Bloody Story 1987

Page 4

We slowly drove closer to the city and at this point when I look around I see an atmosphere I wasn't used to, surfers and bikinis, frosty tips and glasses, a ridiculous amount of sun glasses. I listen to the music that flows through the speakers of the car as I look at all the different people, colorful clothes ranging to dark all black and piercings, green mohawks and leopard print everywhere, I definitely wasn't sure how living here would affect me but it wouldn't change my style that's for sure, even if the pierced teens looked relatively cool with said silver shining from their faces and ears. I feel the car pull to a stop and hear the slight screech of the brake lever being pushed in by my mothers lead foot. The door in front of me and on the other side of me open as well as the driver's door, all three of them get out including Nanook who instantly follows Sam to the little gas station door.

My mom immediately starts to fill up the car and Michael pulls his bike out insistent on riding the rest of the way, I open my door stepping out, my shorts scratching against themselves as my thighs rub together in the movement, looking around after shutting the door behind me I stretched my legs as I watched the two kids dumpster diving for scraps, assuming my little brother had just come back I heard my mother, "Hey ,go tell those kids to get something to eat," I turned back to see my moms hand outstretched with a few bills in it, she was talking to me. "Okay... don't leave without me though." I mumbled that last part as I wandered over with the cash in my hand.

I do however hear my youngest brother as I walk off, "Hey, I thought we were poor," in return my mother scoffed and gave her own words, "Not that poor, Sam."

My feet walked against the pavement as whistles sounded, "Hey babe, you new in town?" I ignored thinking that hopefully it wasn't me they hollered at or whistled for, instead I walked until I was in the teens vicinity, "Hey, uhm my mom wanted you guys to go grab something to eat, here you go." I received happy smiles and lit up eyes, and then they took off straight for the blue shack restaurant across the street. Leaving me to walk back to the car and pile back inside of the steamy metal contraption. "Mom, there's an amusement park right on the beach!" I heard the woman laugh and excitedly speak, "That's the boardwalk, Sam." I smiled leaning back against my seat as I pulled my hair off my neck and back up over the head rest, "Can we go now, huh?"

"Maybe later. Grandpa's expecting us." I watched his face scrunch up as he hopped off back to the gas station, "Still mad at me?" I watched and listened to Michael talk to our mom, "For what." I knew what she was going to say, she was an apologetic woman who felt guilty about all of this, "For everything." Michael shakes his head and turns, hopping on his bike and twisting the key, he can't deal with the conversation well, that was clear enough as he just roars his engine. "If you want to check it out and meet us later it's okay." Sam returns, having heard this and is immediately annoyed, making me roll my eyes as I start to fan myself with my hand, "What!? He can and I can't?! No fair!!" It was hot and they were all just sitting outside of the car talking casually, "That's okay, Mom. I can see it later. I'll help you unload." She seems pleasantly surprised by Michael's display of responsibility but smiles and nods. I watch her and Sam get in the car as the runaways shout to them. "Hey, thanks, lady." She's standing half in the car half outside and yells back, "Use some of it to call home." I heard her sigh as she sat fully in the car.

She looked between us before turning back to the steering wheel and starting the car up, "Those kids look like me twenty years ago." I groaned and Sam spoke about what we were both thinking, "When you ran away from home, hitch- hiked to Berkeley, spent the night in Golden Gate Park and begged for spare change in the morning?" She looked surprised as she started driving again, "You've heard this story before?" I spoke up for the first time in the past few minutes, "You tell it to us every time you see someone who lives on the street mom," she made a 'huh' noise like she didn't remember and so Sam spoke, "So many times, I'm starting to think it happened to me." I laughed at that.