The bell rang over her head as Lauren crashed into the diner, flashing quick smiles at people who called her name and waved; Christy’s was a place that Lauren was all too familiar with. Back when both her and Frankie’s parents had been around they’d take the girls here to eat and she and Frankie would slip under the tables and talk for hours while their parents drank coffee and caught up on their lives.
Now, it was her work place.
“Well, look what the cat dragged in.” Hank, her boss, grumbled as he pushed himself against the counter and perked an eyebrow watching as the sixteen-year-old rolled her eyes and held her hand out and wiggled her fingers. “Oh hell no. You haven’t been in to work for three days, there’s no way I’m paying you shit. You and Frankie are gonna have to make money some other way this week, you’ve both been slacking.”
“We’re students in high school, Hank. Frankie is trying to maintain an A average for an attempt at a scholarship, and I’m trying to stay alive in that hell hole.” Lauren hissed, Hank rolling his eyes at the story he heard every time he refused to pay one of the girls. “Please, we’re just fifty dollars short of rent and if we can’t pay then Frankie will have to deal with Jacob and that never ends well.”
Hank sighed as he shook his head and tossed his towel over his shoulder before making his way over to the register watching as Lauren’s shoulders dropped in relief causing a small smile to pull at his lips, “You are so lucky the two of you are cute because I don’t do this for everyone. Next week though, you two are pulling doubles because I can’t keep dishing out all this fucking money.”
“I love you!” Lauren cheered happily as he handed her two hundred dollars, the girl leaning across the counter causing Hank to roll his eyes once more before leaning forward and allowing her to press a kiss to his cheek. “You’re the best, I’ll make sure Frankie know you did this for us. She’ll kiss the crap out of you.”
“Maybe she’ll finally agree to go on a date with me.”
“Ha, keep dreaming, lover boy.” Lauren winked as she waved the money in dismissal and Hank chuckled and waved as he watched her exit the diner, Lauren skipping happily as she tucked the money into the safety of her purse. “Don’t wanna break your heart, wanna give your heart a break! I know your scared it’s wrong, like you might make a mistake. There’s just one life to live and there’s not time to wait!”
The brunette continued to sing, ignoring the looks that were shot her way as she spun around playfully along the sidewalk, winking at a little boy who flashed her a grin. She wasn’t sure why she was over the moon with happiness, maybe it was the fact that she and Frankie now had one hundred and fifty dollars to save up or the fact that Frankie and Mollie could be heading back to the right path.
She had been rooting for her cousin to end up with the blonde, Mollie had been the nicest person that Frankie had dated and she always tried to keep Rochelle and Una from messing with Lauren whenever they saw her in the halls or in public. Dancing up the front steps, Lauren skipped into her building and hurried up the steps, ignoring the cat calls she received from the drunks in her apartment building.
“Disgusting perverts.” Lauren hissed, slamming her door shut.
—
Camila swallowed hard as she pulled her purse further up her arm as she stared up at the run down apartment standing before her, she honestly felt like she was on the street that Arnold from Hey Arnold live on. The sound of police sirens chimed and the yells of children echoed against the bricks as she sucked in a calming breathe and danced up the dirty steps, curling her nose as a man thrusted a cup in her face, jiggling it slightly.
