friends //cody bellinger

three

    "So let me hear this again- you want me to come with you to your baseball game?" Currently, I was sitting next to Cody on my kitchen floor, a gallon tub of icecream that he had ran out and bought sat between us.

   He put a bite in his mouth and left the spoon in between his lips while he slowly nodded. "Yea, I do. I don't want you going out tonight doing you know what, so stay with me tonight."

  "I still barley know you, how do I know you're not some kind of psycho that's just gonna rape me or something?" I may of sounded a tad over dramatic, but I don't get why I what I do for a living affects him so much when he hardly knows me. And he can make up all this BS about how he's "drawn into me" and wants to get to know me but the truth is, he doesn't know me and doesn't know why I have to do what I have to do.

    "1. I'm not a psycho raper and 2. Even if I was, it's not like it'd be any different then what these men are doing to you."

   "I have consent with everything. So it's not like they're actually raping me."

   "You give consent but you're still just a 17 year old girl! That's illegal here!"

     I rolled my eyes and raised my voice, "None of them know I'm 17 dumbass!"

   He looked slightly hurt by what I had just said. "Well I don't mean to hurt your feelings or anything, but you look young. I knew right away you weren't old enough to be in that club and I'm sure as hell that these older guys you've been with that probably know more then I do, knew you weren't old enough to be in that club either. So yes, I would call what they did to you illegal."

"How is us having sex different then when I had sex with them? The only difference is you actually paid me more then they did." I stabbed my spoon in the ice cream and crossed my arms while staring at him, waiting for a reply.

   "I told you, I wanted to get to know you."

  "So the difference between them taking advantage of me and you taking advantage of me is that you wanted to get to know me? If you knew I wasn't of age, why would you let me take you back to my place. Why would you pay me to have sex with you?" I threw my arms up in confusion and frustration. What was this boys problem?

   "I don't know okay! But I just want to help you now. I shouldn't of accepted your offer but I had to be able to get to know you. I was and am still so fascinated with you. So please just come with me tonight! Don't go out, it's not safe for you to be doing."

"Why should I come with you tonight? Why are you so adamant on me coming to your game and staying with you after?"

"Emberly just please listen to me. Don't go out tonight. Don't go out ever again. I'll help you, just let me... please?"

   I sighed. I needed to go out- I needed to work. Staying at his place and going to watch his baseball game isn't going to help me pay my bills. I know that he genuinely is looking out for me and that everything he's saying is true, but he doesn't understand. He would never get why I do what I do, and even if he tried to help me it's not like he could. I'm not the kind of person that accepts handouts or freebies; I make my own way in life.

   "Cody, I'm sorry, but I can't. I'm still short on my water bill this month so I really need to go out tonight. The bills don't pay themselves."

"I'll help you with that!" He exclaimed, sitting up quickly and pulling his wallet out of his back pocket. "How much do you need?"

I stared at him, not being able to hide the look of disgust on my face.

"What's wrong?" He asked, noticing my not so happy facial expressions.

Is he serious? Did he think I was just going to expect him to pay everything I needed?

"You're not paying for my bills. That's not how I am. I don't take handouts from people." I replied bluntly.

"It's not a handout; you can pay me back when you can, preferably when you get a new job." He tried to negotiate but I was stubborn and I almost always got my way.

"Don't you get it? I can't get a new job. No ones gonna take a teenager who has no experience or education or even a drivers license! This is all I'm good for!"

He sighed and leaned back onto the cupboard that was behind him. "I really wish you wouldn't say that, you could be so much. You could amount to so much in life if you just got your feet on the ground. That's what I'm here for, I'll help you do that."

His offer seemed genuine, but like I've said, I'm stubborn. I don't like other people getting their own way over me, even if their way would benefit my own well being.

I thought hard about it. Maybe it would be a good idea, maybe I wouldn't have to keep giving parts of myself to people who don't give one damn about me or who I am, if I just listened to him. "What are you thinking of?" I asked, curious to what his plan to get me back on my feet consumed off.

"Let me help you find a job. I'm sure we can find you a gig around the stadium until you can do classes and get your GED so that you can apply for better jobs. You can stay with me so I can help you and you won't have to worry about bills and can save up your money and you'll be closer to the stadium.

I was hesitant. I really wanted to go along with the plan. It sounded like everything I wanted and needed. I sighed before reluctantly saying, "Fine. I'll stop what I'm doing now if you can get me a job at the stadium, and I'll work on getting my GED. But I'm staying in my house." This apartment was mine. It was something I bought and paid for. It gave me shelter from my abusive parents and a sense of comfort and safety. I was too proud and too fond of the apartment to just let it go.

Cody shook his head before smiling to himself. "Okay. Deal, but you're still staying with me tonight because that was apart of the original offer."

It was my turn to shake my head and snicker a bit. "Okay fine, but just for tonight."

"That's fine, as long as you're with me."