Do You Want Me Dead? (Jalex) HIATUS

Chapter 2

The busy city- oh, how it entranced me. No, you know what entranced me? Just how fucking loud one child on a bus can be. Was there a moment that this 3 year old shut his mouth? No. Did his mother do anything about it? The answer to that was, sadly, no. My home city was Baltimore, so we had plenty of buses, ready to take me anywhere I needed. Today, though, the streets seemed even more jam-packed than usual. The noisy, busy place seemed to swallow me whole. Runaways were accepted by the worn down, repair-needing streets, and, therefore, we're extremely becoming of the city. Today, it almost felt like everyone was going somewhere, though. That could have been my imagination, or it could be due to the fact that the circus was in town. My hands drummed nervously on the bus seat, tapping away a calming, repetitive rhythm. Honestly, though, I had put it like this in my head: no matter what happens now, my parents can't do anything worse than they weren't already going to do. A military academy, for Christ's sake! I would have been torn apart. I'd been gone for hours now, though; it was 10 in the morning, and not one phone call from my parents. My phone bill was self paid from the little job I worked at my neighbor's animal shelter, and that's where most of my saved money had come from. I helped feed and medicate the strays, which was actually a very fine suited job for me; animals loved me. Now, though, I guessed that I wouldn't have to worry about that. At least until, inevitably, my parents found me and dragged me back home. Or to a military school. In any event, I was just looking for a job with this circus. It wasn't the biggest one in the country, but it was a tight knit place, and money problems didn't happen there, due to hard work and great budgeting. Circus Olympia was the name of it, and I knew they were traveling all over the country. Being somewhat insecure, it may be difficult to prove to them that I'm worth the pay, but I wanted to be. I wanted somewhere to belong, and to help out. It felt like, inside of me, I would've never been happy back there, where no one appreciated me.
So I waited on the bus until my stop came. There, on a dirt road, the bus driver dropped me off and sped away, the huge, industrial tired throwing flumes of brown up into the air. Coughing, I waved the smoke and dust away from my mouth. Upon turning around, I found almost exactly what I'd been hoping to find: Circus Olympia, but only half of it. The other half was being set up. To be completely honest, it looked chaotic. It looked like a hot mess, a ton of work, and a load of trouble. But I wanted in. So, dragging my bag, I made my way into the little set.
"Hey!" I yelled as I neared one of the only raised tents. There were a few tents set up, all varying in size and color; most could hold a few hundred people, and one looked like it could hold even a thousand. Trailers lined up around the back, where I assumed everyone was getting ready for their performances today. A man in the tent looked up at me from a stack of papers in his hands. He was well built, in his mid 30s, and had short, wavy brown hair. His blue eyes raked over me, an exhausted sigh pulling at his lips.
"Not another one." He muttered, tossing the papers down on a stand up table and folding his muscular arms. I approached him, nerves bubbling in my stomach.
"Hi." I said again, holding my hand out. He apprehensively shook it, watching my eyes with suspicion.
"How can I help you?" He asked, but the look on his face told me he already knew.
"Do you work here?" I asked, feeling a bit scared. To be fair, this guy was intimidating, though. He was ripped; he could've snapped my neck with his fucking pinkie. He nodded.
"This is my circus. What do you want, kid?" He asked more bluntly this time.
"I- uh, I want a job." I said, my voice not half as confident as I'd hoped for. He rolled his eyes.
"Look, we get plenty of your type. I'm sure you'd be helpful, but I've already got guys to clean up the elephant shit." He already looked disinterested.
"No, no- wait," I pulled the deck of cards from my bag, "I can do other things." He watched me cautiously.
"Those tarot cards?" He asked, voice suffering from a slight southern twinge. I nodded eagerly.
"I, uh, I'm pretty good with them. And palm reading." I added quickly. "A lot of people are really into it."
He seemed to actually consider my offer. I couldn't believe I'd already made it this far!
"So, what, you wanna join up?" He asked finally.
"Yes." I breathed.
"No homesick tears? No crying for your mommy once we hit the road?" He asked condescendingly.
"Not at all." I replied.
"Whatsyername?" He sighed.
"Jack." I said, feeling excited. Did I actually just join the fucking circus?
"Alrighty. My names Dean Olympia. Before ya ask, no it's not my real name. No, I won't be telling you my real name, so stop while you're ahead." He sighed, pulling out a form. "This is pretty informal around here; we don't care how old you are, as long as you're 16 or older. You're parents don't know you're here? None of our business. We gotcha a bed in a trailer, which you'll be sharing. We stop most every night for a show. Everyone works, everyone gets fed, everyone gets paid. Sign here." He sighed, shoving a clipboard and some form at me. Willingly, I signed it.
"Circus Olympia goes year round. If you wanna get schoolin', we've got a tutor. Honestly, if I were you, I'd just be thankful that I don't have to go back to school. You're most likely an orphan, or some kinda runaway. We always get yer type 'round here. Got a sob story? We don't give a damn. Do your work, and everything's all square." He rattled off. I didn't care at all what he was talking about, though. All my mind could focus on was the fact that I'd actually found a job. Jack Barakat, now a member of Circus Olympia. Who knew I could actually accomplish something? It filled me with pride.
"Thank you so much, sir." I said happily. He rolled his eyes, but smiled a little.
"Yeah, yeah. I'll have someone around to take you to your trailer in a minute. You won't set up your little psychic booth today because its too late; the Cirk starts at 12. Tomorrow, though. Hopefully." And with that, he wandered away, leaving me to it. My 'little psychic booth', he'd said. That made me laugh to myself slightly. For a moment, I sat down on my bag and smiled uncontrollably. I can't believe I made it. Then again, have I ever really belonged anywhere else?