The Cigarette Girl

“If another drunk man puts his hands on me tonight I am going to lose my mind!”

“It’s part-a da job baby.” Giovanni laughed as he pinched my thighs.

“Well it wasn’t in the job description Giovanni, and I can’t take it no more. These men are like slobbering pigs who never had a drink in their pathetic lives.”

“Finish restockin ya tray and get back out there Charlotte. I ain’t got no time to listen to some whiny broad. Least you got a job.” Giovanni was no longer entertained by her complaints and pushed her toward the door.

Her tray was fully loaded, stacked high with the best of the best in tobacco products. Cigars, rolled cigarettes, pipe tobacco- she had it and they wanted it.  As she pushed open the door from the backroom the stench of smoke and alcohol filled her nostrils.  Lucy was up on stage doing her jazz bit in some gold sequence number and every eye in the house was on her. She didn’t blame them; Lucy was the most gorgeous woman she had ever seen. Every one of her features was effortlessly flawless and both men and women couldn’t help but be drawn to her.

“Hey toots snap out of it!” a man in a tacky green suit yanked her arm. “You’d think you was just in love with that broad as we were!” he laughed and began picking through her tray.

Charlotte smiled and made the transaction. She continued on around the room brushing off sloppy advances and smiling her widest toothiest smile in the face of every single drunk loser looking for a smoke. By the end of the night she was disgusted, exhausted and in desperate need of a slice of apple pie. She counted out her tray and her cash to Giovanni and hurried back to Lucy’s dressing room.

“Knock knock,” Charlotte said as she peeked through the crack in the door.

“Come in,” replied Lucy.

The room smelled like lavender perfume and was lit just well enough to make out the elaborate furnishings. Purple velvet sofa, hand carved wooden dresser and vanity, all with beautiful dresses strewn over them carelessly.

“You were amazing tonight Lucy….not that you aren’t always amazing, but tonight…the way everyone stops to watch you…it’s amazing.” Charlotte managed to stutter.

Lucy took out her black diamond earrings and looked at Charlotte.

“They’re only looking at me because I’m beautiful; not because I can sing, or dance.  Not because I spent my whole life just scraping by to get where I am or because I am smart or funny. They just want an eyeful,” Lucy replied never turning to look at Charlotte as she spoke.

“Yeah but, I mean, who cares why they’re lookin atcha, long as they are right?” Charlotte said smiling.

Lucy chuckled. “I suppose you’re in here to ask me if I want to come to Millies with you for pie?”

“Yeah…I had a long night…figured maybe you did too and…..so, yeah. You wanna go?”

“Sure, I’ll go; gimme a few minutes to change.”

Charlotte had only convinced Lucy to come for pie with her one other time and it didn’t go at all the way she had hoped it would. Right in the middle of their date Giovanni showed up and dragged Lucy right out of the place claiming she shorted him some money she owed him. They hadn’t even had a chance to talk. In her mind Charlotte saw the two of them, sitting at Millies drinking coffee and sharing a slice. They would share their dreams, fears and secrets, maybe even take off together and go somewhere better; somewhere away from the city scum, away from Giovanni. Lucy would be so grateful for the friendship that those twinkling eyes of hers would be Charlotte's forever.

The two of them walked in silence to Millies as Lucy took long, deep drags from a smoke. When they got there they were the only customers and found a booth in the back corner. Charlotte immediately ordered a slice of pie and Lucy asked for coffee, black.

“You’re awfully quiet tonight Charlotte. Not that I would know if that’s normal or not bein as how I only really spent time with you once and…well you remember how that ended.”

Charlotte looked up.

“Well uh, I don’t know…you think Giovanni’s place is gonna get shut down?” Charlotte struggled to make conversation.

“I don’t know. Who cares. If it does I’m takin it as a sign and getting the hell outta here.”

“Where would you go? You got family or something?

“Nah. I wanna go to California where the sun is always shinin. I wanna bury my feet in the sand meet some young, tanned thing….maybe have a little girl.”

“You don’t wanna sing no more?”

“I don’t know; maybe somewhere real professional where everyone who watched me isn’t drunk and drooling.”

Charlotte looked down and took a bite of her pie only looking up because she noticed Lucy getting up from the table. The bells on the door jingled and a tall man in a pinstriped suit and hat walked through the door.

“There’s my girl!” the man said as Lucy ran into his arms.

“Where you been Stewart? You never left a note or sent a letter or nothing!” Lucy looked happier than Charlotte had ever seen her.

“I had business doll. You know how it goes. I wanted to make it to your show tonight and surprise yous but I was late. Giovanni said he thought yous might be here. What are you doin in this dump anyways?”

“Just having coffee…with one of the cigarette girls from the club,” Lucy responded nodding her head towards Charlotte.

“Well let’s get outta here, we gots business to take care off.” The man winked over her shoulder at Charlotte and playfully carried her out before she could even say goodbye.

Charlotte paid be the bill and walked home. Her apartment was cold and empty, dirty and unkempt. She wriggled out of her work dress and crawled under her sheets without ever turning on a light. She imagined Lucy in bed with that man. She imagined Lucy in California with a little girl. She imagined Lucy on stage in the red satin gown she loved so much. She imagined Lucy in her apartment. She imagined Lucy in her bed. She imagined Lucy until she drifted to sleep.

Date Night

It was unbelievable, the kind of thing that you read about or saw in movies. It couldn’t really be happening, but it was. It was right there, right in front of her face. It was creeping toward her on eight legs, it had so many eyes and they were all looking at her. Its pincers were clicking and it was just coming toward her. She was frozen in fear. She couldn’t move and she couldn’t scream. She just stood there, frozen and waiting to become its dinner.

That morning, when she woke up, she had gotten dressed for school and she had been happy. She had a date that night with a boy that she had had a crush on since she was much younger. They were going to the diner and then to a movie and she was beyond excited. She had picked out her nicest skirt and her favorite sweater. She had carefully pinned her hair back. She had spent the whole summer, the summer of 1948, watching what she ate and going for long walks. She was no longer the chubby girl; she was now the kind of girl who got noticed by Charles Frederick.

“Anna Marie! Breakfast is ready!! Fresh fruit and some coffee, just like your diet calls for!!” called her mom, from downstairs.

She put the finishing touches on her look for the day and practically skipped down the stairs.

“Don’t forget, mom, I am going to eat with Charles and then going to a movie right after school, so I won’t be home until late,” she told her mom.

“I remember sweetie, I am so happy for you. I have always thought you were amazing but you have really come out of your shell this year. Your first date! It’s so exciting and you look beautiful,” said her mom.

 “Thanks, mom. I love you, see you later,” said Anna Marie.

She walked out with her fruit in hand and set off toward the school. Along the way a couple of the other girls from the neighborhood joined her. These were girls who had always been nice to her, but had never really showed interest in being her friends, until she lost all of the weight.

“Anna, hey! You look fabulous! Charles isn’t going to know what to say,” said Lila.

“I bet you are so excited! I would be, I haven’t had a date in months,” said Kathy.

“I am! I have been a mess all morning, trying to decide what to wear and all that,” replied Anna Marie.

She drifted off into thought, and they finished their walk in silence. She didn’t even remember arriving at school and most of the day passed by in a haze. She was so excited that it was all she could do to just go through the motions. When the last bell rang, he was waiting for her at her locker just as they’d agreed upon.

Now, suddenly, she was hyper alert. Instead of the haze that she had gone through most of the day in, she was now completely aware. She nervously patted her hair and hoped that she still smelled nice.

“Hi,” said Charles, “you look amazing.”

He flashed her a smile and she was surprised at how smooth and even his skin was and how incredibly white his teeth were. His letter jacket was perfectly pressed. He looked like a mannequin, with his perfectly styled brown hair and his dark green eyes. She realized that she was staring and she startled herself back to reality.

“Thanks,” she said, “so do you. What movie are we seeing? It’s been a while since I saw a movie!”

They set off on the way to the diner, talking about their days and nervously smiling at each other. They talked about the different movie options and tried to decide what they wanted to see. Along the way, they were surprised to see several stray dogs that seemed to be running out of town.

“They must be cold, trying to find a town with warmer hiding spots,” said Charles.

“Still, it’s kind of bizarre. I’ve never seen dogs behave that way,” she replied, looking around.

It was then that she noticed that she had become really cold. The wind had changed direction and now they were walking right into it. The leaves were crunching beneath their feet and the whole scene gave her the shudders because the street was too empty for it being so early in the day. When she trembled, he offered her his letter jacket.

They arrived at the diner and found it curiously empty for the day and the time. Normally it was packed with other high school students like themselves. They didn’t even have to find a corner booth for it to be quiet. The only people there were the staff and two or three other guests. They ordered their burgers and continued their conversation.

It turned out that they had quite a bit in common. They had similar taste in books and he was impressed with how much she knew about football and basketball. She was surprised to find out that he painted in his spare time and that his mother had insisted on teaching him how to sew. The date was going wonderfully. Anna Marie couldn’t have been happier.

Just when they were getting ready to pay for their meal and head to the theater, they heard a low rumble in the distance. Before they could stand up to look out the window, the far wall of the diner came crashing in and something that looked shockingly like an 800-pound spider came careening into the dining area.

The spider looked around and then swept the nearest customer into its mouth. As Anna Marie screamed, blood splattered the walls and bone fragments flew through the air. The diner owner tried to run, but the spider was too quick and in a flash, he was gone too.  The cook came out of the kitchen, he had a butcher knife and his face was stoic. He was determined to fight, to defend his life. He ran toward the creature, swinging the knife forcefully. He made contact with the beast’s leg and as he hacked at it, black ooze began to spurt out. Anna looked down and she was covered in blood, bone, and ooze. She stopped screaming when she realized that Charles was pulling her.

Her last glimpse was of the cook, still hacking and fighting, as the spider scooped him up and began to devour him. Charles was still pulling her and they ran as fast as they could. When they were several blocks from the diner, they stopped and rested on a park bench.

“Charles, was that what it looked like? It couldn’t have been could it? What do we do next?”

“I don’t know Anna, but I think it was. Let’s run to my house. My father collects guns, we have to warn people and fight it.”

After they had caught their breath, they took off running again. They were only a couple of blocks when they heard a rustling sound behind them. Anna stole a glance and shrieked.

“Charles!!! It is right behind us! It’s going to catch us!”

They sped up, but just when Anna stole a glance again, the spider over took them. She grabbed Charles’ hand, but it was too late. He was scooped up and into the creature’s mouth. Anna was sprayed with more blood and more bone, and she noticed that the spider was steal bleeding. She froze and changed directions, running into the shrubbery, trying to hide.

When she emerged from the bushes, she was in the parking lot to the drug store. She knew it was hopeless. The store was closed and there was nowhere to seek shelter. She turned and watched as the monster came toward her. She backed away slowly, until she bumped into the building. The creature lumbered on, it seemed to be enjoying the fact that she was terrified. It was toying with her before she became its meal. She had time for one last scream before the giant spider was upon her. Her last sensation was of its hot, sickly breath.

Little Jason Voorhees

What pure luck it was that everyone stopped searching for his body after such a short amount of time. Had the search party continued they may have found him holed up in a Sycamore trunk, or eventually living in the old Smith house. He was never offended by the fact that everyone gave up looking for him and went on with a funeral; rather he was relieved. No more peers, no more councilors and no more of his crazy mother. He had never fit in quite right and his mother’s antics didn’t help. If she had agreed to psychological evaluation she may have been deemed unfit for any number of reasons, the least of which being her absolute obsession with him. Jason could barely flinch and she was asking if he was okay. His father had recognized her insanity shortly after he was born and left immediately. The following years she refused to date or go out justifying it by telling everyone he “needed” her. He didn’t need her, he needed to be left alone.

His life in the woods at Camp Crystal Lake was more than satisfactory. He realized early on that in order to survive he would need to learn to hunt; and boy did he learn to hunt. His first capture was a small cotton tailed rabbit. All he had to skin or gut it with was sharpened sticks but he tore into the body of the little critter without hesitation. It was during this first hunt and kill that he realized the pleasure it brought him. Holding the insides of that rabbit allowed him to experience a new level of consciousness, one where he was in charge and he held power. He carried the desire for that high with him everywhere he went and lived it out every chance he got.

As he got older he became large in stature and capable of killing the biggest animals in the woods with his bare hands. He no longer hunted out of necessity, but for pleasure. He spent all day and many nights creating traps that would allow him dominance against even the fiercest of predators. The walls of the old Smith house were plastered with the hides of every sort of animal you could imagine from those woods. Sometimes he kept the heads of the animals in jars where he would watch them slowly rot; other times he would rip the anatomy of the animals off their bone little by little savoring every bloody piece of flesh that touched his hands. His life was good, and it was about to get better.

Camp Crystal Lake had gone bankrupt and Jason could finally return to the place where his real life began. He left everything he had at the old Smith house and took over cabin number 45 at the camp. Before Jason had a chance to decorate the walls of his new home with decaying flesh a group of rowdy teenagers headed on to the camp grounds for a weekend getaway. The moment he saw them he knew it wouldn’t be the flesh of rabbits, coyotes and foxes that hung from the walls of his new home. 

Life After Roxie: The Amos Hart Story

He watched her walk over to the window, wringing her hands. She was so distressed that the press wasn’t paying attention to her, that she didn’t even notice him leaving the room. She never noticed him. She had killed the man that she was cheating on him with and all she cared about was fame. She didn’t realize that he was the one person who had stood by her. He hadn’t divorced her; he had paid for her lawyer.

What pained him the most was that he knew that he deserved better, but that he still loved her. It was freezing, but he didn’t feel the cold. The wind was blowing and his nose turned red. His feet crunched the ice beneath them as he walked along. With every crunch, he took a deep breath. It wasn’t fit for a grown man to cry, but he didn’t know what to do next.

He knew that there would be a divorce and he knew that she probably wouldn’t care, wouldn’t make it difficult for him. He knew that the guys at the shop would be sympathetic. They had told him to leave her, let her fend for herself, that women were seldom executed in Chicago. They had been nice, but hadn’t understood, when he decided to support her.

He tried to be positive. She was a lazy, philandering drunk and he was better off without her. Half of the country was starving, and he had a good job. He made a decent living. He was a nice person. He knew that this would pass, but that didn’t make it any easier.

As soon as he got to the apartment, he began packing up her things. He could hardly stand to look at them. His stomach began to churn and he vomited all over one of her slips.

When he was done being sick, he finished packing her things and lay down on the bed. It was freezing in the apartment, he hadn’t been home to turn on the heat, and he could see his breath. He lay there, eyes wide open, until the morning came.

He got up, got dressed, and went to work. Life was going on. Roxie was gone; she would probably not come for her things until she knew he wasn’t there. In all likelihood, he would never see her again. It was fine with him, he knew that there was nothing left to do or say. When he got to work, he immediately felt some peace.

He knew cars. He knew how they worked; he knew how to fix them. There was a certain confidence that overtook his quiet existence when he held a wrench in his hand. It was as though the weight of the tool grounded him to world. When he was fixing cars, he was in command. It was the only area of his life in which he was completely comfortable and confident.

Five years later, he was still working at the same garage.  He lived quietly, and he still lived alone. He had built a nice life for himself, however. He played cards with the men he worked with. He attended church and sang in the choir.

He had never been the type to enjoy the speakeasies and the jazz clubs. Maybe that was why he hadn’t been the man for Roxie. She was traveling the world, performing. He saw her picture in the paper from time to time. It seemed that she had achieved everything that she dreamt of. He was happy for her. He didn’t miss her and he certainly did not want to be a part of her new life.

He took a deep breath and walked through the doors of the church. This Sunday was different. This Sunday, he was going to talk to the woman that led the choir. He was going to ask her to sit with him during coffee and fellowship after the service. If that went well, he was going to ask her if he could take her to a movie.

She was very plain. She had dark brown hair and brown eyes. She dressed modestly and had a singing voice that rang clear as a bell throughout the sanctuary. He had loved her from the moment he laid eyes on her, but she was quiet and shy and he didn’t want to scare her. Everyone at the church knew about his past. They knew about Roxie and her crimes and they knew that he had stayed with her, only to have her turn her back on him. She had no past and his was intimidating.

The service ended and he walked over slowly. He waited for her to say her goodbyes to the person that she was talking to and then he said,

“Hi, Elizabeth, I’m Amos. I know we haven’t spoken much but I was wondering if you would like to sit with me during fellowship. I would like to get to know you a little bit better.”

“Mr. Hart, I would be delighted,” she replied, smiling.

He knew right then that his lonely existence was changing and that Roxie was not going to cast a shadow on his life any longer.

Scarlett.

Scarlett stood at the counter of the bookstore, bored. She snapped her gum and tapped her foot. She couldn’t wait until 5:30, when the store would close and she could be on her way. She loved her job. She felt very fortunate to work with books. She loved being able to recommend her favorites and have first access to new novels. She had gotten the job because she came into the bookstore so often and she had built a rapport with the owner. She did that a lot, she supposed that it was because she just liked people. She was on good terms with a lot of shop owners and she always talked to the homeless people on her walk home from work. She knew they were always looking out for her, because she was nice to them and she did what she could to be pleasant and helpful.

She was startled out of her reverie by the sound of the cuckoo clock, letting her know that it was 5:30 and that she could get ready to go home. She locked the cash register, tied her hair back into a ponytail, and buttoned up her ruby red pea coat. Because it was October, she knew that it would be freezing cold and dark by the time that she got home. She stepped out of the store and locked the door and hit the road. She stopped a few times to talk to various shopkeepers and bums, so it took her over half an hour to arrive at her front door. As she had predicted, it was freezing cold and pitch black. She dug in her pockets for her key and she came up empty, so she knocked.

The door swung open, and her mother stood before her. She looked dazed and grouchy, which was typical. Ever since her father had died, her mother was detached. She had quit her job and she spent most of her days in her robe, watching soap operas on television. If she were not doing that, she would get dressed and go sit all day at the cemetery, staring longingly at his grave. It was really kind of ironic that he had a grave, since there had been no body. He had gone missing in the mountains and they had ended up having to bury an empty coffin.

“Hi, Mom,” said Scarlett, “Did you happen to make dinner? Or should I order out?”

“I’m sorry, I got caught up watching Passions. You’ll have to order out. Can you pick it up and then take some to your grandmother as well? She called this morning to say that she was ill. I told her I would send you over with dinner, but then I got caught up in my stories,” said her mother, vacantly.

“Sure what are you in the mood for, ma?”

“Oh, it doesn’t matter to me. Whatever is easy and on the way to Grandma’s is fine with me.”

Scarlett shuffled off to the phone and dialed the number for the local burger joint. She ordered enough for three people, called goodbye to her mother, buttoned up her coat, and headed back out. It was darker and colder than she usually would have gone for a walk, but she didn’t seem to have much of a choice.

After she left the restaurant, with her takeout bags of food, she stopped to talk to a homeless man named Tom. Tom told her that she should be very careful, because lately there had been a string of burglaries in town. He told her to walk straight to her grandmother’s and straight home, and to be sure and not talk to anyone who wasn’t familiar. Scarlett smiled, thanked Tom, and offered him her French fries. He declined and told her that he would keep his eye out for her to pass him coming back.

Not long after she left Tom, she got to the quiet part of town where her grandmother lived.  Most of the neighbors were older, like her grandmother, so after 6 there was seldom anyone out and about.  She was surprised to see an older gentleman coming toward her, as they crossed he stopped and looked at her.

“Hello, little lady,” he said.

“Hello, little man,” she responded, somewhat sarcastically.

“Where are you headed this evening? Don’t you know that there’s a burglar about? It’s not safe for a young girl like you to be out in the night.”

“I had some errands to run, taking my grandmother dinner, and then I will be headed home. Burglars don’t usually strike this early in the evening, do they? And if they did, all they would get from me would be a cheeseburger or two.”

“Well, if you are headed to Mockingbird Lane, you should know that the sidewalk is closed off. They have been working on the sewer for a couple of days. I take it you are Mrs. Calash’s granddaughter? She’s the only old woman that lives alone in this area.”

She looked at him, with trepidation, “How would you know that? You don’t look familiar, you don’t live around here.”

“Just moved in. I went around and introduced myself, that is, before the sidewalks got shut down. You’ll have to go the long way around to get to your grandmother’s. Have a nice night.”

She watched him walk away; making sure that he was headed toward downtown. He had given her the creeps, and she didn’t trust him. He didn’t turn around, so she continued on. As soon as she got to Mockingbird Lane, she noticed that he was right, she would have to go around the long way to get to her grandmother’s front door. She sighed, because it would take her an extra fifteen minutes now, and it would have only cost her five if she had listened to the man in the first place.

Little did she know that as soon as she had stopped watched the man, he had turned tail, and sprinted the long way to her grandmother’s front door. He was much quicker than he looked. He had burgled almost every home and business in the town that he felt was worth his time. He had one last plan in mind; he was going to kidnap Scarlett. His life as a burglar was lonely. He traveled from town to town, cleaning them out and then moving on. He never formed any real relationships and he longed for companionship. He figured that she could be like the daughter that he never had. He had plenty of money, and they could travel around together, robbing and seeing the sights.

He knocked on Mrs. Calash’s door, and when she opened it, he punched her square in the jaw. He knocked her out cold; he didn’t even feel any remorse for hitting an 83-year-old woman. He just felt content, knowing that soon Scarlett would be his adopted daughter and he wouldn’t have to travel around alone anymore. He knew that he had less than half an hour, so he tied her up and shoved her into a closet. She was still unconscious. He changed into her clothes and her bathrobe, dimmed all of the lights, and climbed into her bed.

It didn’t take long for Scarlett to knock on the door. The Man called out, in a weak and feeble sounding voice,

“Do come in dear, I left it unlocked because I am too weak to get up.”

Scarlett opened the door and called out, “Hey Grams! Sorry it took so long, you know, your whole block is torn up and I had to go around the long way. I brought burgers. I’ll just go and fix yours up and then I will be right in.”

She went into the kitchen and prepared a plate for her grandmother. Then she took it into the room.

“Honey, my head is pounding, can you leave the light off and just bring the plate over please?” said The Man.

Scarlett walked over with the plate, and just as she got close to the bed her granny leapt up and took a swing at her. She jumped back in surprise and as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she noticed that it was The Man dressed in her grandmother’s clothing. Before she could even run, The Man swung again and everything went dark.

She woke up and heard a rustling sound. Her head was pounding, from being punched in the face and knocked out cold. She took a second to let her eyes adjust to the darkness. She realized that she was in a trunk and the rustling was coming from the outside. She banged on the door and heard The Man call out,

“I’ll let you out, but I won’t untie you. You’re going to come with me, be my daughter, be my companion.”

She banged again and he opened the trunk. He put his arms under her armpits and pulled her out.  He left her tied and left the tape on her mouth and asked her,

“If I take the tape off, do you promise not to scream? I’ll let you ride shotgun, but you have to promise to behave. I almost have everything packed; we should be ready to leave in just a few minutes. I will call 9-1-1 so that your grandma gets cared for, but she shouldn’t be hurt too badly. Life on the road is rough and lonely; I just want you to come along. I have plenty of money, we could have a good time.”

She nodded her head, agreeing not to scream. He un-taped her mouth and she said to him,

“I have a mother who needs me, and a job. I can’t come with you. You have to leave me here.”

But he shook his head to indicate that he wouldn’t and he carried her over to the passenger seat. He placed her there gently, and resumed his preparations for their departure.

As he was finishing up, he heard a rumbling sound. He jumped into the car and pulled out of the garage. He figured it was the police and that they had gotten wise to him, he peeled out and saw a horde of angry townspeople headed his way. He figured that he could speed through them and they would break up. All of a sudden, Scarlett screamed.

“DADDY??!!?!?!? OH MY GOD!!!!!!”

She looked at him, her eyes wide with fear.

“Mister, that’s my dad. He disappeared in the mountains six months ago. And next to him is Mrs. Moon. She disappeared up there two years ago.”

He looked at her, with some hesitation, and then said,

“Well they don’t look right. What do you think I should do?”

“Get a little closer, I want to see if I’m right.”

He pulled forward a little bit slowly, and as soon as he moved the mob of people moved forward too.

As soon as they stepped into the moonlight, Scarlett and The Man could tell that they weren’t normal. Some of them looked like they were decaying, and some of them looked like they had been gnawed on by the wildlife in the mountains.

“Ummm… mister, I think you should reverse. I think we need to get out of here,” said Scarlett.

And that is just what the man did. He reversed and then sped off in the opposite direction. He knew that there had to be another way out of town. He was sort of surprised how things had turned out. He had gotten the traveling companion he had always wanted, but apparently he had gotten a set of adventures that he had never imagined.

Harper and Gypsy

Ever since their mother died Harper and Gypsy's father had cared less and less about them, more and more about his next drink. Fridge, liquor store, bar, fridge, liquor store- the cycle seemed never ending and it was all they could do to make sure that when he finally blacked out he was at least on their property. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were a thing of the past and the two of them felt lucky they had been awarded free lunches through the school system. Everyday was the same. They muddled through school, taking care of their father and walking the streets for recyclables in hopes they would make enough money to afford dinner.
The only peace they knew was after the sun went down, when the air was cool and smelled so crisp you could taste it. At that point their father was either already in a drunken slumber, or at the bar far enough away for them to forget about him for a moment. It was then that Harper and Gypsy would jump the fence behind their dingy apartment complex and walk towards the city. Sometimes they made it all the way to 2nd street where the traffic never seemed to cease no matter the season, weather or hour. The lights shone bright neon colors and the people seemed to have personalities that matched. The two of them would find a place to sit and people watch, sometimes into the wee morning hours. Some nights they talked, sharing dreams of their future and laughing at the passerby's, other nights neither of them said a word.
It was on one of these nights that Harper and Gypsy seemed to have an unspoken agreement to just keep walking. They passed their normal sitting spot in front of the bars where people were laughing, drinking and flirting like middle schoolers. They wondered past the enormous cathedral with its pointy steeple and stained glass virgins staring down at them. They walked until their feet were sore and everything around them was unfamiliar. When they finally stopped they were in front of  what looked to be a condemned building. In its better years it may have been a convenience store, but tonight it barely resembled anything other than a shack. The siblings finally gave up walking and slumped down onto the curb.
"I can't walk back home tonight Harper. I'm tired, and it is freezing out here. What the hell were we thinking walking this far?"
"I don't know. We weren't thinking."
As they sat, quiet, both too tired to complain they heard a giggle and a rustling movement coming from behind them. They turned to see who could possibly be out here at this hour other than themselves but all they could make out was the orange glow from a cigarette.
"Don't look so nervous you two! Am I interrupting a date or something?" said the stranger.
"Ew, no, he's my brother." Gypsy replied
"Well maybe the date starts with me then!" the girls voice was high and annoying and the thought of her flirting with Harper made Gypsy cringe.
"I don't think so." Harper replied without giving Gypsy a chance to retort.
"Aw c'mon," the girl giggled. "You two are not from around here. It's late, and cold, atleast stay here for the night."
"Stay where?" asked Gypsy.
"Here," the girl pointed at the shack behind them.
"You live here?" Gypsy said without realizing how judgemental she sounded.
"Yeah, I do." the stranger replied, "And it looks to me like right now I got more goin for me than you two, so either come in or keep walking." she flicked her cigarette butt towards the two of them and turned back to the beaten old building.
Harper and Gypsy watched as the girl pushed aside a board from the front window and climbed in.
"I am not staying here Harper!" Gypsy said as she stood to start walking.
"We can't walk home Gypsy. It's hours away and it has got to be almost freezing out here. Lets just stay till dawn when the sun warms things up and then we will go." Harper replied.
"NO! That girl is weird and who knows who else is in there!"
"We don't have options." Harper grabbed Gypsy's wrist and started walking toward the building. She didn't really resist, she knew he was right.
As they pulled back the board and climbed into the window they realized the girl was not alone in her home. There were a group of kids, all about their age scattered throughout the large room. Some of them were passed out on top of boxes, some drinking out of brown bags and others pacing nervously around the place.
"You all live here? Seriously?" Gypsy said, her voice and mood changing from judgement to pity.
"Don't feel bad honey," the high pitched voice screeched. "We are here because we want to be. We live on our terms, do what we want, when we want and don't care about what you people have to say about it."
"Right. What is it that you are doing that anyone cares about exactly? Looks to me like you're all just surviving." Gypsy responded
"Candy, honey. We do candy. Lots of it." the girl snickered.
"What like, Starburst? Skittles? You don't have to live in a shack to eat candy." Gypsy said as she fell back into her judgmental and snarky way of speaking.
"What are you twelve? Candy is not candy- not like, from a gas station. Candy is a drug, little girl. The most amazing, beautiful high you ever felt and we have it right here. No cops, no parents, just us and it," the girl said in a voice that seemed like it belonged in a porno flick rather than a conversation about drugs.
The girl got up and walked over to Harper. Once she was close enough you could see how pretty she was. It seemed strange that someone in her position would be attractive, but she was certainly above average.
"What do you think handsome? You wanna try some candy? It's really sweet." she brushed her hand over Harper's forearm and pulled a little bag from her pocket.
Harper looked at Gypsy as if to say, "Might as well." Gypsy pulled Harper back from the girl and whispered, "What are you doing right now??? Have you completely lost your mind??"
"I'm tired Gypsy. Everything we do is a fight. We are out here tonight, lost and cold and why not just try something that will give us a few hours of peace? What is the worst that could happen? We can relax, try something new, get some rest and go home in the morning." Harper had made up his mind.
"I can't believe you're serious right now Harper. Do whatever you want but I will have no part in it." Gypsy turned and walked to the opposite end of the room where she found a crate, sat down and began fiddling with her jacket sleeve.

                                                                             * * * * *

That night seemed like forever ago, even though it had only been a few months Gypsy felt like years had passed. She tried not to think too much about the long walk to the shack or the fact that the weather was only getting worse as she trudged up the last hill. Every time she made this trip she convinced herself it would be the last, but here she was. Her backpack was heavy, loaded with canned food, bottled water and a blanket. She knew Harper could care less about any of it but she couldn't bring herself to stop trying.
As she approached the building she took a deep breath. The board that once needed to be pushed aside had been ripped off and you could climb in without a problem. The room reeked of urine, sweat and rotting food. It was much worse then the first time she found herself there. Everyone knew who she was by now, and none of them bothered to acknowledge her. She spotted Harper in the corner, he looked like he was sleeping but she knew he was just high. She walked over and started unloading the backpack at his feet.
"Harper!" she nudged him but received no response. "HARPER!" she pushed his shoulder harder but still with no response. He wasn't going to wake up and she didn't care.
He looked awful. His hair was greasy and matted down to his scalp, his skin looked like he had been playing in chalk and his lips were dry and cracked. Gypsy remembered the first night there, when they met W. She was so pretty. How had the same thing that overtook her and left her physically untouched run so rampant and destructive over her brother? None of it made any sense and to say she felt helpless was an absolute understatement.
As she climbed out the window back into the cold for the long walk home Gypsy knew that this would be the last time. Harper hadn't even woken up while she was there, and she hadn't bothered to check his pulse. He couldn't be her responsibility, and neither could her father. She looked both directions and turned to the right, away from home.
"You only have one life Gypsy," she said to herself. "Get on with it."
Her feet and hands were freezing, her body was sore and her head was heavy but for the first time since she could remember her spirit felt light as a feather.