Darkest Desires [Joel Miller]

2

The next morning I wake up, my phone red from the missed calls from Marcus. I listened to some voicemails where he apologized for hitting me, explaining how drunk he was and how he needed me back. I deleted them all: voicemails, missed calls and the messages. He can apologize but that doesn't change my mind.

I put my phone back to my bedside table, hearing a faint knock on the door. Sarah opens the door, smiling at me. I smile back at her, inviting her in. 

"Dad made breakfast: scrambled eggs and bacon,"she explains, pointing at my cheek. "How is your cheek?"

"Better. I put on some ice last night. I hope it doesn't look too bad."

"With a little bit of makeup, no one would even notice."

There is a silence between us but it's never been awkward. When me and Sarah were teenagers, we used to sit on Sarah's porch in silence, thinking about what the future will have on us. Joel breaks the silence moment between us, inviting us to downstairs.

"Girls, come on, food will be cold if you don't come downstairs!"

Sarah rolls her eyes. "We're coming, dad!"

"I'll get ready and come downstairs in a moment too."

Sarah nods, leaving me alone. My clothes have been sitting inside my suitcases since I arrived last night. I would have put them away into the closet, but me and Sarah stayed up until 1 am and I was so exhausted.

 "Morning,"I greeted Joel. He turned around and greeted me with a slight nod.

"If you wanna make coffee, then please, serve yourself."

He turns off the stove and takes his plate to the living room, leaving me and Sarah alone. I sighed.

"Your dad is clearly not happy with the fact that I have to stay here."

Sarah took a sip from her coffee, looking at me. "Don't worry, he'll come around eventually."

"Maybe I shouldn't have called you..."I say, taking a bite from the scrambled eggs.

"And where would you have gone?"Sarah asks, sighing. "Back to Marcus?"

"Maybe..."

Sarah shakes her head. "Don't even think about going back to him. You did the right thing by leaving him."

"I know but... I feel like a burden by staying here."

"You're not a burden to us. I'll talk to dad."

"Sarah, please, don't,"I begged her. "I can deal with him."

Sarah sighed. "Fine but if my dad keeps being rude, I'll talk to him."

When we finish our breakfast, I offer to wash the dishes. We had a deal and I'll keep my part of the deal by doing house chores. It's the least I can do since he doesn't want to take rent from me. I dry the dishes and put them away into the pantry, heading to the backyard with Sarah.

"What are you thinking about?"Sarah asks, looking at me.

"About a job. I know Joel said that he doesn't take rent from me but it's... It's not right."

 "And what job are you thinking about?"

I shrugged. "Anything at this point."

"I know Vasanta's bar is looking for a bartender but... you know the reputation of this bar. It's the middle aged men who go there to look at young girl's asses."

"Middle aged men like your dad?"I nudged her playfully.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Shut up!" 

I had no experience in a bartending job but at least I could try. I didn't have many choices in this small town anyway and it can't be that bad. Right? I needed all the work experience I could get because before, Marcus used to be the one who went to work and paid all the bills. I used to work in a small bookshop for a short time and I loved this job but the shop sadly went bankrupt. It's been hard to find a new job ever since. I would even be happy with the part time job.

"Well, I... I can try, right? It can be that bad and I've heard they pay good money."

Sarah shakes her head. "No, Daisy... Just wait a little bit and see what choices you have."

"What harm can come from trying?"I asked her. "I'm gonna call in tomorrow and see what they can do."

"I shouldn't have told you,"Sarah sighed.

"Don't worry, Sarah,"I tried to calm her down. "I can volunteer myself for the test day and see how this goes."

Sarah nodded, giving up arguing with me. I was hoping this would work out because I needed money more than anything right now...