Streetlife

19 - Scared

STEF POV

"I was worried sick about you, Stef. You couldn't leave a note or something?  ANYTHING!" My brother yells as I walk back into his place and set my bag down.

It is passed three in the afternoon now as I had just gotten back from my photo-shoot with Julius as my brother stands in front of me looking fried and not to mention wired. I really, really hated to admit that he looked high most of the time, but he did and I knew he was using no matter how fucking sad that shit made me.

"Julius called you. Stop freaking out. I was fine, Francis." I walk past him to get a drink from the mini fridge as I hear him follow behind me.

"Well, how did you get there!? I told you to stay away from 42nd street!" He shouts as I sip my cold water and look right back at him.

"I flew, Frank. I flew there and I did stay away from 42nd. I was on 41st." I sass back and roll my eyes as he lets out a sigh. "I'm not a fucking child, Frank, I hopped on the subway. Besides I thought you might like to know that I apologized to your friends, thank you very much."

"What?" He runs his fingers through his blonde waves as I look into his blood shot eyes.

"Yeah, I apologized to that hippie girl, Tara and Julius. So, blow off!"

"Tess. Her name is Tess! Get it right!" He claps and I laugh.

"Yes, her. You know, she doesn't look too hot. What's her deal?" I ask now grabbing a slice of bread and spreading some peanut butter on it as my brother doesn't say a word.

"She's going through things, but she's a nice girl." He finally answers as he leans against the small counter.

"Yeah, like sticking shit up her nose or in her arm." I say looking right at him again as he seems to ignore my comment and I take a seat at the table.

"No, but what about Lena?"

"What about her?" I say with an attitude as I bite into my bread and take another sip of water.

"Did you apologize to her? She's my friend too, you know!"

"She wasn't there. Sadly." I say rather sarcastically as I see him run his hand over his hair again and his antsy behavior is driving me bonkers.

"I was going to take you to Julius myself, Stef. To do the photo-shoot. I told you this already. I don't get you. I really don't!" He scratches his arm as he taps his foot as he gets more and more upset.

"When? After you show me what you do? After you take me to the bar? Then? Or after you come up with another fucking excuse as to why I can't go to this fake bar you work at? You keep stringing me along and think I'm some kind of stupid!" I keep my eye on him as he can barely look at me and even though Julius told me I should be nice to him it wasn't even his fucking place to say that.

Sure I had felt bad in the moment but now I don't as I can feel my annoyance growing by the second. I don't feel badly at all for I just don't understand who my brother was anymore and what was so bad about his job that he couldn't tell me...besides using drugs. "Seems to me you're on the same shit your friend is, Frances."

"What is that supposed to mean, baby sis." He runs his hand on the back of his neck as he sniffs rather loudly.

"Really? How fucking stupid do you think I am, Frank? You have been trying to shield me from every fucking thing since the minute I stepped off the bus. EVEN your real life! So tell me, who is Warbucks, really? You seemed kinda scared of him! And stop bull shitting me for Christ's sake and look at me!"

"I'm not scared of anyone, Stefanie. And I told you he's just someone I know. So fucking drop it! Okay!" He screeches as he storms over to his bed and flops back on his pillow as I turn his direction.