Rainy Days aren't favorable

Brown Black and Pink

To be honest, Shay felt disgusting. Not in the sense that she was covered in substances or she was doing something wrong; but she felt she could do better.

Here she was on her stomach staring at a group of boys who had achieved things she would only dream of. Shay's laptop screen flickered from the light going through, the dancing boys looking so flashy.

Shame washed through her when one of the boys lifted his shirt and showed his defined stomach. Not at him, but because she had gulped in a way that someone her age shouldn't have. The little act caused the already screaming crowd to make more noise. At least she wasn't the only one who felt attracted to him.

Though she enjoyed watching these guys so much, they did affect her in some not good ways.

Sometimes it did cross Shay's mind that she could be doing something more. Instead of watching concert clip after concert clip of Stray Kids, she could be working for her education that wasn't really going anywhere. Or find a job. That one was apparently vital for her future life. It would determine if she would be one of the few people in her high school who wouldn't fail their diploma, party too much, get pregnant, etc.

The thought was most definitely not one she had originally. It was the doing of her mother.

"Shay! Go get me some tomatoes from the supermarket."

Speak of the devil.

Her mother's shrilling voice could be recognized regardless of her room's thick walls.

"Coming." Shay shut her laptop and stood up. She slipped on a pair of slides and left the room.

Her body was on auto-pilot when her mother gave her an umbrella and the family debit card. She barely felt the kiss that was planted on her forehead by her mother and stepped out of the house.

It was raining.

Shay didn't like rainy days.

Everything was unpredictable. What if she slipped while crossing the street? What if a car couldn't see her figure through their misty rear mirrors and ran over her. So many what ifs clouded her mind.

She didn't even notice that she had already arrived at the store. The journey there was imprinted on her mind that she didn't even need to use much brain power to get there.

Shay nodded at the security guard who had been dozing off but had startled awake when she entered.

"Hey Shay baby. How's Katrina and Darryl? Them braids look on point."

The security guard was a close friend of her parents, her unofficial godfather he liked to claim.

"Hi Marco, they're good. Thank you." Short and straight forward. She liked Marco but he could get chatty sometimes. Last time she was here he had gotten her sidetracked and a scolding delivered to her by her mother.

He patted Shay's shoulder and settled in deeper on his chair. As she walked away she heard him grumbling about how he didn't get paid enough for his job. She tried her best to stifle the snort that was creeping up.

The fruits and vegetables aisle was the farthest from the store so Shay had to walk for a bit. She pulled up her mask as she came near other people.

Sometimes she seemed to forget that she wasn't the only person in this world. But it did seem like that. Especially when she didn't talk.

"Excuse me?"

Shay tilted her head. There was a figure in front of her that had stopped her in her tracks. She couldn't identify their gender by their tone. The mask the person wore was muffling their voice. What she could tell was that they weren't from this area. Their words were slightly accented, just enough that she knew they weren't a Minnesota local.