It Happened In a Small Town

Chapter 1

     The windows of that old blue Honda were fogged up so much so, that Jamie had to open the door before she could even finish doing up her pants. As she opened the passenger door she could feel the cool air come hurling in and she shivered as it hit her sweat soaked body.  She grabbed her phone and cigarettes and stepped out into the light of the moon.  Jamie lit her cigarette and with a smile took a deep breath. As she finished buttoning her jeans and doing up her belt, Chris got out and joined her in the cool evening air. "I can't believe summer is already over babe."

     "Well at least we are seniors this year, by this time next year we will be living together," replied Jamie as she looked at her phone. "Oh shit Chris, my dad is going to kill me if he notices I'm not home yet!"

     Chris hurried back to the driver's seat as Jamie took one last drag off her cigarette, threw it on the ground and stepped on it with her pink and black DC shoes. Chris started the car before she even got in. She looked at him with a smile. She couldn't help but to smile, she was sure he was the one. He had shaggy brown hair that was curly, with big brown eyes and big, soft, kissable lips. He was funny and smart and had no problem goofing around with her. They had been dating almost a year and sometimes she still felt the butterflies when they were together.

    Jamie didn't live too far away, although in this small town nothing was more than a couple minutes away.  Chris stopped the car a block away and the two kissed and said their goodbyes. This was common practice so his loud car didn't alert her father to her being late. She grabbed her things, sprayed herself down with perfume, and stuck a piece of strong mint gum in her mouth.   She ran around the corner and checked to see if her father was home. The police cruiser was no where to be seen.

     She walked up the driveway, and into the house. The dog was very happy to see her and came to greet her. She gave Bo a good pat on the head and he slowly walked back to his bed and nestled down in his blankets. She went into the kitchen to rummage for food.  There was never anything good in the house to eat. Well nothing quick and easy, that tastes good. She grabbed a soda and heard her father's car pull into the drive. Still hungry with no time left she grabbed a granola bar and darted up the stairs.

     Jamie had barely made it into her room when the front door opened, and she was thankful she had made it home in time. As she plugged in her phone she heard her father's radio, it was a call out. She quickly got in bed with the lights off and closed her eyes. Her father came upstairs and cracked her bedroom door. She faked being asleep. He always checked on her, and only just recently stopped kissing her forehead while she slept. She heard him close her door and move quietly to the stairs. Then just like that she heard the front door open and the sound of his cruiser pulling out of the driveway again.

    Her father had been a police officer as long as she could remember.  She heard that call before and she knew there was a dead body found. The Evanston Police Department had been short handed lately. One officer was on administrative leave awaiting an investigation into a shooting, 3 had quit to pursue a job in the oil field to make more money, and 2 others had gotten hurt riding dirt bikes on their days off. Bill, Jamie's father, had been working more than ever these days.

     Jamie was struggling to get to sleep. She knew she needed to, she knew the first day of school was upon her, but she wanted to know who it was they found dead, and what happened. The curiosity was driving her crazy.  She laid on her bed staring at her poster covered walls. Her mind was not going to relax on its own.

     She laid there and thought about Chris, and how she could possibly explain to her father that she loved him. She knew that her father would be furious when he found out that she had decided to live with Chris instead of go to college. So much was on her mind. She decided to watch some videos on YouTube.  A friend of hers had suggested some that were sure to make her laugh.

     After a couple videos she felt her eyes growing tired. She could feel herself getting comforted by the cool pillow top mattress sucking her in,  her blanket wrapped around her like a warm cocoon, and the cool breeze through her window lightly brushing her face. She fell fast asleep until her alarm awoke her the next morning.