of me.
My father claimed it was urgent and even dropped a hint of a threat if I didn't show up at noon. I didn't bother to make myself look decent. I threw on a black shirt that was laying on my floor and a pair of basketball shorts.
I ran my hand through my hair trying to at least tame it though no matter what I did it still stuck out around my ears from getting too long.
Before I could shut my car door, the front door of my father's big house swung open and Matty flew out in my direction.
My little brother looked to have grown a few inches since the last time I saw him and he seemed to have lost a few teeth as he smiled at my arrival.
"Fred!" He flung himself into my arms without warning. I wrapped my arms around his small frame and ruffled his hair. Unlike my hatred for my father, I liked my little brother. He was a lanky kid with extremely curly hair that sat on his head like a blonde mop. His eyes always looked at me like I was the most interesting thing, almost admirable. It was sort of cool, I guess.
"Hey dude," I greeted setting him back on the ground.
"You made it! Dad said you weren't going to show but I said you would and I was right!" He tugged on my arm pulling me into the entrance of the house. I was hesitant but the kid was persistent. "Do you
want to come upstairs and play with my new train set?" Matty asked already pulling me up the stairs. "It's so cool. Cindy got it for me."
Anger built up in me hearing another woman's name trying to replace my mother for Matty. He was too young to have remembered much of her, being an infant when she died.
Before I could answer with something that would surely scare the six year old, my father appeared out of his office left of the main room.
"Fred. Nice of you to show up." His tone was its usual clipped tone. He wore a light blue polo and khakis. He radiated country club though he's never golfed a day in his life. He normally spent most of his time talking business with the members, trying to make himself sound superior. "Lunch is in the kitchen."
"We're eating chicken!" Matty announced jumping down from the second stair with excitement and tugging me into the kitchen. I avoided any confrontation with my father as I slipped past him. He peered down at me, disapproval shadowing his features as I past him not saying a word.
I sat down in the chair I used to sit in when we were a family. An actual family with my mother. I looked over at Matty who was practically drooling over the chicken and salad placed in the center of the long table. He had the same hazel eyes that my mother had and even a similar dimpled smile which he showed off at me, his chin barely reaching over the table.
My father placed himself at the opposite end of the table. He couldn't get any farther from us unless he sat in the other room. "Something wrong, sir?" I asked.
I never
called him dad or fa
ther because he never treated me like a son. Even when my mother was around he treated me more like a contract to the family business than his flesh and blood.
Ever since I told him to go to hell two years ago after he told me to, in his words: "Man up and get a proper job" meaning: do as I say and come work for me, we have been speaking even less than normal. There was no way I was going to sit at a desk in a suit and tie all day talking about the loss of the Knicks, while drinking coffee and talking numbers. I really don't give two fuçks what he thinks about me. I watched his face frown slightly which almost made me smile. Any tournament I could give him gave me pleasure. "You said it was urgent." "There's no urgent matter." He cut into his chicken without meeting my gaze.
"What do you mean?" I could feel my anger resurfacing from the call earlier.
My father looked up momentarily from cutting his chicken, his eyes not fullying meeting mine. I could tell he was partially scared of me. I noticed how his nose never fully recovered from my last assault which happened at my mom's funeral.
The piece of shít made her memorial into a business party, inviting all his most important colleagues and potential partners. Matty was just a baby then, he's never seen me lose it. "You're brother wanted to see you and we needed to talk specifics about the dinner party next weekend." I opened my mouth to tell him once again where he can shove the invitation but he cut me off. "You will wear a dress shirt and tie along with dress pants. There's
no discussion, it's already been arranged."
"I bought a suit," Matty said his mouth full of chicken.
"Good for you," I muttered into my hands while dragging it over my face.
I hated these dinner parties that my father put on. I hated standing there acting like I was supposed to impress these people into believing I was something I am not, as in trying to make them believe I wasn't a fuçk up. I even heard my father lie once while talking to an old couple that I was studying business at Columbia like "his old man".
I was content with my life. I didn't need a degree or R8 to be happy, though I would like an R8 or two... "So you will be here ready to impress by eight o'clock, Fred. A second later and I--"
"You'll what?" My temper was threatening to boil over. I gripped the edge of the table tightly trying my best to control my breathing as I was about to flip.
My father stayed silent, blue eyes pinning me to my chair. Clearly he was trying not to make a scene in front of Matty. His eyes begged me to do the same. "Be there." He turned and winked at my little brother who nodded with enthusiasm back, swinging his legs happily under the table, chewing his food.
I took a moment to look around the extravagant dining room, trying my best to keep my temper under control. I, too, did not want to scare my little brother.
Art littered the sponged red walls along with a grand fireplace that looked newly polished from the light glinting off the marble. This was not a home but a museum. I pushed my chair back and stood up. I had to leave. I
could not stand being here another minute.
"Where are you going?" My father barked setting down his knife. "You have just arrived and haven't touched anything on your plate."
"I'll be here at eight Saturday," was all I said heading for the front door and holding myself back from slamming it behind me. "Oh, and I'm Annanging a plus one."
"A plus one?" My father asked turning around in his chair. There was a hint of fear and doubt in his voice that made me sneer.
"Like a girlfriend?" Matty's face pulled up into a mock grimace.
"Yeah," I said without thinking. "I'm Annanging my girlfriend." I shut the door and made my way to my car. Why the fuçk did I just tell them I had a girlfriend? Now I had to actually find some chick to come with me to this damn thing. It wouldn't be hard. I'm sure there are plenty of girls that would claim to be my--I couldn't even imagine. It's the fact that I feel like I need to show that man that I could be responsible? As if a girlfriend could do that for you.
What was even worst was now I had to deal with a clingy girl who probably wouldn't take a hint after this weekend.
I pulled out of the driveway as fast as I could. Putting space between that place and myself was crucial. I was never a fan of the suburbs even as a kid. Everything was too quiet and clean. Nothing seemed real. I could feel the tension leaving my body as I got closer to the city. Yellow taxi's distracted me from the real problem. I took my anger out on the drivers by laying on my horn and flipping the bird to every pedestrian that came into view.
I pulled into my parking ramp that cost more than my actual apartment though I couldn't get the strength to give up having my own car. Owning your own vehicle was almost not heard of in the city but I have had these sleek black wheels since my 16th birthday when my mom presented it to me the morning that I woke up.
Having not to sit in those nasty yellow cars was worth the price. I slammed the car door shut and walked straight passed the entrance to my apartment building, moving towards the rush of people.
I popped in my headphones to drown out the noise and chaos. There was something magical about being surrounded by people, none of them knowing your name or story, and not being able to hear them no matter how animated they got. You could stand in the middle of Times Square and hear complete silence.
I stopped abruptly in the center of the sidewalk causing people to move around me. The blur of curly brown hair caught the corner of my eye through the clear window of a pizzaria.
At first I thought my mind was playing tricks on me but there she was, sitting in the corner at a small table with a pocket sized map laid out in front of her. She looked at peace eating her slice of pizza and watching bystanders walking by.
Before my mind could register with my limbs, I walked into the pizza shop.
The door gave a little ding but I went unnoticed by anyone in the little restaurant.
I've eaten here plenty of times as a child and hung out in the booths with my high school friends causing trouble. The place still looked the same. Everything was red and
white, even the tiled floor, and things looked slightly dingy, and the air carried the strong odor of parmesan cheese. Anna didn't notice me until I was sat directly in front of her. She looked frightened at first clearly thinking I was some type of kidnapper. When she realized it was me, her eyes froze on my face watching me cautiously.
This amused me because she had to remember last night when she threw up on me. I just hope she didn't remember my attempt to kiss her.
"What are you doing here?" She asked, her eyes leaving my face and resting back on the people's outside the window. "What does it look like?" I reach over and picked up the slice of pizza off her plate and finished it in one bite. She didn't protest like I expected her to do, instead she continued to look out the window. I even chewed extra slow to emphasize that I was eating her food but she pretended like I wasn't even there.
This whole back and forth thing we had going on here didn't work unless there was someone on the receiving end fighting back.
I leaned forward on the table. "Aren't you going to yell at me? Throw a chair my way? Pour the rest of your drink over my head? Anything?" I watched her intently. She was such an easy read but as of the way she looked now I had no clue what was going through her head.
"What are you talking about?" She spoke with a hint of a smile. She brought her attention back to me and then looked down at her empty plate. Disbelief crossed her face before being replaced with amusement. Shaking her head she grabbed her bag and began to stand.
"Hey, where
are you going? We were having a good time."
She shifted her weight onto her hips, giving me her best annoyed expression. "Don't you have better things to be doing?" She turned on her heels the way only girls know how to do and exited the pizzeria. I followed her out, grabbing her drink that she left on the table before catching up to her. "Not really," I answered honestly. I took a sip from her drink: lemonade.
She grimaced and took her dri
nk back, replacing her lips over the straw where mine just were. I felt my face break into a smile.
Anna's cheeks tinted pink. This made me smile more at the fact that I do affect her.
At first I was worried. I have never met a girl that hasn't thrown herself at me but Anna hasn't shown any sign of interest except for last night which didn't count.
It's not like I wanted her. Like I said she wasn't my type. It was just nice to know that she wasn't lesbian or something though that would be really hot--but still.
"So," I said shoving my hands into my pockets. "Where are we going?"
"We?" She hesitated but didn't come to a full stop. She studied her little map that she must have gotten from the campus bookstore, then turned the corner. Her attention was everywhere but on me.
"Yeah, we. You clearly need me."
"I don't need you." She turned another corner and looked up to realize that we were right back in front of the pizzeria. She looked back down at her map then looked around her. She had this cute little scrunched up look that I remember seeing at Elmer's party when she was upset. She huffed
then began walking the opposite direction. For someone who had shorter legs than me she sure walked fast. I caught up with a few long strides and carried on beside her. "Come on, Raine, I'll show you around if that's what you want to do. We'll finally use up your one and only raincheck."
She groaned annoyed still refusing to look at me. "Not that again."
"C'mon, we can be like propor tourist! Don't you dare fight back or I'll have to pull a sack over your head and shove you into my van." I laughed at my joke but Anna did not.
She stopped completely this time in the middle of a cross walk, peering up at me with round blues. I pulled on her arm to make her move before she got ran over by traffic. Was she really that scared of me? I'm sure her little girlfriends have had a few things to say about me but in all honesty they knew me just as much as any of the strangers walking beside us did.
Sure, I've done some sketchy shit but never kidnapping. Christ.
"Kidding," I said dryly, running a hand through my hair. She did the same thing and tucked a piece behind her ear, her eyes roaming up the skyscrapers around us.