Broken

Chapter 2

I tug out my earbuds and lazily roll off the bed. I'm in no hurry to face my dad who is pounding on the door, making it rattle. He's going to bust through it if he's not careful, the asshole.

"Samuel, open this door right now!" He tries the doorknob, which I locked earlier. "Do you hear me? Open up."

I wipe down my face with my hands and check my eyes in the mirror. They're bloodshot. Screw it, who cares.

"I'm coming dad, hold on." I unlock the door, fully expecting a smack to the face for messing up the lawn in the backyard. Instead he barges in and heads straight to my bedroom window.

"Look outside!" He points to somewhere on the driveway. "Come here and look!"

He grabs my head and pushes my face to the glass. "What do you see?"

I don't see anything unusual. Our two cars are parked in the driveway, safe and sound. The sun is setting and the streetlamps are just starting to blink on. There's a cat hunting in some bushes and a random car driving past. My eyes strain to find what has my dad in such a mood.

"I-I don't..."

"Instead of looking at what IS out there, search your pea brain for what ISN'T out there!"

My dad's open hand, strikes me in the head, catching me off guard. My forehead bounces painfully off the cool glass. I think of Mr. Feathers and his unfortunate encounter with a window.

"Are you stupid? Or just lazy, son. Which is it?"

Then it dawns on me, I forgot to take out the garbage. Every driveway, except ours, has a black bin at the end of it.

"Sorry," is all I can think of to say. "I'll do it now."

"You're right, you will do it now, and when you're done with that, you can help your mother with the laundry that's piling up." Dad claps me on the shoulder, hard.

"Yes, sir." I say.

I pull on a sweatshirt and head to the garage, where the garbage bins wait. I curse my dad out under my breath and lift the garage door. It creaks and rumbles as it rises. I grab our two bins by the handle and pull them noisily down the driveway and set them by the curb. I'm about to go back inside when movement catches my eye. It's Chloe from a few doors down. She's sitting on her front step, smoking a cigarette and watching me. She smiles and gives me a short wave. I wave back.

Chloe and her family moved onto my street two years ago. I remember the day vividly. It was a sunny, hot, July afternoon. It was chaos on the street with their moving van blocking traffic. People were coming and going from the house all day, their voices rising above the scrape of furniture being moved. I had watched half-heartedly from my bedroom window while smoking up. Then, Chloe drove up in her silver Toyota Tercel. I moved closer to the window to get a better view of my new neighbor. She tossed her flowing blonde hair over her shoulder, then reached up and gathered the pale tendrils into a loose ponytail. I was mesmerized by her. Her perfect hour-glass figure, and perky breasts and round booty were obvious, even from my distance.

She started high school in September with the rest of us, and fit in immediately. Her cheery attitude drew people in and her beauty kept them interested. I watched her at school and I watched her at home, slowly falling in love with her smile. She radiated happiness and I was drawn to that.

Now, Chloe is waving me over. I look behind me to see if she is motioning to someone else. In all of the two years we've known each other, we have only ever said hello, nothing more. And now, here she is calling me over. I smile and break out into a run. She laughs, it's a gentle sound, like raindrops on leaves.

"Hi Samuel," she says tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She licks her pouty lips and takes a puff from her cigarette. "I was wondering if we could chat for a minute? You're not busy, are you?" She blows the smoke out from the side of her mouth, away from me. She's so considerate, and so beautiful! Her grey eyes sparkle at me from beneath her lashes.

"Yeah, no, sure. I mean, I'm not busy," my face burns hot. "So, what's up?"

Chloe puts out her cigarette and flicks it into the bushes that line her walkway. She pats the area next to her and I sit down. She studies my face for a long moment, then reaches out with ringed fingers. She tenderly touches my forehead, where I'm sure it's red and possibly swollen.

"What happened?" She asks softly.

I shake my head dismissively. "Banged it, no big deal."

"Hmmm." She says.

I wonder what she wants to talk about. Thinking back over the last few weeks, I have noticed her looking at me more often, and smiling. Maybe she's taken an interest in me, why else would she call me over?

"I care about you Samuel, you know that, right?"

My heart thumps in my chest.

"If ever you want to talk to me, you can. We can be like in those movies, where I sneak into your bedroom window at night and you sneak into mine, and we have late night conversations." She giggles and tucks the same strand of hair behind her ear. It will fall over her face again in a few seconds. I wish I had the guts to tuck it back for her the next time it does.

"I care about you too," I say.

Chloe's gaze is fixed on me and I can't help but wonder if she wants to kiss me. I know I want to kiss her. Instead, I take the safer route and put my hand on her knee, squeezing it lightly. She rests her hand on top of mine and leans her head on my shoulder. I can't believe this is happening. This girl, who I've been dreaming about for two years is finally showing an interest in me. I decide to be bold. To be the man who is unafraid, and confident in their actions. I cradle her cheek with my other hand and lift her chin, she's smiling at me, so I close my eyes and go in for the kiss.