Chapter 12
I turned to Tara once more, this time with a wide smile. For some reason I was actually happy to see her. Maybe it was the baby in her hand; who knew.
“Right so we were about to grab something to eat, what do you want?”
I saw her eyes light up for just a second. Good God how long had she gone without the prospect of good food?! “C-can I have a burger . . .?”
“Of course, let’s go.”
The three of us walked into the mall. Inside was just as strange as the outside. People actually came here while we were at school . . . but what would anyone do at the mall without teenagers hanging out? It seemed so strange. Then again being at the mall on a whole used to seem strange to me seeing as how I was never really allowed to go anywhere. I took in the strange sight of the almost empty mall. There was still security but why? There were now teens to destroy stuff so weren’t they unnecessary?
“You want the usual right?” Jayden asked when we got to the food court. He knew exactly what I wanted because it was the only thing I ordered whenever we came here. I nodded with a smile. He turned to Tara. “And what will you be having?”
“Um . . .” I knew the look on her face. Whatever she was about to order wouldn’t have been what she wanted. I used to have that look too whenever my Mother took me places and people asked me questions. It was a look that said ‘I’m afraid that what I want will get me in trouble’. She must have thought we would have thought she was taking advantage of us if she ordered what she really wanted but Jayden wouldn’t have minded. Half the time he spent just to show the world that he had money.
“You don’t have to worry you know, I’m having a double cheese burger with large fries and Jayden will have the most expensive thing on the menu if he can help it so just feel free to join out—oh” I turned to Jayden as the thought came to mind, “don’t forget to get something for Matt and Emi.” I turned back to her with a reassuring smile to which she replied with a shy one.
“Uh . . . I guess I’ll have what you’re having.”
Jayden nodded then went to place the order. While we waited I figured I would engage her in small talk then slowly try to ease into the conversation about her being on the road begging—with a child. It all just seemed so strange. . .
“So . . . not to be rude but I can’t tell from here so can I ask the gender?” I admitted guiltily.
She chuckled nervously. This was plenty awkward. “He’s my little man, his name’s Dustin.”
I nodded. Damn . . . I had run out of small talk; that didn’t take long. Sigh. I guess I just had to go in for the kill and hope she didn’t drop dead before she could answer the questions. “So I take it Aunt Jen wasn’t too pleased when she found out and she kicked you out.”
“Nope.”
“No she didn’t take it well or no I’m wrong . . .?” Her tone had thrown me off.
“No, you’re wrong, she didn’t give a shit. She said I had to take care of him by myself because I went around and screwed with my life. She said she didn’t want to have anything to do with him so I decided there was no point in staying—“
“So you just left?!”
“Well yeah, I mean, Kai you should see the way she looks at him. It’s like she considers him the plague or something. I was terrified that I would go home one day and find him in the microwave or thrown out in the trash can.” I cringed at her assumptions because I knew just how right she was. Our mothers were one and the same and my mother was the devil. For as long as I lived I would never forget the day she nearly burned Emi alive when she burnt down my neighbour’s house. I still got nightmares about that even now and they seemed to only get worst. There was no doubt in my mind that Aunt Jen could have been just as bad. “All I know is that I had to get out—I didn’t care where as long as I was away from her. I have to admit that when I left; I thought about stopping at your doorstep but that didn’t work out well with your new address and all . . .” she gave a faint smile, still trying to keep the conversation light but I didn’t have the heart to smile back. Just the thought of that house made half my mind go blank and non-responsive. Since leaving I had never thought about going back—not once.
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She Will Be Loved
Teen Fiction(Sequel to I Was Never Loved) Kai has finally made it out of the hands of fate, that cruel thing that held her in it's clutches for years. She has the love of her life and anchor Jayden to thank for this. Now they must try surviving the rest of the...
