Hot Chocolate || Malcolm Wilkerson ✔

Chapter 2

As soon as he gets home from his last class of the day, all Malcolm wants to do, is just lay out on the couch and possibly have a quick nap. Unfortunately the first thing he's met with as he enters his apartment, is his phone ringing, and he has no doubt that it's his parents or even Dewey trying to get him to come home for Christmas.

He has no desire to answer the phone to find out for sure though. He's very content in not seeing any of his family at all for as long as possible. And spending Christmas with them all? It just doesn't sound very appealing to him, even with the fact that Reese is doing all the cooking. That's probably the only thing that he'll miss about spending Christmas with his family.

Besides, he's already got a date for Christmas with Chelsea. Well... it's not exactly a date, more like just spending Christmas together as they're both not doing anything else. So, he's already booked for Christmas, and actually has an excuse not to go home for Christmas this year.

Though even if he didn't already have stuff planned he wouldn't go back home to spend Christmas with his family anyway. If he was to go back home for Christmas, it just likely won't end very well, so he'd require a very good reason to go back home for Christmas. And Reese's cooking isn't one of them, no matter how good his cooking tastes.

He lets the phone go to the answering machine as he heads on into his small kitchen to make himself a coffee and get something to eat. Along with his kitchen being tiny, his whole apartment is rather tiny. One small bedroom, one tiny bathroom, and a small kitchen connected to a small living area. It was one of the only decent ones available in his price range, and it's big enough for just himself. And a bonus, it's not too far from school.

Though it would've been a lot easier for him to stay living on campus like he had done previously, he had decided that he just wanted his own space away from school. So far living here on his own has worked out fairly well. Rent is decently priced too.

"Malcolm, please pick up the phone." He groans as he hears his mother's voice filling the kitchen from the phone's speaker.

Just as he predicted, it's his mother calling him... again.... He definitely doesn't intend to pick up the phone and talk to her.

Can't she just leave me the fuck alone already? Why hasn't she figured by now that I'm not interested in coming home for Christmas?

Actually, he knows exactly why she's not figured it out by now. Chances are she has very much figured that out, but is set on getting him to come home. After all, she'll do whatever she has to to make something happen, and she has a hard time letting things go, and this is no exception. Malcolm just wishes she'd give up already, no matter how wishful thinking that may be.

Well... actually it's not all that hard to figure out why she hasn't really, but still.... I wish she'd just give up trying to get me to come home for Christmas already....

Choosing to ignore it like he's done so for the past few weeks, he goes about his business, making a coffee, and fixing himself up a quick snack to eat. It's basically the same thing each time she tries calling him, and he wishes he could say that he's surprised that she's still calling and trying to get him to come home a week and a half before Christmas. But really, it doesn't surprise him at all.

He is however surprised that she hasn't yet driven all the way out here to get him to come home, whether it be by talking him into it, or dragging him all the way home by his ear. There's still a about a week and a half till Christmas, so the possibility of that happening is still fairly open.

Switching on the TV and sitting down on the couch as his coffee and food is done, he flicks through the channel trying to find something decent to watch and just relaxes. He's got maybe about four hours to kill before he has to head off to his shift at the service station tonight.

Oh, how he's so not looking forward to having to deal with customers at all tonight.....

Though seriously, what type of person goes out to the service station at midnight to get fuel for their car?

Well, he supposes people travelling through the area quite late at night and are running out of fuel, but still... at this time of year when the weather is only getting colder? Why would you even want to go out at all? He understands the few customers coming in just to buy a few items of food or whatever at midnight, as it's one of the only stores open at that hour of the night, but he really wouldn't fancy having to go out at night at this time of year. Too bad he has to almost every night.

He's honestly met some very strange people while working at the service station. Which he guesses isn't all that different from when he worked at the Lucky Aide with his mom - which he hated, but needed the money despite how shit the pay was. Working at the service station isn't any better though, but at least he's not having to work with his mother. Oh, is hie glad that he doesn't have to work with his mother....

Grabbing his mobile phone out of his pocket, he flips it open to check the time, seeing as he needs new batteries for the clock he has on the wall. It's not too terribly late in the afternoon, it's only twenty past three, so he's got plenty of time to relax and maybe take a nap before he's got to head on out to the service station at eight.

He also checks to see if he has any text messages, and isn't all that surprised to find that he has none. It's not like he has very many friends to text anyway, and he's never given his parents or any of his brothers his mobile number. He also only just gave Chelsea his number around lunchtime today while he had a break between classes, so he doesn't really expect her to text him straight away, or even at all. It would be nice though, but she's more than likely busy right now, especially if she's only just finished up her afternoon shift.

Besides, what he feels as though he needs the most right now, is to rest before he has to go out to work. Thankfully it's the weekend tomorrow though, so he'll get Saturday off. But then he's got a shift at the corner store on Sunday morning at ten till two.

Unfortunately for him though, both his jobs at the service station and the corner store aren't his only jobs. On Tuesdays and Thursdays at midday he works at one of the local bookstores. All to pay for everything he needs including rent and his college tuition.

He's surprised how well he's managed to make it all work, despite not having a very large amount of money, but it's not like he goes out spending big money, and walks around wearing designer label clothes. Almost all the clothes he buys - aside from obviously socks and underwear - he buys from thrift stores, as buying second hand goods is just so much more cheaper, especially with his budget. He can't say that he's surprised that that element from his upbringing has managed to stick. There was bound to be something from his upbringing that would stick.

As the phone rings once more, he groans in annoyance. He wouldn't be surprised if it's his mother calling again, or his father even. Hell, it might even be Dewey. But, much like before, he has no desire to answer it.

He almost feels tempted to unplug the phone from the wall just so he can get some peace and quiet before he's off to work, but he just can't be bothered getting up off the couch to do so. In fact, he can't be bothered getting up off the couch at all right now.

All he intends on doing right now is to take a quick nap, before he needs to take a shower then get ready for work. He feels exhausted right now, and truthfully, that coffee isn't really helping him stay awake. If anything, it's making him feel a bit more tired - the exact opposite of what it should do.

Sighing, he turns the TV off, and just lays there on the couch staring at the ceiling. The insistent ringing of the phone being the only sound throughout the whole apartment, and Malcolm has to stop himself from throwing something at it. He can't afford the money to buy a new phone, he has enough things to pay for without adding a new home phone to the list.

Doing his best to ignore the phone, Malcolm slowly finds himself beginning to fall asleep. Not a very good sleep, but sleep nonetheless. Just... if only his thoughts weren't so clouded over by his family. It seems as though even in his dreams he cannot escape his family. On the bright side though, at least he's not living with or anywhere near any of them anymore....