Here We Lie

01

Jayden Flores

"Why do you hate us so much?" Jazlyn, my friend, whined. She started throwing a tantrum after I told her to leave me alone and let me work. She didn't care that my job was on the line if she wouldn't leave me alone. "Jazz, can you just let me work, please?" I fumed, hoping that it was obvious I was annoyed with her obnoxious behavior. She still didn't get the hint.

"Jazlyn, let's leave him be and go do whatever you want to do," my other friend, Tyler commanded. Before Jazzy even got the opportunity to respond, she was already being dragged out of the store by Tyler. I let out a sigh of relief, glad I had Tyler as a friend. I had a low tolerance for Jazzy, but Tyler, I didn't mind him at all. Everyone needs a Tyler in their life, and I'm glad I had one.

After another hour of helping customers find where they could find stuff, I grew bored. I kept catching myself zoning out and decided it'd be best if I took my hour-long lunch break. I walked to the back and looked around for a few seconds, spotting my manager. "Hey, Rachel, is it good if I go on lunch?" I asked, waiting for her response. Rachel looked at me with a big-hearted smile. "Sure! You could even take the rest of the day off if you'd like, Lisa should be coming in soon," Rachel cheered. I always liked Rachel, she was a woman who was in her mid-thirties, and she was nothing compared to other old women. She had a giant heart.

I smiled and gave her a quick thanks as I walked towards the break room. I slid my jacket off and put it on one of the hangers, making my way out of the store afterward. I pulled my phone out of the pocket of my jeans, putting Tyler's number in. It only rang for a few seconds before he picked up.

"Hello?" He said into his phone. I could hear Jazz asking who it was in the background. She was always nosy. "You guys still at the mall? If so, where?" I asked, waiting for a response. "Yeah, we are, we're at the candy store. Jazlyn's fatass said she needed some food but didn't want real food," Tyler said, making sure to emphasize the word real. "Alright, be there in a minute," I said, quickly hanging up the phone. I slid my phone back into my pocket as I made my way toward the escalator that would lead me to the first story of the mall. I stepped on the step, waiting patiently as I descended the escalator.

I spent a couple of minutes making my way toward the candy store, and eventually, I finally reached it. I glanced toward a loud voice to see Jazz and Tyler arguing. That's how it normally went, they argued, and Tyler would win. Jazzy was just too immature to ever win an argument, I guess. I walked towards them and smiled, clearing my throat to make my presence known. They both glared at me, Jazzy's eyebrow shooting up as if she were confused. "Aren't you supposed to be working?" She questioned me, acting like my mom. "Not for the rest of today! Rachel decided I could have the rest of the day off," I grinned.

Jazzy nodded, looking as if she didn't believe what I said. I scoffed, not believing that she didn't believe me. "Jay, can you tell Tyler that $50 worth of candy is reasonable? Please," Jazzy begged. I sighed and nodded, feeling forced to agree with her.

"See? Even Jay agrees with me, that's two against one," she bragged.

Tyler glared at me, his stare burning through my skin. I knew he wouldn't hear the end of Jazzy's bragging.

***

A couple of hours later, we were all making our way through the parking lot, heading towards Tyler's car.

"I still can't believe you spent over $200 on yourself in one day," Tyler scolded, glaring at Jazzy as we all got into the car.