Change Chapter 04: Scared Straight

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"But I can't change... Even if I tried... Even if I-"

"Hey!" I yelled as my father yanked my headphones out of my ears, scaring me half to death. I had been peacefully laying on my bed listening to music and doing homework. "What do you want?!"

"I want you to go clean all of your crap out of my living room. NOW." He snapped.

"Dad-"

"No!" He whispered threateningly, interrupting me in the process. "You go and you clean my living room. It is called that for a reason. You live in it. It's not a garbage can. Your mother and James and I are going out for dinner. I want that living room exactly how it was when you walked into our house a few days ago." And he turned and walked away.

I stood up and picked up the book I knocked over.

"Maybe I wanted to go out for dinner or actually go out and have a social life." I thought and then realized I was grounded and Callie wasn't answering my calls and she was pretty much the only friend that I liked. "All because of one stupid mistake!" I thought, kicking over my limited edition Harry Potter wand set. (Yes, I am a book nerd)

"OW!" I yelled as I hopped up and down on one foot rubbing my toe.

"What was that loud noise? Are you okay?" Jacob said running into my room.

"It's fine" I said sitting on my bed as James picked up my wands and put them back in the rock-hard box.

"Jake! Jake, hurry up sweetie!" My mom yelled up the stairs.

"See ya." I said putting my headphones back in my ears.

"I'm really sorry about being mad at you the other day." He said looking at the ground.

"Go, Jake. They're waiting for you." I said and pretended to be writing again in my homework book.

When I looked back he was gone but he had left something on the ground. It was a small bouquet of forget-me-not's and he knew all too well that they were my favorite flowers. I picked them up and placed them on my windowsill in a vase.

"Come on Callie, please pick up..." I muttered as I tried to call Callie again. But for the 12th time today I got sent to voicemail and heard: "Hey hey hey! Callie's cell here! Sorry I missed your call but leave your name and number and I'll call you back as soon as I can! Thanks!"

"Callie it's me again. Please call me back and stop sending me to voicemail. I need to talk to you." I said and hung up. That was the 22nd voicemail I've sent to her within the past three days.

"Well, if Callie isn't answering me and I'm bored and not aloud out of the house... I have to sneak out." I pondered out loud.

I grabbed my purse and stuffed my Baby Lips lip balm, sweater, wallet, sunglasses and a pack of gum inside.

"Let's do this." I said climbing out my window on the side of the house. And yes, I know that nobody is home but the security cameras are on and I don't want my parents to see me sneaking out. As soon as I dropped down on the grass I walked around the hedge and stepped on to the sidewalk, looking down at my cell phone and accidently running something.

"Oh god!" I said startled looking up at what (or should I say who) I ran into. "Sorry, Mister Whitley! You startled me!" I said as he looked at me, annoyed.

"All you teenage misfits with your dumb handheld technologic devices! Watch where you're going next time, kid!" he yelled, shaking his cane at me.

"Sorry, Mister Whitley!" I said as he continued walking down the sidewalk grumbling something like "Low life teens. Nothing to live for nowadays."

"Well someone is grumpy today..." I muttered as I walked past his house, looking at the garden of dead flowers, picking up the pace because honestly, the woman and her husband that live next to him scare me. My brother and I call the woman the crazy cat lady because she has seven cats and one day Jacob and I were walking to the store at the end of the street and we could hear her yelling at a cat through the open window. She's pretty creepy.

But the old man scares me because he wears an eye patch on one eye and he sits on his porch on a musty old rocking chair with a brown paper bag offering the children on our street 'candy'.

Once when I was just little I made the mistake of saying yes but luckily my mother was there to steer me away. Afterwards I got a huge lecture on never accepting anything from strangers and all that crap.

"Would you like a candy my dear?" I heard the old man say in his raspy voice.

"Oh, no thank you. I'm actually... late for something important." I lied nervously.

"Oh really?" he said smirking, "well why didn't you just go with your parents and your handsome little brother?" he asked with a snicker.

"Oh I'm actually headed to... meet my friend." I continued lying.

"I think that is a lie!" he whispered getting up from his rocking chair and leaning against the post on his porch.

"I'm sorry, I really have to go." I said and started walking down the sidewalk as fast as possible while trying to look normal.

"Alright dear." He said. "I'll wait for you! You don't have your mommy to protect you now!" he called after me as I broke into a sprint.

I sprinted and sprinted, repetatively looking back and suddenly I ran into someone. Literally.

Maybe I shouldn't have left home after all.

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter of "Change"! The "crazy cat lady" is based off of my friend's neighbor but I came up with the whole "Candyman" idea. The crazy cat lady story in real life is actually very comical. Please comment your opinions on Emily's character and the story in general! Thanks so much for reading my story!

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⏰ Last updated: Sep 12, 2013 ⏰

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