The Cow Hypnotist

Jessie's theme

Jessie sat down at lunch -- alone, of course --  eating her packed food: a mayonnaise and ham sandwich, crackers, and milk carton. Even though her mother made the milk, she had never actually drunk it. She deemed it to be wrong drinking from a cow that she knew.

The last person she sat with was that girl named Riley. She hadn't sat with anyone since then. Since she was Alexis Frank's daughter, that meant no friends, or groups, to hang out with or even around. Nobody liked Frank milk, especially since it was turning everyone into animals. She'd been harassed, spit on, pushed over, and mocked nearly everyday for this reason. She knew she couldn't just drop out of college  -- her mother would probably kill her. But she wished she could.

She played with her food, fidgeting it with her fingers. The bread was soggy from the mayo and was tearing apart each time she moved her finger.

"Hey, Jessie!" Some girl comes up to her, yelling. "Do you have any lunch money?"

"Lunch money?"

"You've gotta have some money on you. I mean, for Pete's sake, your mother owns a business that's spreading worldwide. You must be rich," At this point, the girl was getting handsy, feeling around Jessie's pants pockets for cash, or change.

Jessie stands up, mortified, "Listen, just because my mom owns a company, doesn't mean I'm rich, too," She put her food away, crossing her arms afterward, "Do you really think she'd be generous enough to give me some money? I'd think not. So, if you don't get out of my face and back off, I'll make sure you can't walk straight for a month." She lied.

The other girl laughed hysterically, wiping a tear from her eye, "Ooo I'm so scared! What's cow-girl going to do to me, huh? You fat-ass cow!"

Jessie began to panic. She needed to think of some type of remark that would steer this chick away from her, "Just because I work with cows, doesn't mean I am one. But I can call up a pretty famous one right now to kick your ass!"

The girl backed up, actually scared of this response. "Y-You don't mean L-L-Lizzie, do you?!"

Jessie nods, smirking as she gets up close to her face, "Isn't she, like, your role model? It would just be such a pain if she were to find out that you were calling me a -- what did you call me? -- a fat-ass cow to her own boss's daughter, wouldn't it? Just imagine what she'd do," she sighed, "I can see the blood already. Oh, and all of it's from you."

The girl's face stretched into complete worry as she stood away from her, "Oh," Jessie added, "and if you tell anyone, including the principal, coach, you name it, I will call her. And don't think I won't, bitch."

The girl quivered her lip, slowly regaining her consciousness, "I-I won't! I swear." She began walking off, hands in her hoodie pockets, "What a psychopath.

This is why I don't have any friends, isn't it? She thought to herself, feeling her tears well up in her eyes, I wouldn't have called Lizzie. I don't even call my mother. I just shove everyone away, don't I?

Just then, almost on cue, a random guy walks over. He wore a red hoodie with patches of different places he's been on the sleeves and chest. His hair was a darker brown but you could see hints of blonde in it. His skin was dark tan, very beautiful. His eyes were dark and welcoming, but full of pain, hidden behind his smile.

"Hi," the boy says with no emotion or thought behind his voice, "can I sit here?"

Jessie sighed, "Why? Do you wanna steal my lunch money, too?"

The boy sat down, taken aback by her response. "What? No." He stuck out his hand. "I'm Micheal. And you are?"

At first, she thought it was a trick. When she looked at him, however, something told her that he was actually being genuine. Is this my second chance, God?  She thought. She proceeded to extend her hand forward, shaking his, " It's Jessie... Frank."

"Oh, you're that famous woman's daughter, right? I heard you went to our school but I wasn't sure the rumors were true." He put his hand back in his pocket, "Well, do I have to treat you with some kind of respect or something?"

She glanced up at him, then back at her food. "I'd rather you treat me like a fellow classmate." She notices his hood's up. "What's up with your hood?"

He stuck his hand behind his neck and chuckled nervously. "I just don't like putting it down. It's pretty cold in here."

"Having a hoodie or a hat on is against regulations," She squinted at him suspiciously, "What's really going on?"

He sighs. "Well, the other day I drank some milk, right?"

Jessie didn't have to hear the rest of what he had to say. She knew. "Oh God, is it the milk my mom makes?"

He nodded shyly, slowly removing his hoodie to revealing two, dark brown cat ears with white tips. After he revealed the ears, a tail sprung up behind him as if from nowhere. It was fluffy with a white tip while the rest of it was dark brown, like his ears.

"I'm a freak," his ears folded down, "People would probably think that I'm some sort of anime fanboy wearing a headband," He shook his head in disappointment. "I should have read the label instead of just chugging it down."

Jessie sighed. This was a common occurrence ever since they went into business. She thought for a moment, staring off into the distance, "Well, at least you didn't turn into a girl, like most people drinking the milk do, or completely turn into an animal... I'm not trying to make light of the situation, but-... You get what I mean, right?"

He nodded, leaning his head on his arms, "Still, nobody will look at me as a freak or some sort of genetic monstrosity?"

"Look at Riley. She turned into a fat bunny. Or Hailey. She turned into a giant half-cow. Honestly, everybody else looks like more of a freak than you do... Or at least stands out more."

Micheal's face lightened up as he smiled, "T-thanks. Not a lot of people would say something like that. I mean, besides Jeremy- my ex-best friend..." He glances back at her. " In other words, thank you."

Jessie, putting a smile on her face for the first time in a while, giggled, "You're just saying that. But you're welcome."