In Case of Emergency, Dial 411

“I have to go” Siane said in mechanical voice as she stood up and walked away quickly. Maybe asking that question was too personal but I had been thinking about it since the time after school. I had been awfully personal and extremely truthful with her when she had asked me questions. I told her my lifes story, basically. I told her how my mom abandoned my father and I, then shortly after he became addicted to drugs. I told her my happiest as well as my darkest memories but the one question I asked her she walks away like what I said didn’t matter or count? Honestly, it kind of hurt.

“Hey, Siane!” I called out to her running behind her. She stopped and turned around with tightly crossed arms “Why do you always walk away from me!?” I unintentionally raised my voice, but I couldn’t help it I was frustrated.

“Because!” She snapped back before turning around quickly and kept on walking.

“Why!?” I demanded to know running after her.

“Because I can!” she continued to march on.

“Just because can doesn’t mean you should!” I yelled at her back. She raised her two middle fingers in the air as she kept her stride.

How could she just flip the switch on me like that? I was really starting to like her.

The awkward part was walking home. It only took ten minutes to get home but we lived on the same street so the entire time I was a few yards behind her.

When I got home I was still kinda angry I slammed the door the result was walking my grandmother from her nap on the couch

“Jeremy?” she yawned

“Sorry Grams,” I muttered before heading straight to my room.

“You’re home awfully late.” she comments sitting up from her laying position. I shrug “What’s wrong? You seem upset.”

“It’s nothing I guess.” I shrug.

“You guess?” my grandmother repeats questionably.

“It’s just this girl” I groan “She confuses me but then again all girls seem to have the effect on me” I ramble on

“A girl!?” Grams exclaims with a smile “What’s her name?”

“Siane Olson” I sigh out

“Tell me about her, please?”

I ponder the thought for a moment. I never really talk to someone older thats a relative about this kind of stuff. In a weird way it appeals to me. It’s not like I could talk to my dad before, he was always strung out and mom was out the question. I sit down on the lazyboy chair that is across from Grams “Would you like me to make you something? Maybe a sandwich to hold you over ‘til I make dinner?” she offers I nod. Grams swishes away from the livingroom to the kitchen humming the tune that she always does. It was very to distinct and kind of repetitive yet catchy. I even caught myself humming the tune from time to time. It was almost like she was singing but not quite I had almost figured out the lines. I will save or I can save you, it was something like that but I never got around to ask her about it “So, Siane? tell me what's she’s like?”

Emotional, funny, possibly bipolar and beautiful at the same time? “She’s nice” I start to describe lamely “She has blonde hair and dark brown eyes and skin and she leaves around this loop”

Grams comes back with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and I continue to explain Siane to my grandmother. I started to tell her everything and I almost felt bad for sharing the things I knew about the girl then I realized, who will she tell? When Grams isn't working very few hours at the hospital she's in front of the TV watching Wheel of Fortune, Judge Judy or Fox news.

I leave out a few fact about Siane like how she didn’t have pants on when I caught her cutting or that we broke into the clinic. I also don’t tell her that I was running away from Hunter and his cronies instead my reasoning for going in to the girls bathroom was that I didn’t look at the sign and just really had to pee.

“It sounds like you got quite a girl on your hands” Grandma remarks sitting back on the couch sipping on some tea

“What should I do? I want to help, she ignores me, talks to me, then yells at me.”

“What to do huh?” Grams dips the tea bag around her Mickey mouse mug “Fight for her. Don’t give up. She needs someone like you in her life. Don’t give up”

The next morning I’m recharged from my grandmother’s words Fight for her. Don’t give up

At the bus stop, I got straight for Siane. She was standing up that morning so I stepped right in front of her. She looks down and away. “About yesterday,” I began

“I’m sorry” She blurts out. she looks back up and looks at me “I know I probably overreacted. It’s just that I’m dealing with some stuff right now. I didn’t think you understand”

I’m taken off guard. I had recited my lines and words and made up different scenarios in my mind. I wasn’t counting on her saying that so at first, I didn’t know what to say.

“I wanted to say sorry too. I know, I shouldn’t have asked that question”

“No,” she shakes her head “You had every right to ask that question, It’s cool” she smiles and it makes me feel better.

“Does this mean you’ll go to Homecoming with me?”

“Yeah, I guess it does”