99 to Nowhere

by DOMINO

  "I understand" I glanced over at her and she continued to watch us.

  "So, are you interested in anyone here, or at school, or anything?" He asked hopefully, I could see it in his eyes.

  "Maybe" I answered, giving him a sly smile. He was actually quite handsome and I could see why Amy and many girls in school were attracted to him.

  "Cool, don't go anywhere and I'll be right back" He stood up. "Can I bring you something back?"

  "Yeah, whatever you were gonna bring her" I pointed to Amy.

  He smiled and revealed perfect teeth. "Sure" He sauntered away and spoke to several others before he disappeared inside.

  I put my beer down at my feet. I watched Evan kissing the girl who asked him for marijuana earlier, wishing I had a camera.

  "What the hell are you doing here?" I looked up to see Amy plopping down in Jared’s empty chair.

  "I'm here to party, why?" I gloated.

  "You don't belong here—" She stated and looked me over with disgust.

  "Jared doesn't think so" I snickered.

  She smoothed her tight ponytail down. I frowned at the green eye shadow that was applied all wrong and her roots that needed a new dye job.

  Humph, at least I’m a real blond.

  "Oh really, well regardless of what he says, we're an item, so hands off" She whispered through clenched teeth.

  "If you don't get out of my face, I'll beat you blind" I answered calmly and confidently. Her eyes widened and she sat back from me, she knew I would do it. "Plus, I think he's cute. I wonder what he kisses like—" I added, just to piss her off further. "Guess I'll find out though, huh?"

  Her shoulders were heaving and her nostrils flared. "He and I have been dating since we were fifteen, so you can screw him all you want, but don't think for a second he'll ever end up with you" She stood up and crossed her arms defiantly.

  "Exactly" I glared up at her. "You should heed your own advice" I raised my eyebrow.

  Jared walked back over with my drink and continued to look annoyed with her.

  "Problem?" His deep voice asked her before he handed me my drink.

  "Jared, I asked you for a drink over an hour ago" She snarled. "Why the hell are you getting that bitch a drink?"

  I decided to ignore the fact that she called me a bitch and pulled his hand for him to sit down next to me. "This is awesome" I said dramatically. "Thanks Jared" I winked at her so he couldn't see it.

  "I forgot" He replied with irritation. "Amy, can I just have a good time for a change, without you chasing all the girls away from me? We aren't even a couple anymore. We broke up four weeks ago" He sat down with frustration expression, but she continued to stand next to him.

  "Oh, so you want to screw her now, right?" She asked, glaring down at him.

  "No, I never said I wanted to sleep with her" He replied defensively. "Just go over there with your lapdogs, enjoy yourself, and I'll do the same thing"

  "Why don't me and my lapdogs beat her ass, and then, I'll enjoy myself" She retorted.

  "You and I both know, that's not gonna happen" He replied calmly. "So get the hell out of my face right now Amy, I mean it"

  I could see the steam coming out of her ears, nose, and mouth. Her eyes bore a hole into me and I knew she wanted to kill me.

  "Problem?" Evan asked. The girl he was kissing held tightly to his arm.

  "What's up Evan? It's all good here, you enjoying yourself?" Jared asked with a sly smile.

  "Yeah, all chocolate and roses" Evan grinned and looked at me. "You alright?" He motioned with his head toward Amy.

  "Yeah, Jared here is taking good care of me" I winked.

  "Cool, we'll be leaving here in about an hour, meet you out front" He said to make me aware.

  "I can take her home" Jared smiled and then frowned when Amy stepped up behind him.

  "No, you can't" She interrupted and pulled at his arm. "We need to talk" She scowled and pulled him into the house.

  "She's a bitch, I plan on kicking her ass the last day of school, or maybe graduation" The girl holding Evan's arm grinned and I agreed she should do it.

  "You're not staying here with him, meet us out front in about an hour, alright?" Evan said again.

  "An hour" I agreed.

  Jared walked back out looking flustered when he sat down. "Sorry about that" He replied and finished the rest of his beer.

  "No problem" I smiled and looked up to see Amy walking back to her group of friends to finish glaring at me. "She's really something else"

  "Yeah, not my problem anymore though" He sighed before Evan came rushing back to me.

  "We gotta go—" He pulled my hand to get me out of the chair.

  "What? Why?" I asked and put my drink down.

  "Just come on—" He pulled me behind him.

  "See you in school?" Jared asked.

  I nodded yes and scurried behind Evan. "What's going on?" I asked. We ran behind a few houses next to Jared’s. I pulled Evan back so he would answer. "What the hell is going on?"

  "My dad, he's here. He must've checked in on us or something" He pulled out a pack of gum while we crouched behind a few bushes. "I have no idea how we are gonna get back to the house without him catching us. I couldn't find Cory"

  "How much money do you have?" I whispered.

  "About forty bucks, why?" He asked and smacked on a wad of gum before he handed me a few sticks.

  "You got a cellphone, right? We'll call a cab and be back to the house before he gets there, make him think he's crazy” I nodded. "Yeah, that's what we'll do, and stick to a good story, his word against ours"

  He smiled deviously and pulled out his cellphone to call a cab company. "We'll get to the next block and wait" He pulled my hand to follow him.

  We hid in between cars that drove by until the cab came into view. We jumped in and gave him the address to get home; Evan called Cory while we were still in the cab.

  "Hey man, my dad’s out there—" He paused and I could hear Cory on the other end. “Yeah, if you see him, tell him that you haven't talked to us, alright? Cool, talk to ya tomorrow"

  We rode in silence until we got to our street. We were grateful when we noticed the minivan was still gone. Evan helped me back into the window before he jumped in and ran up the stairs to his room.

  I could see the door had been kicked in and the wooden legs on the chair I wedged under the door were broken. I got undressed and put on some pink flannel pajamas that Mrs. Johnson got me and ran upstairs to Evan's room. He was throwing on his pajamas as I walked in.

  "Come on" I whispered before he pulled me back.

  "What? Where?" He asked and looked at me as if I was insane.

  "Your mom is still sleep on that valium we gave her, we need to wake her up and lie, so come on" I pulled him behind me.

  I knocked on her door and got no answer so I opened the door and cut on the lights.

  "Mom, wake up" Evan glanced at me while he nudged her lightly.

  I watched her look up surprised.

  She threw her hands to the pink rollers in her hair. "What's going on, is the house on fire?" She looked alarmed.

  "No, its Ben. I don't know what's going on" I looked panicked. "He busted my door down and Evan's. He was yelling and asking where we were" I sat down next to her while she rubbed her eyes in disbelief. "I kept telling him I'm right here and what was he talking about, but he grabbed his keys and took off" I shrugged dramatically. "I began to think he was going blind, because he couldn't see me, or maybe he took some drugs or something, but Evan and I were stunned at everything, we were scared"

  "I asked him what was wrong and—" Evan shook his head. "I kept saying dad, dad, we're right here, what are you talking about, but it was like he was sleep walking or something. Maxx and I hid in a closet while he kicked down the doors. I kept calling out to you, but you didn't come"

  She flung the covers off her and grabbed her robe. "He's still gone?" she asked and ran down the stairs.

  I winked at his
half smile and we followed her down the stairs to finish our lies.

  "We watched him drive away; looking all crazy and stuff. I already feel ill and thought I was dreaming when he burst into my room" I added in a high-pitched tone. "He's insane"

  She picked up the house phone and dialed, we knew she was calling him.

  "Ben? Where in heaven’s name are you?" She paused and ran to the window. "He's pulling up now"

  I felt my stomach twist in knots as I stood beside Evan and waited for him to walk in.

  "Where are they?" He growled after Mrs. Johnson grabbed his coat and tried to calm him down. "No, where are they?"

  "We're right here, what are you talking about?" I asked innocently.

  "You snuck out of your room and left—" He countered. “You went to a party; nobody gave you permission to leave" He huffed.

  "Dad, what are you talking about? We've been here the entire time" Evan said coolly. "We never left; you broke down Maxine's door while she was still in it, why?"

  He was taken aback and wiped his mouth. "I knocked on her door and she didn't answer—" He began.

  "I was sleeping, I didn't feel well. I told you that before I went to sleep" I retorted. "Why break down the door?"

  "I—I came in to check on you. I knocked on the door and got no answer—" He was still breathing heavily. "Then I went to Evans room and he was gone, I know you two were together" He growled and glared at Evan.

  "I was yelling at you to stop, but you were out of control, you didn't even see me when you ran out of here" I said innocently. "Besides, if I was with Evan, you would know I was in good hands anyway, right?"

  "Absolutely, Evans a good boy" Mrs. Johnson chimed in. "Honey, are you feeling alright?" She looked up at him with concern.

  "I'm fine!" He glared at her. "I'm not crazy, they were not here Eva!"

  "They are right here Ben. They didn't go anywhere" She tried to feel his forehead before he brushed her hand away. "Evan has never lied to me before and I believe him. I think that medication you've been taking is wearing on you"

  "Nothing is wearing on me" He snarled. "She was not in her room!" He turned to Evan and pointed at him. "Neither was he"

  "I don't know what to say mom" Evan sighed with exasperation. "I was here, and when I heard him kicking Maxine's door in, I went to check on her, we were scared out of our minds"

  "Ben dear, they are here and we're all safe, so let's go to bed" Mrs. Johnson tried to soothe his nerves by rubbing his back.

  He was seething as he looked from Evan to me. "The next time you sneak out of here, you'll be back at the detention center" He pointed at my nose. "Evan, if I find out you were with her, you'll never see the light of day again—"

  "But we were here the whole time, dad" Evan answered and crossed his arms. "I don't know what's wrong with you, but you need to rest or something"

  "Don't you talk back to me" He stepped toward him threateningly and I was surprised when Evan didn't budge, he didn't move an inch.

  "Sure—dad" Evan answered and took my hand; we walked back to my room.

  "Why are you holding her hand!" He yelled behind us, startling us to let each other go. "Are you two sleeping together or something?"

  "I'm offended and I can't believe you. You say you want he and I to get along like a brother and sister, but when we do, you don't like it, why is that?" I narrowed my eyes at him.

  "They are bonding dear. How can you accuse them of something like that? We want them to be close like brother and sister, and they are. Evan is already looking after her like she is his sister" She looked at him curiously. He shook his head and stomped up the stairs. "You two get some rest, it's been a long night and I know you don't feel well, I'll talk to him" She rushed up the stairs behind him.

  We waited until we heard their bedroom door close before we looked at each other and exhaled.

  "We have to talk—" I looked at him.

  "Talk about what?" He asked after he walked to my door.

  "Tomorrow Evan, we need to talk" I said again.

  He helped me pick up the broken chair and he looked at the lock.

  "Yeah, tomorrow. We need to talk" He said before he closed the door and went back to his room.

  I moved the heavy chest full of blankets and pillows in front of the door, and crawled in the bed, thinking about Evan. Something didn't add up and I needed answers. Tomorrow I would find out if what I thought was correct.

  THIRTY THREE

  The next morning, I woke up and went into the bathroom to get dressed. I wished it were a school day because I hated being home all day with Mr. Johnson. School let me get away from his grotesque stares. I walked up to Evan's room to find he wasn’t there and went back downstairs.

  "Where's Evan?" I asked Mrs. Johnson.

  She was knitting contently next to Mr. Johnson that was in the middle of watching a football game and drinking beer.

  "Why do you need to know where Evan is?" He growled at me.

  "He and I are gonna hang out today, finish our bonding" I replied and smiled when I saw the jealous expression he revealed.

  "He's out back dear, shoveling snow—" Mrs. Johnson answered and glanced timidly at Ben.

  "Cool, I'll help him so he can finish faster, then he and I can hang out" I sang.

  I grabbed my coat out of the coat closet and ran out in the backyard.

  "Hey" He said and continued shoveling.

  "Hey, he's making you pay for last night, huh?"

  "Yeah, woke me up at 6:00 a.m. I've been doing stupid chores all morning" He scowled.

  "Here" I took the shovel from him. "I'll give you a break" I smiled and began shoveling snow off the deck.

  "Thanks, I think I'm getting blisters" He chuckled and blew into his hands.

  "No problem, he's really got issues" I frowned and glanced up at the living room window.

  "Plenty" He replied and shoved his hands in his pockets.

  "Don't we all" I nodded.

  "Yeah, we do" He whispered. He grew silent and sat on the steps of the deck.

  "Your butt is gonna freeze" I joked.

  "I don't care" He grinned.

  I stabbed the blade of the shovel into the snow and sat down next to him. "Evan, can I ask you a question?"

  He looked at me and wiped his runny nose. "Alright, yeah, you caught me masturbating, but that bitch of a girlfriend I was with was a prude, and my so called dad took my stash of porno DVD’s. I was horny as hell" He blurted. “I would have masturbated to anything with breasts at the time—no offense”

  I leaned back and looked at him. "I wasn't gonna ask you about that" I smiled at his confession.

  "Oh, damn" He shook his head. "I never did anything like that before, but I was in a bad place"

  "It's alright" I sighed. "My question is, you don't really like your dad that much, do you?"

  He looked at me and then stared off into the high snow filled pine trees that lined the side of the yard. "Why?"

  "I just have a feeling. Were you in the system before you were adopted?"

  He licked his lips. "They can't have kids" He sighed. "They adopted me when I was twelve. I was in the system before them, with Cory. They got me from a home in Nebraska. I was told not to refer to them as my adoptive parents and consider them my own. My mom and brother are nowhere to be found, I can't find them, but I know my mom still wants me. Mrs. Johnson told me my mom was clean and trying to find me, but never gave me the information to contact her. She kept telling me that my mom didn't leave her a return address or phone number" He whispered.

  "Then why don't you go back?" I was appalled.

  "I can't, my brother is in jail and my mother is an alcoholic, so I'm told" He sighed. "That's one reason I gotta keep my grades up, it's my only escape"

  "I understand—" I nodded. "At least you have a way to get away, I don't" I slapped my mittens together to get the snow off.

  "Yeah you do. Run away like you did before" He whispered. "I was hoping they didn't catch y
ou—"

  "Really?" I smiled. "He chased me for a long time, downtown, until I lost him"

  He shook his head. "He's got real problems and so does she. That valium I snuck in her tea last night is just the beginning. Valium, Xanax, and other stuff she uses to stay so doped up and chipper all the time. Her happy pills" He scoffed. "I've sold plenty of them in school to pad my savings"