Vicky Genocidal: In Depth

Chapter Two: A Daily Routine

As Victoria left the street that entered into her familiar neighborhood, she popped her earbuds in. Almost immediately, a familiar rock song began blaring in her ears, drowning out the sounds of the world around her. A hint of a smile creeped across her face as she fixed her gaze on a very familiar gas station. As it turns out, Marge was right about one thing. This would make her feel better.

"Hey, Rodney!" Victoria called out into the barely vacant convenience store. "You here?"

A shushing sound that Victoria was incredibly used to sounded from behind the counter as a scrawny man with fluffy black hair all but jumped out of his kneeling position. Rodney Sims, Victoria's newfound acquaintance stood there, glaring at her. A pattern of tattoos was littered across his skin, peeking out of his uniform. He sighed angrily. "You really need to stop yelling like that. Do you want me to get arrested?"

"Arrested?" Victoria repeated, making a show of looking around at their surroundings. "Who's going to hear me? This place is kind of dead."

Rodney opened his mouth, then closed it again. "Yeah, okay. You may have a point there."

The thing that Victoria liked most about Rodney was his cowardice. He never put up much of an argument and allowed her to do her own thing. She didn't need to worry about him telling anyone. She placed her hands on the counter, leaning forward. "Got my stuff?"

"Got my money?" He deadpanned, narrowing his eyes. Victoria smirked.

"Yep." She reached into her pocket, slapping a twenty-dollar bill on the counter. "Green and slightly fresh. Exactly how you like them."

"Good, good." Rodney grabbed the money and set a small box down in its place. A box of Marlboro cigarettes. "Toxic and slightly fresh. Exactly how you like them."

Victoria grinned at Rodney, snatching the box off of the counter. "You're a lifesaver, Rod. Thanks!"

"Yeah, yeah." He said, rolling his eyes. "Now get out of here."

For the past year, Victoria had been visiting Rodney's convenience store, making the same exchange for cigarettes. Twenty dollars for one box. It had become a weekly routine for her. Go to the store, visit Rodney, get cigarettes, and chill at a rundown abandoned park near her neighborhood. The park was an old place that she used to visit with her best friend Hannah and her cousin Jane. For the most part, she had abandoned everything that had reminded her of her friends, but for some reason, she couldn't allow herself to give up the park.

Popping a cigarette in her mouth, Victoria jumped onto the merry-go-round, kicking it into a spin. She leaned against the cold metal bars, lighting the cigarette. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to be enveloped by the rock music blasting through her headphones as the cigarette brought her a temporary sense of relief.

She allowed a deep sigh to escape her mouth. In her eyes, this was euphoria.

Fishing her phone out of her pocket, Victoria sent Marge a quick text message. "I'll be out for a bit. Text me when you're done with work."

Two minutes had barely passed before her phone chimed with a response.

"Okay, I'm heading out now. Be safe! <3"

Victoria messed around in the playground until the box of cigarettes was empty. By that time, it was already late into the night, and she would have to go home.