Our Sick Inheritance (editing)

Ch 109(anna) - Nasty Situation

Anna woke up startled. She was aware that something was happening but for a few seconds couldn't register what it was. She had to readjust her sight to the bright light that streamed into her car. Anna realized a giant construction truck drove along the road and was the cause of her dreamlike disturbance. Her body was twisted and cramped in the front seat, so she tried to stretch her legs and spine but wasn't getting the room she needed to do a successful job. Stepping outside her car however was much too risky. After she readjusted her seat, Anna looked straight at Brittany's house where movement was none.

Anna rubbed her eyes as the early morning shine filled the day's beginnings making sure nothing was hidden in the shadows any longer. Anna felt like she was exposed even though there was a park of trees between Brittany's house and her car. Her clothes felt rough and sticky as they were the only things that kept heat on her body. Her jacket felt cold to the touch.

It was cold because of the candy glasslike layer of snow that covered the surfaces it could reach while she had slumbered in a cramped ball. The heat that was in the car before she had closed her eyes was gone. Anna tightened her jacket around her then turned her ignition on quietly. The car coughed and choked, not like her beautiful car she traded with that purred like a kitten when you started her. It took a while for this car to heat up. When the heater finally filled the inside of the car enough to be comfortable, Anna switched the engine off to avoid smoke that flowed out of the pipes from being seen. Again, Anna wished she had taken her car for she could have left it running all night and would have been perfectly comfortable as well as inconspicuous.

She laughed at herself for being paranoid in the first place but knew her expensive car would stick out like a sore thumb in the working-class community of houses. Anna had gotten herself into so much more trouble since she left to worry about Jake knowing she was following him. Who knew things would have been taken this far.

Anna wasn't sure she felt feverish, but she was certainly depressed by her situation. The conditions of her comfort were deplorable, which she could deal with, but the heaviness of her heart was too much to contain. In the darkness she had cried herself to sleep so her brain would finally shut off the connections, which left her heart to express its pain in her dreams.

If it wasn't for the stupid girlfriend, Anna would have been heading towards her home with her new fiancé to break the news to her father. Even though the idea of her baby was deeply etched into her new life, she still wasn't even sure how her daddy was going to feel about being a grandfather. Anna smiled as her father had always easily forgiven her but hoped that at least a marriage would have softened the blow. As many scenarios as she played out in her head, Anna hadn't convinced herself into a perfect fantasy because sometimes she didn't know how her father's brain worked. The angry reactions she came up with were too horrifying to contemplate as she had seen her father's rage flicker with others on occasion. There was a calmness in him that made his bright blue eyes look black because of how largely his pupils dilated.

A movement of curtains from Jake's window caught his attention and Anna smiled. It was sweet that he was looking for her. Immediately she remembered what had happened the night before and that they weren't on friendly terms anymore. She turned in the seat and saw Jake pack up his truck up.

Brittany and her mother were holding their hands to their noses. Jake bent to look under his vehicle. Anna smiled. She knew she had hidden the skunk far enough up that he wouldn't see it. Brittany's father was walking around the truck to check out the strength of the smell but could barely handle it before he had to step away. Anna laughed. If she would have slept longer she would have missed this. The others moved to the front door after quickly saying their goodbyes to escape the smell. Anna burst into a fit of giggles. Jake's hug for Brittany lasted the longest. Anna glared at the girl, silently cursing her.