Lost & Found.

I woke up the next morning after finally getting four hours of sleep. It was probably the most sleep I’d gotten all week put together.

I had to work again today, even though it was Saturday. ijt was something I still had to get used to. At least I got paid.

I just had to keep looking on the bright side.

I ate a bowl of cereal and grabbed a bottle of water before leaving the house, this time with my purse instead of my backpack. I pulled my jacket tight around myself, it was colder out than it normally was. It was almost April, it should have been warmer than this.

I smiled, though. At least it wasn’t raining.

I pushed open the doors to the small gas station and pulled my jacket over my head, showing the red shirt underneath. They didn’t make me wear a real uniform on any other day, only the little silver pin.

I sat myself into the small stool behind the counter, waiting patiently for someone to show up and buy something. I leaned backwards trying to see who was cooking this morning. It was that kid.

The one with the dark, spiked hair from the bus. He had headphones in, but I ignored that and turned on the little radio, praying that it was still on the old station.

It was.

I leaned my back against the counter and stared out the window as the sun rose higher and higher and people stopped to get gas and people came in for food or something to drink. I hid my bottle of water in my purse.

I watched birds fly off and I watched random rabbits run across the roads. I watched cars ignore the store and I watched cars drive through the small muddy lot.

I probably worked at the least popular store in town.

That would be my luck.

“What are you listening to?” A high-pitched voice sneered. I turned around to face Monica.

Best friend?

Or not...

“I’m not sure.” I shrugged. “It’s what was on.”

She wrinkled her nose in disgust. “Ew. Then change it.”

“No, why would I?” I asked. I didn’t care if I pissed her off right now. Spike boy came out from hiding and I could feel him staring at us.

“If you don’t change that...” Monica started, but then her eyes shifted as she noticed the tall boy behind me. “What are you looking at, fag?” She sneered. I glared at her, ringing up her stuff quickly, throwing it into a bag.

“Pay and get out.” I muttered lowly.

“What happened to you?” She looked angry and confused as she payed, but I ignored her and turned back towards my window. It was much nicer to me than any bitch I thought was a friend. I sighed to myself, trying to clear my head.

“What’s your name?” The boy asked and I turned to see him leaning against the counter.

“Ashlynn.” I muttered, turning back to the window.

“I’m Cody.”

“Welcome to hell, Cody.” I mumbled, not bothering to turn and face him again.

“Uh, thanks.” It was almost a question as I heard his footsteps and out of the corner I could see his tall form walking back into the kitchen area.

I felt a little guilty. I’d always been a social person. That was the least social I think I’ve ever been in my life.

The clouds slowly drifted across the sky, white and light and puffy. I missed life when it was so light like that. Light and easy and fun.

I missed him.

I think I’ll still call him my father.

~~~

Why did I ask for so many hours again? Oh, yeah, that’s right. Money.

I felt like slamming my head against the counter as more and more people came in and all they wanted to do was talk. Out of every three people who walked into the small store at least one of them said something to me about my father and how sorry they were for my loss.

They only liked him because he was famous.

I sighed. It’s been an hour since Cody got off and now I was alone.

The phone rang. I hate Saturdays.

“Hello, Speedy Stop, what can I do for you?” I tried to sound as cheerful as possible. It was sickening.

“Can I order a large pizza?” She was the most polite person I’d talked to today.

“Of course. Can I have a name?”

“Uh, Morrell. Can I make it half sausage and half pepperoni?” She asked. I wrote it down on one of the little pizza slips, drawing a line down the middle.

“Uh, huh. Is that all?” I asked politely.

“Yes.”

“That’ll be twelve fifty-nine.” I hated our prices. They seemed to always be some odd number and I wondered if maybe they only did that to give the other workers and I a hard time. “It’ll be ready in about twenty minutes.” I said happily, then before she hung up added, “Thank you!”

I turned up the small radio, ‘It’s the freakiest show. Take a look at the lawman, beating up the wrong guy. Oh man! Wonder if he’ll ever know he’s in the best selling show. Is there life on Mars?’

The sound was odd and soothing and slow and I loved it. I ended up dancing around the small kitchen area as I spread sauce over the crust and then added pepperoni to one side, sausage to the other. I covered it all with cheese and shoved it into the oven, checking my watch.

It was almost six, I’d been here for eight hours.

Is that even legal?

I walked back to the counter, turning the radio back down as the song changed again. I smiled at the obviously old sounds. I was half asleep when the door opened and made the little bell jingle. That got so annoying.

“I got gas at pump two.” She chewed her gum loudly and tapped her foot impatiently, I hated her already. I slowly rang her up and she paid in a hurry, obviously upset with my dragging it out. I smiled victoriously before going to pull the pizza out and put it into a box.

The bell jingled again as I cut the pizza. I peeked around the corner so they could see me. It was a short girl with brown hair and a pixie cut. Her brown eyes shined as she saw me. “Morrell.” She pointed to herself and I smiled, shutting the box and bringing it out to her.

“Twelve fifty-nine.” She smiled, paid, grabbed her pizza, and left quickly. I sat backwards on my stool, leaning my back against the hard, sharp counter. She was probably going to eat that with friends. The real kind.

The sky was doing some major darkening and I sighed knowing that that meant it was going to rain. Again.

The signal for the radio cut out and I hit it gently, trying to bring back the only thing keeping me sane, but then the phone rang again.

“Hello, Speedy Stop.” I didn’t sound as happy as I could, too upset about the radio.

“Hey, Ash, mom wants a pizza.” Kenny’s voice met my ears and my lips twitched into a small smile. The bell jingled and I looked up to see a tall man walking past. I smiled and nodded and he kept going to the back where the rental movies were. Oh, how I hated rental movies.

“Okay? What kind?” I asked, crossing my fingers and hoping that the man wasn’t going to get a movie.

“Something good. I’ll bring a twenty when I come to get it.” I smiled.

“Mmkay, see you in twenty minutes.” I didn’t even have time to add a ‘thank you’ before she’d hung up. I frowned for a second before realizing that the radio had come back.

My newly found smile quickly disappeared as I noticed the man coming up to the counter with a liter of Mountain Dew, a giant bag of ice, and, of course, the dreaded rental movie.