Night Owls

When the afternoon swung around, I was hungry and craving nicotine. Ma had gone to work, and my pa had called, saying that he was sorry for leaving. I still didn’t know where he went, though. It wasn’t like I cared all that much either. I didn’t like how quiet the house was. It gave me too much leisure to think—and my thoughts scared me more than the grim reaper.

I stood up from the couch that I was sitting, the one with the ugly, tie-dye blanket that resting on the arm, and grabbed my keys off of the coffee table. Why hadn’t I thought of going anywhere before? When I got outside, the air was cold and acrimonious. I stuck my key into the car door, twisted it to the right, and opened it.

It only took three tries for the old, run-down thing to start, but once it did, I made no hesitation in driving to Walgreens. While I drove, I prayed continuously to whatever pedophilic spectral being was watching me that it didn’t cut off. It had already cut off three times earlier in the week, twice because the battery died and once because I simply needed to a new car. I would rather much ride the bus to the places that I wanted to go, but I already knew that Ma would complain that I was just being snobby and lazy.

Despite my worries, my car stayed intact and running smoothly throughout the whole fifteen minutes of driving to the drug store. I sighed and pulled into an empty parking space, careful not to hit the curb. When I stepped out, the temperature of the air hadn't changed; it was still cold and nerve-wracking. It made me want to drag my nails across the surface of a chalkboard. I stuffed my hands in the pockets of my hoodie, kept my head low, and walked inside.

I was craving for a bag of potato chips or maybe a candy bar. I strolled through the snack aisle, in search of something to satiate my hunger. I settled on a bag of barbeque potato chips and turned the aisle.

It happened a bit fast, but a body collided with mine and when I blinked, a girl was scowling at me. She bent down and picked up the vial she’d dropped. “Sorry, doll,” I murmured. It was clear that she’d already taken a disliking to me, but I wasn’t going to stop trying. “I’m James, how about you?”

She avoided eye contact and proceeded to finger over the vials of medicine. “Cassie,” she mumbled, finally. “Do you plan on leaving me alone anytime soon?”

“Yes, actually, but until then, no,” I said. I smiled softly at her, even though she wasn’t looking. “Could I buy you anything, like a bag of chips?”

“You could buy a lifetime supply of medicine for my mom, if you’re really set on bothering me.” She turned her head toward me, eyebrows raised as if she was waiting for an answer.

I licked my lips. “I doubt I can afford a lifetime supply, but if you’d really like me to, I can buy a few vials. Just tell me how much and it costs, and I will—anything to make a girl as pretty as you happy.” And I expected her to smile, or something, but what I got was the exact opposite. I wasn’t lying to her, at all. If I was lying, I wouldn’t have offered.

Cassie frowned and shook her head. “No, no. Just don’t. I’m fine. I don’t need your help.”

I sighed. “Well then, Cassie, we’ll meet again hopefully. I’m going to go buy some smokes.”