It's Complicated

Chapter 2: Travis Stanton

After parking my royal blue 2005 Ford Mustang out front of Kacey’s apartment building, I hop out and jog up the cement steps to the big wooden door. Turning to the keypad on the building’s wall, I find the button with “Eton” next to it and press it, a loud beep shortly following. Leaning my back against the wall beside the door and propping my foot up on it with my arms crossed, I wait for Kacey.

“I’ll be down in a minute,” Kacey’s voice crackles over the intercom. She doesn’t offer to let me in, which isn’t a surprise. It was a surprise the first few times, and the times when it was raining when I picked her up for school. But now, it’s nothing new.

Holding down her button, I reply, “No rush.” I lean back against the wall.

Sitting there, I think about our last date. She had stayed for so long that I thought she wouldn’t leave. When her phone had gone off, I was crushed, knowing she would be leaving again. I always wonder where she goes and why she won’t tell me. It’s like she has some huge secret and she doesn’t trust me…

There is a click as Kacey unlocks the front door from the inside. It always confused me why she has to lock and unlock the door manually, considering the lock is an electronic lock. Seconds later, the door opens and she slips out, carefully closing the door behind her.

“Hey Kacey,” I greet her, leaning off of the wall. She turns around and smiles. Her wavy blonde hair sits above her shoulders, and, in the dim light, I can see a bit of purple beneath her blue eyes, possibly from lack of sleep. I notice she’s wearing the green long sleeve shirt that she seems to like a lot because she wears it every other week.

After locking the door with her key and making sure it’s locked, she turns around and hugs me. When I take her hand in mine, her face twists in pain and she rips her hand from mine.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, genuinely confused.

She shakes her head and says, “It’s nothing. I just hit my arm this morning and it hurts a bit.” She moves to my other side and taking my hand in hers, we walk to my car.

~ ~ ~

The breezeway that leads to the school’s main courtyard is crowded, as always. Kacey’s right hand is in my hand as we enter the large courtyard. It is a large, outdoor space in the center of the school, with the wings of the school branching out of every one of the four corners. My buddy, Nick, is standing in the middle of the brick-floored space. His slightly curly, brown hair rests on top of his head, and his eyes are locked on a certain spot in the distance. I wonder if he is actually looking at something or just thinking.

As we walk over to him, he notices us and announces, “Look who decided to show up!”

I laugh and say, “Nice to see you too, Nick. What’s up?”

“Nothing important,” he says nonchalantly. “What about you two?”

Kacey shrugs and I reply, “Nothing.” I notice that Nick has that look on his face like he wants to say something.

“What is it?” I ask him.

“Did you hear about the bank robbery last night?” he asks. Kacey and I both shake our heads. “Well,” he continues. “That new bank over on Main Street was almost robbed Friday night.”

“Almost?” I inquire, interested.

“Yeah,” he says. “According to the robber, who was caught, by the way, someone else broke into the bank at the same time, and it was a girl.”

“Is there something wrong with a girl robbing a bank?” Kacey questions him. “Well, other than the fact that she’s robbing a bank.”

“That’s the thing.” Nick says. “She wasn’t robbing the bank. She stopped the robber, hand cuffed him to a desk, and left before the cops got there. Just like that home invasion that was stopped a few days before. And that kidnapping before that. And that gas station robbery before that.” I think I see Kacey’s lips turn up in a smile, but it’s gone almost as soon as I think I see it.