𝐄𝐍𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 | ˢʷᵉᵉᵗ ᵖᵉᵃ

T W O

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People like you...

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               THAT NIGHT, Clemintine didn't sleep. She tried, but the simple fact of being back in her own bed—so warm, so safe—felt alien. She had forgotten these comforts, taking them for granted. With Julian next door and both parents just past the stairs, she was safer than she'd been in months, yet slumber remained elusive.

     At 5:00 AM, she heard her parents' door close, the signal for their early morning coffee run. They were up earlier than she remembered. She watched the clock across the room. The door opened and closed again exactly at 5:59. Julian finally exited his room at 6:15. With a heavy sigh, the youngest Bartholdy rose. She crossed the hall to the guest room for a shower.

     Back in her room, the blonde pulled on her signature white jeans and her lightest blue blouse. Tossing her freshly styled hair into a high ponytail and brushing her teeth, she managed to slip downstairs and out the front door, leaving undetected. Her old car sat in the driveway, a simple comfort she had deeply missed.

     It was far too early for school, so she headed to Pop's Chock'lit Shoppe, desperate for an early morning milkshake.
The white car's brakes let out a soft screech as she stopped. Clemintine smiled at the familiar ding of the bell. Pop Tate did a double-take.

     "I thought you had left us for good, swept away by the hustle of New York," the kind older man said. Clemintine was his favorite customer; she reminded him of his daughter.

     Clemintine slid onto her usual stool. "I could never leave my favorite person behind. He makes the best food."

     "Flattery will get you nowhere, Clemintine," Pop chuckled, shaking his head. "But it will get you a free breakfast. A welcome home."

     "You're the best, Pop." She called out as he headed to the kitchen.

     As she waited, her phone rang. "Hello?" She answered without checking the ID.

     "Where are you?" Julian's voice was calm. "How'd you sneak out so fast?"

     "I stopped by Pop's for breakfast. Starting my first day off right." She picked at a loose thread on her blouse.

     Julian chuckled. "Don't let Dad hear that—he got up extra early to cook your favorite."

     "Just tell them I left for school early, please."

      "Will do. See you later."

     "See ya." She hung up just as Pop placed down a plate of pancakes, bacon, and a banana milkshake. "You're a life saver." Pop returned her smile, then vanished into the kitchen, letting her eat in peace. She went straight for the milkshake. A year without one felt like a lifetime.

     By 7:00 AM, Clemintine had finished. She thanked Pop one last time and headed to Riverdale High.

     "You're late," Kevin greeted her at the front doors. "Here's your schedule, locker info, and everything else. Sheriff's son perks." He shoved papers into her hands. "Also, here's your Southside tutoring schedule."