This Hard Life

Chapter 13: Standing in the Rain

Chapter 13

I ran to my Cruiser. I heard Scott calling after me. How could he do this? I mean, sure everyone has a past and that may include ex-boyfriends or ex-girlfriends. But, I thought he genuinely cared for me. A small part of me thought that he may even love me. Now, I can truly say that I was a fool.

A fool for love.

Yes, I believe that I love Scott. My heart felt like it tore out of my chest when I saw him with Rachel. He didn’t even pull his hand away! Another thing, he knew that I was coming to meet him before his interview. Sure, I was a little late because of my stupid art teacher talking and not helping me with my portrait.

I came closer to my car. Before I knew it I was sitting in the drivers’ seat with tears streaming down my face. I saw Scott in the rear-view mirror and I didn’t want to talk to him. I turned my key in my ignition and the Cruiser started. I was now pulling out of the parking space.

I called Lorna and asked her if she could watch Gracie for a little longer. She offered to have Gracie spend the night. I reluctantly agreed. Next I called Mom at the hospital. I told her that I couldn’t come to see her tonight. She seemed a little bit disappointed, so then I started to feel guilty, but she kept telling me that she understood.

“You can’t always be coming here. You should have some fun,” she told me. “Go see if Claire will talk to you again. Or, you can hang out with Scott for a while.”

“Yeah, I think I’m going to just hang in the apartment.”

“Oh, well if you’re sure. But I still think that you should hang out with some people tonight. That’s just a mother’s opinion!”

“I know,” I said.

We didn’t talk for too much longer. By the end of our conversation, my voice started cracking. I knew that tears were about to show themselves once more.

I parked outside of the apartment building. I rushed inside and up to our home. By the time I closed the door there was no way of stopping myself from crying. I went into the living room and sat on the couch to stare at the wall.

I stopped crying at about 5:30. Oh geez, I have been crying for about one hour and fifteen minutes. I wasn’t hungry. I wasn’t thirsty. I wasn’t…. anything. I was just Charlotte Wood, who just got her heart broken.

I decided that I wanted to go for a walk. I checked the temperature quickly. It was 72 degrees Fahrenheit. I thought that it was a little cool for late spring, especially for southern California. So, I grabbed my hoodie before I walked out the door.

I just walked aimlessly. There was no destination in mind. I was just going.

I came to a dead end. I decided that I was going to turn left. There was an ally way on one side of me, and a street on the other side where a single car was driving. I felt a single raindrop fall on my nose. There were a few more that fell before there was a torrential downpour.

I noticed that there was a wall that was slightly covered with a roof. I crossed the street and leaned against the wall.

There was absolutely nothing in my life going right in my life. My mom’s probably going to die next week, and if she does then, Grace and I will have to go into foster care or something like that. I won’t turn eighteen until the following two weeks. Grace will grow up without a mother. I can’t even try to make amends with Claire. She made that absolutely clear the other night at the party. And then there’s Scott. He was the one thing that seemed to my life so much brighter. But now, my life seemed like this rainy night; dark, and full of sorrow.

After standing in the rain for who knows how long, I had a sudden thought. There was no time to think about how insane it seemed, because I would talk myself out of it. I was just running through the streets and puddles.

I was going to see Claire.

I knew that she lived pretty close to the neighborhood where I was standing. It was about a five minute walk. But I was running, so that made it faster.

I arrive at Claire’s front door as I was catching my breath. I knocked, hoping that she wouldn’t chide me or ignore me.

The door then opened and Claire saw me. I must have been a slight in my soaked clothes. Claire let me come in with no explanation whatsoever. She waited until I was ready to talk, and when I was I spilled everything. She listened intently with no interruptions.

Claire invited me to stay the night. When my hair was dry and I was in a pair of her sweats, I fell into a sound sleep on Claire’s bed.

It seemed like old times.

Hey everyone! I thought that I would somehow include the picture on the cover into the story! Tell me what you think. Also, I had the idea to start another story call A Lady Never Tells. I think you should check it out, not that I'm biased or anything!! Thanks!