Emotionless

Sunlight sparkled down on the note as I lay in bed, watching it quietly as if it would spring from the bedside table and turn into the real person who wrote it. A long breath escaped my lips slowly as I turned onto my back again and stared up at the ceiling for a while. Each new breath brought a new memory. The time when Pippa and I first drank alcohol and got so drunk we passed out on my mom’s sofa. Another breath. Then there was the memory of when I broke my wrist wrestling with River, a twinge of pain seeping through my joint at the thought of how the doctors poked and prodded my wrist for a good hour. Another deep breath. The memory of when Zacky took me to the coffee shop and kissed the cream from my nose played in my head as tears welled in my eyes.

Knocking on the door of the bedroom caught my attention, the panel of wood swinging open to reveal my aunt in her gym clothes, knotting her hair back from her flawless face as she smiled in my direction. ‘I’m off to the gym with the girls. Would you like to stay here or go to work with Jason, he said he could do with a stand-in assistant seeing as his is off ill,’ Layla offered, smiling as I sat up in bed and rubbed my eyes as if I’d just woken up. Jason appeared next to her suddenly, shaking his brown hair with a towel as I nervously nodded my head, saying that I’d like to work for my uncle Jason for the day.

‘Great stuff. You’ll get to learn all about Journalism, and, if we find some time, I’ll help you write a column for the paper.’ I grinned widely, jumping from the bed and thanking him wildly as he hugged me tight and held me from the floor. Layla and Jason chuckled at my eagerness. ‘Just, go take a shower and get dressed and I’ll drive you there in say… an hour,’ Jason said, allowing me to stand on my two feet as Layla said her goodbyes and left the house. Frantically, I nodded and kissed my uncle on the cheek before scampering away to the bathroom to get washed and changed as Jason chuckled and went to walk the dogs before we left.

As I shifted my hood up over the cap enough to just show off the icon of Superman, I wandered like a child behind my uncle as he led the way through the offices. There were people chattering on the phone and slamming their fingertips down on the keyboards as they typed away their stories. When we reached the office, Jason motioned for me to sit in the big leather chair which I did with my feet up on the desk, feeling like a kid going to work with their dad for the first time. He chuckled at seeing my so excited, sitting in the smaller chair opposite me as he sifted through a set of papers.

‘Could you do me a favour?’ Jason looked up suddenly from the paper, causing me to throw down the book I’d found on the side table and smile innocently. I was acting like a teenager rather than a twenty-four year old, but who cares. I’m allowed to. ‘Would you go photocopy these for me?’ I nodded, taking the pile of paper from my uncle’s thick hands before skipping away as best I could towards the huge photocopier I saw on my way in. There was a guy around my age with auburn-ish brown hair and dark brown eyes by the photocopier with a coffee, writing on the notice board and thankfully not taking much attention within my actions as I slid the papers onto the glass.

‘Well, hello there, sweetheart,’ someone said in a thick Scottish accent that melted my knees. Shit. I’m a slut. Falling for one guy after another. No, shut up brain, you’re not falling for this guy you just think his extremely hot with that mouth-watering accent. ‘I’m Iain, and the name to go with that pretty face is?’ I flushed a deep crimson as I looked up at the auburn haired guy whose eyes twinkled in the lighting that sparkled down on us through the open window on the left of us. Telling him my name, I extended a hand towards him and shook his with my skin lingering on his.

Suddenly, as Iain was about to say something else, my phone began to ring loudly in my pocket. Excusing myself a moment, I scooped the Snoopy iPhone from my hoody and checked the caller ID. Zacky flashed repeatedly on the screen so I pressed the red button and shoved it back in my pocket. Iain gave me an odd look of which I returned with a sheepish smile. ‘Someone I don’t want to talk to right now,’ I explained. My phone rang again, but this time my little brother’s name flashed repeatedly over and over again. ‘Now, I have to take this one. I’ll be two seconds.’ Iain laughed slightly, promising he’d keep an eye on the copier for me.

‘Ah, Keeley, finally! Where are you, honey?’ Joel explained with worry in his tone. I rolled my eyes, saying that I was at a friend’s place and that they needed to go to work so I tagged along because I was bored. ‘Yeah, and I’ll believe that the day the Pope does marijuana – he does cocaine, FYI. Anywhore, we’re all invited to Matt’s to meet Zacky’s daughter.’ My heart just plummeted down to the ground and shattered like a piece of glass that had been thrown over the edge of the cliff. I fell silent for a long moment, running a hand through what hair fell over my shoulder and nervously looked around for an excuse.

‘You know what, I’m gonna pass. I have some stuff on tonight that I don’t really want to miss and-’ Joel cut me off quickly, begging for me to come because people really wanted me there. What a load of bullshit. Sighing, I tried to come up with another excuse but failed miserably. ‘Fine, I’ll be there. But only for half an hour, I have find things to throw at walls and an online dictionary to find some words more appropriate to scream whilst hurling said things at said wall,’ I muttered sourly, causing Joel to chuckle loudly. Telling me to be there for eight, we said I our goodbyes and I pressed the end button before sighing loudly.

‘Iain, could you do me a favour?’ I grinned innocently.