Roommates

Chapter 32

As Aurora waited at her checkstand for the next guest, she picked up her phone to check the time, as if it would make a difference. It had been almost two hours, but her anger still burned like a fresh wound. In her notification bar, she read the synopsis of a message sent by none other than Blaire. The brief premise was to insult her and then to threaten her, so Aurora locked the screen and slammed her phone down on the counter.

She didn't need this harassment! She didn't need to put up with her sister's abuse. Blaire was always the problem child, not her.

On the counter, her phone began buzzing again. At first it was only a vibration every few minutes, then it became every thirty seconds or less. When she finished ringing up a guest's order, she gave the hag her total and picked up her device while the woman paid.

A series of messages filling four screens' lengths worth of space appeared in the dialogue box. Blaire had sent practically one thousand text messages. Starting with, "why would you tell Mom and Dad about that?" moving into something to the effect of "what is wrong with you?" followed by "at least read my messages you dumb bitch!" and ending with a dozen messages of "hello?" or "answer me?"

Aurora messaged her back, her fingertips dripping with rage. She explained that she was at work and put the phone down just as Evangeline was walking up.

"I can see you're still mad," Evangeline said, watching her thrust the receipt into the customer's hand with a grunt. "I just want to let you know that you have a break. It's a ten minute break, but go ahead and take twenty. Trey can cover your register. You look like you need a walk."

"I don't know what I need," Aurora said, her voice weak. It was hard enough to stand, let alone speak. Everything was weighing her down like cement under her skin.

Evangeline set her hand on Aurora's arm as she came around her to turn off the light to signal her absence. "How about we go outside?"

Aurora couldn't argue that fresh air could help her sour mood, so she gathered her things. She took a deep breath. "Why does my family treat me like shit?"

Taken aback by the rhetorical question, Evangeline didn't know where to begin. "You don't deserve it, that's for sure."

"My dad and Blaire are just unnecessarily cruel. Blaire, especially. And my mom just doesn't care what they do to me." Aurora caught a chill as they walked out of the store and began circling the building.

"Did you ever reach out to your biological dad?" Evangeline asked.

"I've only met him once. He was the cop who responded the night that my dad threw me out," Aurora said. The humid air tickled her lungs as she struggled not to fall into a traumatic flashback. "I looked in his eyes and I felt like I was seeing into a mirror. His gaze felt familiar."

Evangeline kicked small pebbles along the black top as they wandered around behind the store. "How did you find out that you weren't your dad's?"

"Blaire told me when we were kids." Aurora frowned. "Most kids have their older siblings say they're adopted or that they're a mistake. Mine just happened to be right."

"Elias tried to convince me of that, too."

Aurora chuckled, stepping over a puddle. "It's nice to know I'm not the only one with a fucked up life."

"I was about to say the same thing," Evangeline said, attempting to reach for Aurora's hand. The brisk air made her blood run cold and she sought Aurora's warmth. Although, her advance failed.

"I'm sorry about earlier," Aurora apologized delicately. "I just needed to know how much the rent would be because next week, I start school and I have to figure out how much I need to work to cover the bills."