Bobs Burgers: A Tina Tale

Chapter 8: Changing

Over the next two days, Captain Bosco visited me to get details about what had happened. He had me repeat the story, over and over again. It got to the point I would explode into tears.  He said it was to verify my story was the same, since I had head trauma. During our last session together, I finally asked questions of my own.

"How did you find me? I thought no one would."

"There were a couple teenagers that had videoed your attack. They called 911 after you were pushed in." He answered as he stood up to leave the room. 

As he left, my mom came running into the room, in near hysterics. "My baby, my beautiful baby girl. Oh Tina!" She came, and sat next to me, kissing me all over my face. "That horrible Jimmy Jr., I hope he goes to jail."

I groaned. "Moooom.."

"You better give her some room Lin." Dad walked in with Louise and Gene. Gene had grown up, but his hair cut had not. He was tall, like dad, but definitely had moms hips. Mom leaned up off of me, but held onto my hand like it was for dear life.

"Tina," Dad began, "You're going to come home for a little while. So, you can get through therapy. They have given you the go ahead to go home. You just have a small fracture in your wrist, and a concussion. They said you're pretty lucky."

I leaned my head back in the pillow. 

Louise then chimed in, "You're also taking a mandatory month off from work, and the restaurant. Gene came home to work your shift while you recover."

I didn't have anything to say. What could I say? It had turned out I had only been unconscious for a day, when I woke up to the nurse. I felt like I was still in a daze. 

In the coming weeks, I would have to watch the video of Jimmy Jr. pushing me off the pier over and over again as we sat in the courtroom. Me yelling my love for Zeke. Over, and over, again. I felt numb, and he was like a statue in the courtroom. He had no remorse for what he had done. When it came to the end of the trail, he had been sentenced to 20 years for attempted murder. I chose not to make a statement, because I didn't know what to say. I still was in a state of shock.

Dad drove me back to the restaurant from the courthouse, and we were silent. I hadn't been able to open up to anyone about what happened. As we neared the restaurant, it all came tumbling out of me. I started crying, wailing, and yelling with tears streaming down my face. My nose was running, my dad slowed the car, and got out. I just cried uncontrollably. He opened my door, and I reached out to him like I was a little girl.

"Daddy.." He helped me out of the car, and I cried as we walked past the restaurant, I was heaving. He helped me up the stairs to our home, and he led me to my old room. It still looked the same from middle school. I laid on the bed screamed, cried, and heaved until I had no energy left. My eyes eventually felt heavy, and I laid there silently after about an hour. I tried thinking about something positive, but the only thing I could think of was the look in Jimmy junior's eyes as I was pushed off the pier. I eventually wore myself out, between crying and blowing my nose, and I seemed to just drift off to sleep. 

When I woke up the next morning, it was early. 5 am early. No one else in the house had gotten up yet. Mom had packed me a change of clothes from my apartment. I put them on, I was still feeling completely numb. I made my way down the stairs as quietly as I could, over to the restaurant. I needed to do something, anything, to put my mind on something else. I unlocked the restaurant and started prepping the kitchen. As I put a pot of coffee on, I looked across the way at 'Jimmy Pesto's & Sons'. Pain filled my chest, and I had to go back into the kitchen.

I listened as the coffee pot dripped, I could smell the aroma as I began to chop vegetables. I did my best best not to start crying as I chopped. I heard the front door chime, I felt a ping of fear that was irrational. I poked my head around the door, only to see Zeke standing there.

"Louise? You there?" He spoke in a loud tone.

What in the hell does he want?

"Do you have any news on Tina? I heard her crying yesterday from Andy and Ollie's." He sat down on one of the stools. I could hear the squeak of the leather. I did not want to come out from the other side. I wasn't prepared to speak to anyone, much less him. I stayed quiet, trying not to make anymore noise.

"Louise? Gene? Is someone back there?" I heard him get up from the stool. I put down the knife, and waited for him to come through the kitchen door. As the door opened, I put both my hands on the counter, and let my head hang down. 

"Tina." He stood there quietly. I took a breath. "I thought you weren't supposed to be doin' much more than bed rest?"

"I guess I couldn't stand doing nothing anymore." I stood up straight, and walked past him through the kitchen door, slamming the door into the wall. I was careful not to brush him even a little bit. He followed quickly back out to the restaurant. I grabbed a coffee mug, and poured myself a cup of coffee. 

"You should be resting." He looked at me worriedly. "You've been through a lot."

"Why do you suddenly care?" I slammed my coffee cup into the counter, some of the coffee hit my hand and burned me. I didn't waiver in my position, glaring at him.

"Tina. Please." He tried insistently to get me to come from the other side of the counter.

"Tina!" Louise came into the restaurant. "Zeke? What's going on?"

"Nothing," I yelled. "Nothing is ever going on! Not with me, not with Zeke, not with you." I was losing it again and I could feel it. I left on the side of the counter closest to the door, bypassing Zeke. They were both staring at me, as I grabbed my keys off the counter. "I'm going."

"Where?" Louise looked at me with such worry, I could feel the tears come to my eyes again.

"My apartment, the pier, Wonder Wharf. Anywhere that's not here." I walked out past Louise, who tried to grab at me, but missed. I started making a go for it, at first it started as a fast walk, then I just started to run. I wanted to be anywhere but coddled by anyone. Talked to, told I was OK, told everything was going to be OK. I came to the pier, where I stopped. There was no one around, but suddenly I felt dizzy. I looked at the end of the pier, and felt my body get heavy. I heard someone running behind me, but before I could even turn, I felt someone wrap their arms around me.

"T, you've got to calm down girl." He held me tightly, and I started crying again. He turned me around and pulled me into his chest and held me close. I put my hands up on his chest, so I would be able to pull away. At that moment, I pushed Zeke from me, looking straight into his eyes. He looked panicked, worried, and surprised all at the same time. 

"What the hell do you care?" I looked angrily at him. "None of this would have happened if it wasn't for you." The tears rolled down my cheeks.

"Me?" He looked surprised. "What does this have to do with me?"

"If you hadn't gotten me to pretend to date you, Jimmy would have never started obsessing over me. If you hadn't strung me along I would have never been on that pier, and he would have never pushed me."

"Tina, what the hell are you talking about, 'stringing you along'? He started to look exasperated. 

"That night at the Christmas Tree lightning, I was going to tell you a lot of things," I felt my hands ball up into fists, the tears streaming down my face. "But you were there with Tammy, so backed away from you, again."

"Again?" He whispered. He started walking close to me. "Tina."

"No, Zeke. Don't touch me. No more games. No more of this. I fell in love with you, Zeke. I wanted so badly to tell you. But, you were with Tammy. I don't want to play anymore Zeke. I'm done with this town and everything to do with it." I started walking toward my apartment.

"Tina!" Zeke yelled.

I didn't turn back to look at him. I kept walking until I made it to my apartment, where I slammed the door as hard as I could, shut. I stripped my clothes off and went to the shower where I just stood there under the water. I felt my hands shake.