A Week Later

Chapter Two

5/25/22
It was 63°F this morning and it rained all night. Those babies made it to heaven. Half of the schools in this area canceled school for the rest of the year. The other half are going to have a police officer on campus. I heard the shooter was arguing with his grandma because he wasn't going to graduate. That sounds familiar. He shot her and then wrecked his truck and ran into the school with an AR-15. My favorite West End actress liked some tweets about this. It still doesn't feel real. It was still on the news this morning. I imagine it will be for a while. I saw Lebron James' tweet. My favorite band posted about it, begging for a change. All the kids that were missing yesterday are confirmed dead. The Texas rangers and the fbi took over the investigation. I don't want to go back to work today.

Manifests
Keep the kids safe
Keep the kids safe
The kids are safe
Today and tomorrow they will be safe

Elaine and I don't want to be here. It doesn't feel right. Joaquine is convinced that the chocolate chunk cookies are raisins. The cooks are trying to make light of it but I feel guilty for not being there but being so close. I keep seeing articles about how he was a loner student who was bullied and grew aggressive. He was bullied for having a lisp and for wearing eye liner. When are people going
To realize their 'angels' are assholes who cause rampages. And I'm not siding with it defending the shooter, by the way, but I know what it's like to get pushed and prodded to that point. I just haven't taken action. Even then, it was going to be directed at myself only. Not another living creature.

Juan came in and was going on and on about how he got rear ended and they were only going to give him five thousand dollars for it. I didn't hear most of what he said. I was half asleep and lost in grief. I drank a cup and a half of coffee black. I don't even drink coffee.

There's a table of three in here. The dude looks like a wannabe biker. He's got black socks up to his knees. Elaine says he owns a bunch of junk trailers.

Every day I ask Beto what's new. Today he said "No. nothing new. I hope it stays like that."

There's a table of 6. They have a little boy and I helped him put his soda in his cup. He's so stinking cute. It makes me wonder if I ever saw those kids yesterday. People have been in my shoes, thinking those kids were so stinking cute. They were the same age as Arly Bug. My eyes still burn. And my socks are falling off.

Joaquine said we don't need to talk about the weather with every single person who walks through the door. I think we do. It's how we make good tips. When they like us, we get good dollars.

Robert came in and said there were only forty people at school today, and that more were leaving. They don't have school tomorrow. La Pryor cancelled their classes. I'm a little upset DHanis didn't. Elaine says it's better that the schools stay open because there are some kids that need it. They don't have anyone else or anything to eat. Morgan came in to get his chicken strips and tea. He said he didn't go. People keep coming in. I want them to leave so I can go home.

There's a rancher who's been coming in lately. He's young. Kinda cute. His name is case. The only other person I know named Case is Case Wooten the singer. He used to go to my school. His mom was my 7th grade math teacher. His sister went to Robb back in the day. But she's like 23 and engaged now.

I wish high schoolers would stop coming in. Mike and Ashley are back. Mike pesters me about dropping a plate the other day. Case was here that day too. It's annoying. That's why he isn't married. It's because he's annoying. Leslie didn't come in for lunch today. I hope he's okay.

Elaine asked Joaquine three times if they needed Fritos in the kitchen. He's being an asshole. We gave him a cookie. It was burnt. He said it scratched up his insides.

My cousin from Minnesota just messaged me asking if I knew the victims. I didn't but my cousins are cops there. One of my cousin's husbands is the UCISD police chief.

Elaine's nephew and his wife work at the hospital in Uvalde. He isn't taking it well. His daughter is their age.

There are pictures of the shooter going around holding up a trans pride flag. He's wearing feminine clothes and high socks. He got bullied for wearing eyeliner to school and talking with a lisp. I wonder where the pictures came from. If they're really him.

Beto O'Rorke (or however you spell it) cussed out Abbott today at a press conference at the school. My cousin called me asking if I saw it. Now I'm watching it on the news. I'm kinda sad I didn't see it the first time. The shooters grandpa got interviewed. It shows how little adults know their kids. Maybe he was in shock. But he kept saying his grandson was "quiet." There's a video of the shooter going into the school. I found out a lot of the kids got shot in the face. That's why there are so many kids that are 'missing.' They're unidentifiable. That's disturbing. The shooter posted on Facebook before he did it. He messaged a girl from California that he was gonna do it too. She was sick and asleep though. She couldn't stop him. Plus she's in LA.

A nine year old survivor said the shooter came into the classroom. He said they were watching The Adam's Family and he came in and said "It's time to die." The kid and his friend and one other person hid under a tablecloth. I watched an interview of a father. His daughter was Amerie Jo and she was trying to call 911 and was shot in the face. I couldn't watch the whole thing. He was so upset. The reporter was trying to console him but it was pointless. That poor man.

Mr. Henry and Robert were talking about it and it got political. Mr. Henry said, "I have an AR in my backseat and it's never gotten up and shot nobody." Elaine asked him why he needed a military rank gun in his backseat. He told Elaine he needs it in case he gets charged by a boar. He doesn't need it. A rifle works just as well. He said it's quicker. Shocker. He said it's not a gun problem. It's a mental health problem. I said he was right. I told him the problem is that healthcare isn't affordable so no one gets help. He said I was right.

I saw a TikTok last night from the guy who works at Oasis. Apparently that's where the guns and ammo were purchased. It makes me sick. Mom and I literally go there for the salad bar all the time. We bought my brother a knife from there for Christmas.