The Boy in the Gray Hoodie

FOUR | Homewrecker

Lisa stopped in her tracks, forehead wrinkling at the annoyance of being startled. "What the..." she turned and set the electronics on the table in the entryway, slowly approaching the door.

Who visited people without calling first? Was that a thing that still happened? The only friends to come over had been the kind who just opened the door and walked in, knowing they were welcome. Lisa hesitated, hand hovering over the doorknob. Was it even safe to answer the door to strangers anymore? What time was it, anyway? Didn't they know she should be at school? Maybe this was a test to see if anyone was home. If she didn't answer, would they break in and start stealing stuff? Like a trip to the woods, the idea of thieves ransacking her father's house wasn't entirely unappealing. It would show him what happens when all you do is work. People notice. They see that you're never home and your daughter is all alone. Then they decide to steal your shit.

The doorbell rang a second time, causing Lisa to jump back, startled again. Letting out a growl, she lunged for the doorknob and pulled it open, no longer worried about thieves or being seen in her underwear and a kimono. She hated being scared more than she feared being robbed. "What the hell do you want?" she snapped before she could even see who was at the door.

"Um, nothing, just...Lisa...it's me." A short girl stood on the porch, her glasses fogged from the rain and her black hair piled into a frizzy mess on the top of her head. "Benadryl."

"What?" Lisa's face twisted in confusion.

The girl turned red. "That's what people...they call me that. At school. I thought you might recognize the name or something," she was mumbling, her gaze pinned to Lisa's neck. "No one remembers that my name is actually—"

"Amber. From history. I remember." Lisa raised an eyebrow.

"Oh," Amber seemed genuinely shocked.

"What do you want?"

"Oh, um, well...I just...um..."

"Listen, Amber, I'd love to stand here all day while you figure out what you wanted to tell me, but I'm actually in my underwear and it's cold out here," Lisa said impatiently, gesturing to herself with one hand and holding the door open a little wider with the other.

"That's okay, I understand. I'll just go then..." she turned and started walking down the steps, her uniform pressed snuggly to the rolls around her stomach thanks to the rain.

"Amber," Lisa said, letting go of the door and kicking it open the rest of the way. Apparently, she'd have to make the invitation really obvious. "Did you want to come inside?"

Amber blinked and slowly came back. "Um, sure?" she followed Lisa into the entryway, stopping to look at the high ceilings. They should have been filled with cobwebs for all the cleaning that anyone did in that place, but, alas, even the bugs preferred a real home to a cavernous mass. "Wow, you have a really nice home," she said politely, both thumbs tucked under the straps of her backpack.

"We call it the shack. But thanks," Lisa said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Amber obviously didn't get it, based on the blank expression on her face. "Hungry?"

"Um, no. Actually, I just came here to thank you." Amber rubbed the toe of her shoe against the floor and chewed her lip. "I know what you did and I...it means a lot to me. Nobody has ever stood up for me like that."

Lisa looked at her for a moment, then shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Amber blinked stupidly, her mouth hanging open. "The bathroom. What you wrote. You called Una Poetter a shitfaced liar."