Raw [#Wattys2015]

Chapter 3

So, I'm not typically the kind of woman that is aggressive, nor do I conduct myself as such, but this neighborhood makes me feel like I should walk around with my chest puffed out for effect. The singlewide trailers are lined up along a pot-hole littered gravel road, amongst various amounts of garbage, cheap lawn furniture and old rusty cars that I'm willing to bet are broken down.

There are people standing around talking, looking at my car suspiciously as I drive down the line of trailers towards the one Charleigh lives in. They all look basically the same, all rusted with boarded windows or aluminum foil covering them. Some are dented, some are covered in mildew and others look like they're literally falling apart. As I pull up next to Charleigh's, which only differs due to the excessive amount of dents along the side of the metal exterior, and feel grateful for the small ranch house I live in with my dad. It's small, it's slightly cluttered and it's not in the best area of town, but at least it doesn't look like it should be condemned.

I've got to get Charleigh out of here. She doesn't deserve to live like this.

I don't honk the horn, because that could wake up her dad. He is a scary man, despite his lanky body. He is too thin, his skin is leathery and hangs off bones and the look in his eyes is always a little off. I can't explain it, but something about his eyes make him seem unstable, which is exactly why I'm here picking up Charleigh in the middle of the night.

Grabbing my phone, I text her that I'm here.

Outside.

Be out in a minute. Can you please turn off the headlights?

Sure.

Her request makes me feel immediately nervous. Why do I need to turn them off? I acquiesce, because frankly I'm not interested in finding out what happens if I don't.

My dad is awake. I'm coming out of my window. If he sees me leave, he'll freak.

Why? You're a grown woman.

Control.

My unease spreads to my stomach as I wait impatiently for her to hurry the hell up. I scroll through my email while I wait, trying to distract my paranoid mind. The part of me that worries to much takes my mind to a place where it stutters around about all the things that could happen in a place like this. A place where drug deals take place, where people get shot and where men abuse their wives and children.

The tapping of Charleigh's nail against my window puts some truth into the saying "jumped out of my skin". I swear it felt like my bones just pelted against the thin layers of my skin and ricocheted against each other before settling into a slow vibration that has sped up my heart.

I unlock the car and Charleigh dumps her thin body into the seat. "Go." She commands, keeping her eyes glued to the closed front door of her trailer.

Backing out of her space, sans my headlights, I try to lighten the mood. "I'm pretty sure I just died. I've officially lost a life."

She clicks her seatbelt into place. "Died?" She asks, grabbing her thick mop of blond hair in both of her hands, pulling it up into a messy bun.

"Uh, yea. Your stealthy escape took one of my lives when you tapped against my window. I thought you were a pimp or something."

She laughs, rolling her blue eyes as she secures her hair with a thin hairband. I'll never understand how she gets all of her hair to stay on top of her head like that with just one single hair band. Her hair is shoulder length and seriously thick and wavy. It looks like it should take a huge scrunchy, straight from the ninety's, with extra elastic to hold it in place. "Sorry," she laughs, pulling her legs into the seat and criss-crossing them underneath her.