Salted Wound

Chapter 66 Anastacia- Apr 21, 2019

My feet tap on the concrete floor. My fingers brush over my arms trying to keep them warm from the cool wind from the air vent. There are buzzes coming from the reception desk every few minutes meaning another person can enter the room. I can't do this.

Memories from last night fill my head and I can't exactly remember what happened. It was supposed to be a great night. We were supposed to have a great night. For the first time in so long, I felt like a normal girl going to prom with a guy who she had fallen for, but then it all got snatched away in less than five minutes. What did Zamari do that was so bad? Why is he in here? Does it have something to do with his dad? His mom? Jade? Jesus, I don't even know what to think. I just need to know the truth.

"Anastacia Flores," I hear the man call my name.

I jump from my chair and walk over to the man behind the glass window. He goes over the process of going inside and hands me a badge that I wear clipped onto my pants.

"I'll just need you to sign here," he says, handing me a clipboard. "And are you over 18?"

I sign the paper and put in the date. April 21st, 2019. "I am now," I say handing him the clipboard.

I follow a police officer down the hallway and into a white room. There is a white table with two chairs on opposite sides of each other and two bottles of water. The door closes behind me and I am left alone. I take a seat in the empty chair and open the bottle of water and take a sip to try to calm my nerves down. I feel my heartbeat underneath my skin, and I begin to sweat. How am I going to start this? How is he going to start it? Is he going to tell me the truth or...?

I hear the door open and I snap my head back. Zamari walks in with a tired face and the same clothes he had on last night. The officer that brought him in closes the door so it's just us alone. Zamari slips into the empty chair in front of me but stays quiet. I feel my eyes grow big and my mouth goes dry. He looks up at me and starts to shake his head.

"You know, this isn't how I imagined how we'd spend your birthday. I have a real present for you, but it's chilling at home. But here," he says and puts a piece of chalk in front of me. I stare down at the chalk, still speechless. I look up at him and try to find the right words.

"Zamari," I start.

"Ana, I am so fucking sorry you had to come here for your birthday," he speaks before I can. "I mean you didn't have to, but you still came."

"What the hell happened last night?" I hiss.

His body tenses and I see his jaw lock. He's nervous. "A lot happened."

"Yeah, I got that. But what exactly happened? Why did it happen? What did you do that was so bad you ended up here?" I exclaim. His eyes wander around the room trying to avoid my gaze.

"I screwed up," he admits. "I don't know. It all really happened so fast, I didn't think it would end this way." He puts his head in his hands.

"What did you screw up?" I demand. I feel my cheeks get warm and I fight the urge to let any tears fall.

"A lot of shit. Ana, I'm so sorry," he shakes his head.

"About what, Zamari?" I cry.

He looks up and bites down on his lip. "Luis ever explain to you about the fight we had last year?"

Chills go down my spine. I shake my head. "We fought because of the shit he was always doing at the school. He's been selling drugs on the low at school, but I didn't know he was the dealer up until a few months ago. I just thought he was a watchdog and there was some misunderstanding the night of the fight, but he orchestrated the whole thing. He thought I was catching on and he tried to beat the shit out of me."