Leftovers

After She Left

"I. Am. Pathetic," Christian growled, word by word, as he flunked his head against the steering wheel.

After the horrible news of Mabel moving away to FUCKING California, Christian's minuscule, shriveled up heart plummeted to his gut like an autumn leaf parachuting- no skydiving- from its branches. He was stupid, a complete mess, and just remarkably stupid! How could he have waited so long?

Two whole years with Mabel's name stamped on his heart, and just in one night, poof, they're gone. Mabel and his heart, hand in hand, walking down the yellow brick road to FUCKING California. And the saddest part is that she didn't realize how much it hurt him. Every time she laughed, spoke, smiled about moving away, Christian's don't-give-a-shit façade cracks little by little until he was the dried up ground of a wasteland and still, she didn't notice.

He should've won the fucking Oscar for such a performance.

After Mabel had closed the door on him and their future, Christian imagined the screen fading black, and the credits rolling from this cynical little movie they were in. Christain Lucas playing the sorry loser who waited too long, and Mabel Thompson as the girl who took everything and left.

What a crappy film. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 0% and movie critics booed the lame Christian character who was a disappointing lead.

Yet, as the audience was about to leave the theater, a clip played after the credits and this was it: Christian hunching over the steering wheel in a Walmart parking lot in the middle of the night with Queen's Somebody to Love blasting from the speakers.

Just when he thought the movie was coming to its final The End, an unexpected thump sounded from his window like gunshots. Christian targeted a 360 frown to the intruder, only that it was met by a mischievous smile and a pair of feline, golden eyes boring into his soul as if she knew everything that happened.

Reese Hoffman.

She knocked again and gestured from him to roll down the window to which he obliged, curious as to what Reese Hoffman was doing here in a Walmart parking lot in the middle of the night. Actually, she's Reese Hoffman, of course, she would be here.

"Hey, you're that guy from the nursing home!" She yelled over the music.

Christian nodded," What are you doing here?"

She scoffed a cloud of warm air from her mouth, "What am I doing here? You're the one slumped in his car like a dead person, blasting Queen like it's a freakin tornado drill! Can you turn it down a bit?"

Tired of this conversation, Christian rolled his eyes and did the same to his window. He just wanted to sit in his car, drown in the music, and the barf of his brain. On the other side of the closed door, Christian could see Reese scoffing again and the light, raspy sound of it automatically popped into his brain. She narrowed her eyes and stomped away from him, pulling a Walmart cart with her towards the store.

Christian didn't watch her leave but instead focused on the roof of his car. He was about to go back to his moping and regretting every word's he's ever said to Mabel that wasn't "Will you go out with me" until he heard the hollers and hoots coming from another car nearby. When he looked back up, he realized it was Miles Pagartti and his ragtag team of Neanderthals circling Reese like vultures on roadkill.

Some people don't realize that sounds have smells to them, and the sound of Pagartti's names smelled a hundred times worse than Christian's brain barf. By instinct, Christian leaped out of his car and marched towards the herd of hippos with his fist clenched, aimed for the hippo king himself.