Don't Get Angry

11- Otis: Empty the Register

I watched the rain hit my windshield as I pulled up to the restaurant looking around for Dalta. I was hoping that the GPS hadn't let me down like it usually did. It hadn't. Dalta stood in a bright pink dress with her hair pulled back in a bun. I almost stared until I noticed the brown smudges on her dress and began to hurl. I parked the car in front of the restaurant and grabbed the bag of clothes I brought for her, then I got out with an umbrella and rushed over to her. "You smell..." I was about to tease her, then I froze and stared at her.

She was in tears, her eyes glossy and eyeliner smudging her cheeks. "They're not letting me go to the bathroom in the restaurant. I just...I wanted to wipe this off my dress... It's ruined."

I sighed. "You can change in the car." I took the wet purse and dessert box from her hands and put them on the towel-covered seat in the car. Then, I opened a bottle of water and poured it on her hands so she could wash them. I helped her to the car, opening the back door for her. She got in and shut the door. I stood with my back leaned against it staring at my phone. I had spent the entire ride arguing with myself on what could've caused Ethan to leave Dalta by the side of the road alone. "Vomit? Really? That could make you strand a person in the middle of nowhere? How could someone do that to someone else? Like, really? Immature!"

Dalta got out of the car in a pair of my sweats with her dress in the plastic bag. She threw it in the bushes in front of the restaurant, then she got into the car.

"Dalta, what-"

"Just get in, please."

I sighed and shook my head, getting into the car. 

We drove in silence. Well, not speaking to each other. Dalta wiped the make-up off her face, then gargled mouthwash and spat it out the window for about ten minutes, using up half the bottle. The rain poured into the car, and it irritated me, but she seemed more irritated than I was. So, for the first time in forever, I tried to put someone else's anger above mine. She closed the bottle and put it back in the bag. "That's yours now," I teased and looked at her then back at the road. "I hope you know that. I'm surprised you didn't drink any of it."

She ignored me...then suddenly broke down.

I turned to her. "Dalta, hey." I put my hand on her shoulder. "Wanna tell me what happened?"

She wiped her cheeks. "I'm in so much trouble. I was supposed to be home by eleven."

"You can just tell them what happened."

"No, I can't. They think I went on a group date."

I would've scolded her for disobeying her parents but she couldn't handle any more negativity for the night. I was surprisingly calm. "Did the food make you sick?"

"No." She sighed. "Ethan tried to kiss me and-"

"It was so bad that you threw up?" I joked, trying to lighten her mood.

"No. I got scared...or nervous. I don't know. I didn't want to kiss him and I got sick. But, I almost threw up on him... I should have."

I gripped the steering wheel feeling my body getting heated. I had warned him and he hadn't listened. "And, then he left you alone by a sidewalk."

"Yeah."

I started thinking about my little sister. If someone had done that to her, I would beat them senseless.

Dalta sighed again and looked out the window. "I don't want to face him at school on Monday."

"I want to."

She looked at me.

"What he did was immature and extremely irresponsible. I'm going to teach him a lesson."