Chapter 1
“So, do you come here often?“I asked the pretty blonde. The bar was packed with tons of teens looking to get away from their ‘problems,’ and I had spotted this pretty little thing trying to get a drink. She rose an eyebrow and gave me an unimpressed look.
The pretty blonde said, “That doesn’t work on anyone.” She turned back to the bar, trying to get the bartender’s attention.
“Ehh, Phillipa!” I yelled. It wasn’t that the music in the bar was loud, it was honestly barely heard; however, the teens trying to get drinks were very loud and demanding. Instantly, the bartender’s attention snapped to me. “One shot of vodka and a banana daiquiri for the pretty little thing beside me.”
Phillipa let out a chuckle and yelled, “You got it Rain!” Phillipa winked and got to work on the drinks.
“Now that’s impressive, “The pretty blonde said to me. I looked back, and her eyes were on me, just the way I like them.
I smirked and said, “That’s not the only thing I can do that’s impressive.” She rolled her eyes, and I smirked as two drinks came into view.
“Don’t let her lie to you. The only other impressive thing about her is how fast her mouth runs,” Phillipa said and walked away.
I smiled and shouted after him, “Why do you have to be such a dick!” I started laughing as the pretty blonde giggled.
“Looks like you got sold out,” She said. I shook my head.
I said, “He’s been like that since I was little, can’t stand the fact that I’m prettier than him.” I flipped my hair jokingly, though my hair was really short, so it barely did anything.
“Oh, absolutely gorgeous darling,” she said jokingly. We laughed as she sipped from her drink. I took my shot and quickly drowned it, enjoying the burn as it went down my throat.
I gave an exaggerated sigh and said,” Alas, I will never be as close to as gorgeous as you are! For you make even the strongest of women crumble.” She giggled as I jokingly brought both of my hands to my chest, where my heart is.
“You are such a flirt,” She said, shaking her head.
I replied, “Only for you, darling.” She rolled her eyes playfully. “Now, I believe I asked you a question, do you come here often?”
“No, but I might now, “The pretty blonde said as she leaned closer to me. My eyes flickered from her eyes to her lips.
I hummed and leaned closer, saying, “Now, why’s that?”
“Cause of this funny brunette,” she replied.
I said, “Lucky girl.” I leaned closer, about to kiss her, when an alarm blared. I jumped up and grabbed her arm.
“What’s going on?” she shouted. All the teens were scrambling to get out the doors while the adults sat and watched.
I answered, “Police.” Phillipa held open the door to the bar as I pulled the pretty blonde with me behind the bar and out the door. The police got called in earlier than last time; hopefully, no one gets caught, or all of us are in trouble. The bar owner was cruel to the previous group of teens that got him caught and forced him to pay off the cops. The only reason the owner keeps serving us is because his kid, Samuel, is one of the teens, and a lot of the others are Samuel’s friends. However, being Samuel’s friend does not let you get away with getting Atticus, the owner, in trouble.
The pretty blonde and I ran down the ally, taking the first right and running towards the door at the end. I quickly banged three times on the door and then turned the doorknob once. This series of knocks and turns was my secret code with the restaurant’s chef, Cyrus. He swung open the door, and I quickly pulled the pretty blonde and I in as I heard yelling down the ally. Cyrus quickly hopped out with a trash bag, slamming the door behind him. I sighed in relief, leaning back against the wall, closing my eyes.
“What was that about!” The pretty blonde yelled at me.
I opened one eye, looking at her, and stated, “Whatever you do, don’t get caught. That’s the rule. No matter what, do not incriminate Samuel’s bar. We will ALL go down for it.” The door slammed open, and Cyrus quickly came in and slammed it closed behind him. Cyrus sighed and rested his hand on top of his head. He then started pacing back and forth.
“You were so close to being caught! Do you know what would have happened if you had been a few seconds later?! Electrocution! Shot! Dismembered! Drowned! Hung! All ways Atticus has gotten rid of people who have gotten him in trouble! Do you have a death wish!” exclaimed Cyrus.
The pretty blonde shouted, “What!”
“Look, Cyrus, they got called earlier than usual, Phillipa had a timer set and everything so I could leave before the police usually get called. It’s not my fault! Besides, I still managed to get away!“I yelled back. Cyrus groaned and threw his back. He stopped in front of me and put his hands on my shoulders.
Cyrus said, “I’m just worried. I’ve known you since you first tried stealing some carrots from the kitchen.”
“Hey! Carrots taste great!“I said.
Cyrus laughed and said, “And you have an obsession with them, but my point is it has been ten years. I don’t wanna see you die for being at the wrong place, at the wrong time. At least tonight, take something to defend yourself with.”
“What about me? What’s going to happen to me?” The pretty blonde asked.
I replied, ” I’ll be fine, Cyrus; I have plenty of things to defend myself with. In case you forgot, you bought me almost fifty knives. As for you, pretty girl, you need to go home, forget this day, forget the bar. You are not a regular, so Atticus hasn’t had your name memorized yet. It won’t stick out at him. Just don’t come back.” She looked terrified but nodded. “Look, I promise it will be fine, just don’t think about it anymore. This day never happened.”
“And don’t ever mention Rain to anyone, you hear me! I don’t care about you, I care about her, and if I find out you got Rain in some sort of trouble. You will not have to worry about Atticus, am I clear?“Cyrus said as he got up into the pretty blonde’s face. She looked absolutely terrified at this point, and I grabbed Cyrus’s arms and pulled him back.
I said, “Chill, Cyrus. We will be fine as long as we don’t talk about it. Stop going all Papa bear on her. Besides, don’t you have some orders to be making?”
“Oh shit,” Cyrus said and rushed over to the stoves.
A female voice rang out, “Oh shit indeed! What do you think you are doing! Harassing a girl instead of cooking these orders I’ve put out over ten minutes ago! Are you trying to make me look stupid!” I started laughing as I watched Angelina, the head waitress, and Cyrus’s girlfriend/partner start yelling at him. “And don’t you worry about him, sweetie, if that man even thinks of laying a finger on you, I will put it on a kabob and feed it to his dumb ass!” The pretty blonde let out a sigh of relief, though she still kind of looked scared.
“Come on, let’s go before Angelina comes back here and takes the spatula to his head,” I said. I grabbed the pretty blonde’s hand and walked towards the door that separated the kitchen from the rest of the diner. I dragged her around the counter and out of the door of the old-timey restaurant. “Look, I really am sorry about him, he is just very protective, but I promise he didn’t mean any trouble. Do you want me to walk you home or something?“I scratched the back of my head nervously.
The pretty blonde smiled sadly and pulled her hand back, saying, “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Thank you, though.” I sighed and smiled.
“It’s alright. It’s been good pretty girl,” I said before I turned around and walked away, waving a hand. I didn’t bother to look behind me. I knew I would never have another chance with that one. Though there is plenty of other fish in the sea, or in this case, the bar. I made it to my ‘home’ about twenty minutes later, waving to Gary, a homeless man who lived closest to the beginning of the ally. I walked to my little tent that was two people down. I wasn’t really worried about anyone stealing it or spending the night; the homeless shelter next door was more comfortable. Plus, if they really needed it, I was doing a lot better than most people here and could spend a night out in the cold with fewer problems. I got inside the tent and saw an object on my pillow. It was a knife. I guess Gary got someone to drop it off or something. The knife wasn’t really anything special; it was a Tanto Blade, and carved into the handle were waves. “I guess I’ll keep you.” I went to bed then, with one hand clasped around the blade, under my pillow, and one hand clutching the blanket up to my face.
