Pain & Insanity *ON HOLD* (ASHTON IRWIN AU)

Chapter 4: Genevieve

Anna and Victoria complained and fought with each other during the entire drive to McDonalds. I quickly put the car in park as soon as we got to McDonalds. Victoria skipped out, making sure to get in the small line as fast as her skinny legs could carry her. I laughed at her eagerness.

"Don't laugh! I'm starving!" She complained while pushing her way inside the small fast food joint. The hints of autumn air was freezing, and McDonalds had the heat on. While rubbing our hands together to keep warm, we all took our spot in line behind a tall boy who looked to be around six feet. He wore a dirty forest green jacket, and a pair of badly ripped black skinny jeans. What seemed like sand blonde hair was oily and quite dirty.

He had a Asian looking friend that stood beside him. The friend wore a dirty grey beanie to cover his dark hair and a ripped up Nirvana shirt. Their attire screamed, 'homeless'. Anna made a face, but dropped it after I sent her a glare.

"Your order would total up to $22.13." The cashier spoke to him without a hint of warmth in her tone. The boy handed her a crumpled twenty dollar bill, and patted down the many pockets in his coat feverishly, then pulled out a handful of small coins. Pennies, nickels, and about four dimes.

The cashier sent him a glare before she gingerly slid the coins from the pile that the boy placed them in, to beside the cash register; as if the coins could infect her with some horrible disease if she touched them. Instantly, I felt for the teenage boy. "You seem to be twenty cents short, sir." She spoke harshly.

From where I stood, I could see the back of the un-named boy's neck go red with embarrassment. "Oh." He muttered while he patted himself down to try and find an extra twenty cents. "That's all I have. Count again, I'm sure that there is enough."

"Well, it's not enough." The rude girl snapped. My eyes widened in surprise. Could she really not ignore a twenty cents difference?

"I'm sorry, but I know that there is enough there..."

"Get out. We don't need people like you holding up our lines. People don't like to wait, especially if they are waiting on homeless people who can't even afford a meal." She spat. The boy seemed to flinch at her words, but turned around to leave.

His friend must have said something offensive towards the cashier, because the one in the jacket grabbed him by the elbow and pulled him out of the restaurant with him.

The blonde one bumped into me, and quickly looked down on me to apologize. He looked about nineteen years of age, with plump cheeks and full pink lips. I saw embarrassment in the purest form swim in his hazel eyes, and I could tell that he was trying his best to not make himself any more noticeable. "If you could move, that would be great." He muttered in a semi high pitch voice. Before he could exit the line completely, I grabbed onto his jacket to halt him.

"Wait." I spoke, looking into his eyes. I then glared at the cashier, and handed over two dimes. "I think that this should be sufficient." The lady looked at me with shock, but preceded with the two boy's order. I could hear her mumbling profanities in the back of the kitchen.

"That really wasn't necessary." The boy insisted. He looked so upset, but so determined to be self-sufficient. I shook my head and smiled.

"It was needed. No one should treat anybody like that." I spoke warmly.

"No, really. I didn't need it." He pushed. My smile soon dropped.

"Well, I felt as if you did." I said in a determined tone.

I could hear Anna chuckle. I turned around quickly to see that Victoria had slapped her on the shoulder, so she had retorted to covering her mouth with her hand. 'Sassy' she had mouthed to me. I rolled my eyes.