City

Coffee

I yawned at the sound of my phone ringing. "Five more minutes..." I mumble.

But the ringing didn't stop. "Okay, fine!" I yell picking up. "Hello, whoever you are you have woken up a very sleepy man!"

I rush to the bathroom steamy, I turn my shower on as the person on the end of the line speaks to me.

Wasn't important. The person on the other line was my big sister. She's thirty-five and she still worries about me instead of her own kids.

When she was done talking I hung up. Guess the whole family knows now. Everyone knows a little secret that I haven't really been keeping.

My mom was in denial while my dad just hated the thought of me. And my sister didn't know what she could do. She hasn't really supported me.

Grandma knows, grandpap knows. Everyone. I guess that means I'm in need of a new family. I want to start one but I'm way too young for that right now.

So is the person I want to start it with. His name is Cillian Thomas. He's nineteen right now, working and going to college which I think is really cool because it tells me he has his life together.

While I'm twenty-five and I really need to get my shit together. I'm a coffee addict. Coffee helped me calm down when I got too excited. For others, it gives them a boost.

I know, I'm a weird one.

I jumped in the shower then to my workplace. I was late but it didn't matter, not like I'm getting paid to show up on time.

When I got home I collected the overdue bills from the mailbox. I threw them on the table and texted Cillian.

Then I took a nap and when I woke up I took a look at my phone. I had fifteen missed calls from multiple family members, I called my sister but she wasn't picking up.

So I called my mom and she picked up. At first, she didn't say anything then I heard a loud sigh like my mother was breathing in.

Then she told me the news. My sister was dead. But no that's not why they were calling me. They called me because none of them want to take care of her kid.

I told my mom I'd handle her boy. She was confused but I didn't care, I hung up.

She was confused because she had never met her own grandchild. She was confused because she doesn't know the gender.

She should've been confused because her son could now barely speak to her.

Tears filled my eyes as I thought of my dead sister. I had questions, how'd it happen? What's going to happen to her little boy? How will he see this?

I texted Cillian about five more times before I just got tired of waiting and called him.

He answered cheerfully, "Hello?"
A bit bitter I greet him with, "Nice to know you're doing well asshole!"

We both paused as I choked on my tears.

"Melton, where are you right now?"