Chapter 2

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The season is Fall here, where I live. I don't think it matters where I live as long as you know the general topography of the land. But for arguments sake let's just say I live in St. Germaine County, Florida. I don't think you'd have to guess real hard to figure out the name of the country. 

The most important thing you should know is that I'm a habitual liar. I've learned it's easier if you let other people fill in the blanks for themselves. God knows they'll all come to their own conclusions without my help. I'm a Junior at Bikini Bottom High School. That's where you laugh because that's totally a joke. Like I said, it's more interesting if I let you fill in the blanks.

I live in a small town, not really in St. Germaine but close enough. We all have the same postal address so I don't feel too bad about that whiter. I live with my cousin Cal and his boyfriend Christopher. I'm not going to tell you some sob story about how my parents are dead and that's why I smoke, because that's true, I'm just not going to talk about it. I've lived with Cal off and on since I was seven, and it's never bothered me that he's gay. Chris is my "mother" but Cal's just my cousin, the seemingly unemotional one although between you and me, he was the one who begged Chris to consider taking me in, NOT the other way around.

I'm ditching school today, but not for the first time of course. The sky's getting darker and I still have two and a half miles to walk to get back into town. I don't know much about the history of Florida because I've honestly never given a shit but I've always lived here.

I have no friends.

Camp Bell has a railroad track that only covers the east side. Our town is only 20 or so miles from the beach but I hardly go; it's boring. Like I said I don't know much about the history of Florida and I honestly don't know why there would even be tracks this far south but they haven't been used anytime in the last century.

I come out here to watch birds and burn the air with my lighter. I don't smoke out here, honest. My chemistry teacher Dr. Franco has actually caught me smoking joints behind the bleachers a couple times but he never told on me although he threatened to with the odd looks he gave me.

The grass is up to my shins but soft so I never wear long pants out here unless I know it's going to rain. I bend down suddenly spotting my lighter adjacent to the edge of the tracks and a pile of rocks. I don't waste time dusting it off but simply pick it up and turn my body towards town.                                              ...

Cal owns a small blue car that looks like a piece of junk because the body is blue and the trunk is black, but actually has a killer stereo system. Chris on the other hand is the breadwinner of our small family and does not own a car of his own. Chris borrows my car (mostly because he hates Cal's) to drive into town. He manages a small boutique that a bunch of girls favour opposed to the other stores in town. I have no idea why they shop there. Maybe because my cousin's hubbie is easy on the eyes and seems hard to get when he ignores their flirtatious advances.

It's dusk when I finally get home. There's more sand than dirt mixed with the grass in our yard. Little grains of sand can't help but jump into my Docs but I continue to walk briskly to our front door. I don't want my parents to know I skipped school today. They know I skip school but today was the first day. And even though I hate it and it's a sensitive subject, I never skip the first day. I'm almost to the front door when a giant pair of white-blue lights spots me trying to sneak into the house. I freeze not because I'm scared to be spotted by Chris but because I know there is no point in trying to cover up my disobedience.

The headlights on my yellow Beetle face me and come to a halt. I can't see Chris's face over the glow but I can just imagine it right now and my skin is crawling. The lights audibly click off and for a moment all I can see is the purplish sky fading slowly into black.

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