Anyone but Him

Lets's go shopping

"Aryanna get your ass out of that bed, you have work in 15 minutes and don't expect me to drive your lazy ungrateful ass there!" Slowly but surely I roll out of my old run down bed that used to be my sisters.

It's the same every day. Only difference about today is I guess my alarm broke. I'll probably pay for that later but for now my main focus is getting to work. I take my annual cold shower and get ready for work. The run to work was treturas. Normally I'd take the bus but there's no way I could get there in time so running is the best option. I get to work with 3 minutes to spare. When I go into the back of the little coffee shop I work at I run into my boss Susan but we all call her Sue. She's a nice frail old lady.

"Hey sweetie. I thought I'd have to track you down. You were almost late and you never come in late unless you call beforehand." She gives me a hug while giving me a worried look.

"I'm ok Sue. I just slept in a little and decided I'd go for a nice walk and lost track of time. I'm ok." I gave her a big smile and clocked in.

It's 7 in the morning. It doesn't get too busy until around 7:30. I start to restock the snacks and make sure we have everything we'll need for the morning. I'll probably end up restocking it again around noon.

I was right. I restocked at noon and had a 10 minute lunch. Sue offers to give me longer lunches but I always say no. Shorter lunches means more working which means more money. Although I don't really spend my money. Almost all of my paycheck goes to my mom which basically means it goes towards getting my sister more clothes so I guess you could say it goes to my sister. The little that they leave for me goes towards getting food. As for clothes, well, that's what sales and thrift stores are for.

After all of that, what little paycheck is for when I get out of the hell I call my house. I know that most kids move out after 18 but not me. For me it's 21. I have 10 months left before I can leave. You're probably asking why not just leave anyway. Well the answer is simple, I can't. My parents are what you could call rich, powerful, and for me they're manipulative. They keep a very close eye on everything I do. They know about the coffee shop. They know Sue and they could easily shut down the entire shop. They're the masters of blackmail.

The reason they say 21 is because 18 to 21 is the prime time to find husbands. She might not like me but if she could use me to get any money or new connections she'll use me to her benefit herself. It doesn't matter if the men are in their 60's or 20's as long as they're rich and are influential, mostly rich though. The important thing is these next 10 months. I have enough money saved up for an apartment and some furniture. Sure I have a bed and a few dressers but with what I've saved I can get an actually comfortable bed and good bedding.

Today is Friday and Sue always let's me off just a little early. Of course my parents don't know because today is the only day I can hangout with my best friend and not worry about being home on time. They know my bus route and know exactly how long it takes me to get home.I hear the door open and go to greet the customer. When I look up I see the brown eyes that I've come to love.

"Yo hoe, are we still going shopping?" She's always been loud with absolutely no filter. It's one of the many things I love about her. It perfectly contradicts my need to always be quiet.

"Yes Anna, we're still going shopping. I get off in an hour so in the meantime here's a coffee now go sit and be quiet. You're scaring off the customers." We both just laugh as she goes to sit down. Of course all the eyes are on her. She's tall and skinny, always wearing the newest trends, has beautiful brown hair with blonde highlights. Overall she's just perfect. At least on the outside. I know everything about that girl and she's not perfect in the least but she puts up a good front.

After an hour I get done with the last customer and Sue takes over. I of course offer to help but she always says no. All she knows is I have strict parents and that's why she does this. She lets me off early but keeps me on the clock so that if my parents do check it says that I'm there.

"Alright. I'm done. Anna we can go now so get off your phone and let's go." she jumps up from her seat and runs up to me before trying to physically pull me out the door, "Sue don't work yourself too hard. Love ya, see you at 8 to clock out and close up the shop."

She just smiles at me and waves, "Love you too. See you at 8. Go have fun and don't worry about me."

"Ok I swear Ari if you don't get your ass outside and to the car I will drag you out." I know she's not lying because she would do that in a heartbeat.

"Ok let's go. I can't spend any money but I'll make sure you get amazing clothes." She just laughs at me and starts the car as we head to the mall.

The drive there consists of Anna singing at the top of her lungs to songs on the radio. Eventually we get to the mall and as soon as I park she's already dragging me inside. Through all of the shops I pass I can't stop feeling like something is going to happen.