Two of a Kind (Vance Hopper)

Chapter 10.

     The two of them waited for the cookies to finish baking in silence. And Kitt hated it. She was having a great time before his father had come home. He had ruined her high and it was becoming more and more frustrating. Vance was different now. He seemed every bit of the rumors that had spread about him now. She began to chew on the inside of her cheek, trying not to show exactly how much this had effected her mood. She heard the beeping of the oven and went to pull out their dessert. 

     Vance watched her put the cookies on a plate, waiting until she was finished before he gently grabbed her arm and pulled her back to his room, the one place he knew she would be safe. He let out a soft sigh of relief when they entered his room again. He hadn't wanted her to see what his father was like. If he had known that he was going to be home, he wouldn't have brought her here. He picked up the unfinished joint, lighting it and taking a long drag. That man ruined his high, and he was sure that he had ruined hers too by the way she seemed to be glaring at everything she saw. 

     He passed her the joint, trying to get them back to how they had been before. "You okay? I didn't think he was going to be here," he muttered, taking the time to actually examine her, making sure she hadn't gotten cut by the shattered glass. He sat down where he had before, Kitt following his lead. She sat back in her chair, putting the plate of cookies on his dresser before taking a big hit off of the joint. She shook her head as if to tell him it wasn't his fault.

     "It's not a big deal, Vance. Your dad and mine should be friends," she teased, trying to lighten the mood, at least a little bit. Hearing her comment he looked at her, shock and disgust covering his face. Her dad was like his? The thought disgusted him. He knew that he would be fine, he could handle whatever his dad threw his way, but he was a little concerned for Kitt. He knew she could handle herself, at least from the little he had seen, but she was a lot smaller than him. She was very petite. He sucked on his teeth out of irritation and fell back on his bed, trying to hold his tongue. "What? Too soon? Sorry," she apologized before taking another drag off of the joint. 

     "Don't apologize for dumb shit," he said softly, rolling his eyes at her. "You don't got to answer, but your dad, he hasn't hurt you has he?" he whispered, hoping, praying that he was wrong. She looked at him in shock, but she couldn't respond. She couldn't tell him. She looked away as she lifted the joint to her lips once more, looking for a reason to not answer him. Her silence was all the confirmation that he needed though. He knew the answer, and it pissed him off. She didn't need that. She didn't deserve it, not like he did. He sighed and sat up, reaching for the joint. 

     "So, Pinball Boy," she started, earning an annoyed glance from the curly haired boy in front of her, "what's some stuff I should know about you?" She watched as his eyebrows rose in shock at her question. He wasn't used to people actually trying to get to know him. It wasn't normal. No one wanted anything to do with him. He shifted, trying to think about what he could even tell her. She knew more about him than most others at this point. He let out a big cloud of smoke before he began speaking, telling her everything that he could think of. How he had gotten held back twice, his age, birthday, whatever he could think of. Kitt listened intently, soaking up everything he was saying. 

     The uncomfortable tension had finally left them, letting them relax in the small room. She smiled at some of his stories, turning and picking up one of the baked goods that she had made. She took a bite and groaned, letting her head fall back and hit the chair. "Dude, have a cookie. They're fucking amazing right now," she said with a goofy grin. She handed him a cookie, which he took with a roll of his eyes. He ate the cookie in only a couple of bites, nodding in agreement with her statement. She looked over at the clock on his wall and sighed, realizing that their afternoon had come to and end.  "I need to head home. We should do this again sometime," she said softly, grinning at him. 

     Vance frowned at her words, not happy about her going home for a few reasons. The biggest reason at the moment was that he didn't want her to be in the house with her father. He didn't know what would happen to her there. He knew she had made it this far in life with that man, but he hadn't known her before yesterday. He sighed and stood up with her, nodding. "Tomorrow. We can do this again tomorrow, I'll make sure the old man isn't here when you come over," he offered, walking to his door. She followed, nodding in agreement. They walked out of the house and towards hers together, silence engulfing the two as they made their way down the street. 

      She sighed as she saw her prison of a home, stopping in front of her house. "This is my stop. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" She said, smiling up at him weakly. He nodded and glanced at her house before turning to her. 

"Do you got a piece of paper?" He asked, confusing her for a moment. She nodded before digging in her bag for a scrap piece of paper. He took it from her, digging the pencil out of his pocket before writing his number down on it. "If you need me there's my number," he said softly, smirking at her as she pocketed the number. She nodded at him, watching as he turned to walk back to his house. She opened the door, walking in to the house. She walked into the kitchen to get a drink and was surprised to see her father there, looking out the window. 

     She held her breath for a moment, refusing to move. Her father turned to look at her, murder in his eyes. "Who the fuck was that?" He demanded. When she didn't answer he slammed his hand on the counter, making her flinch. "Huh?! Are you some kind of whore now?!" He screamed at her, moving closer to her. She swallowed thickly and ran upstairs to her room, locking the door before he was able to get inside. She stumbled over to her bed as she heard her father banging on her door, trying to get in.