CHAPTER 8: Dusty

6:05 Evening

  I suppose every once in a while people make mistakes, and they are forgiven. But not today, Andrew thinks I'm going to let him off the hook just because he's "pretty" and "funny" and "every girl's dream". Well he's not. He's a lying backstabbing thief. 

I sat bitterly on the couch shivering, winter was coming and winter meant snow. A mug of tea was on the table and I was waiting for it to cool down. Chris was at work at some fast food hut, but to come home soon, and his mom was at work too. Andrew was outside from what I could see. The sliding glass window to the right of the television showed Andrew lying in the grass with his hat on top of his face. I huffed at the sight of him, I kept my eyes on the television screen showing a man who was bitten by a shark or something and lost a hand. Then commercials came on showing ads for shaving creams and ice cream bars. In my gripped hand was the locket, the locket that he stole. That he ripped from the floor boards and took. I opened my hands and picked up the locket. I clicked it open and the little note was stuck in there. I pulled it out and unfolded it. 

"ITS OVER"

He didn't really have the best grammar. 

I groaned, tears welled up, but I sucked them back in. Figuratively, of course.

I stuck the note back in and closed the locket. I looked out the sliding glass window, Andrew was still laying on his back outside, his hat on top of his face to hide the sun surrounded by dark clouds. I got up, and slid the door open. 

I closed it behind me, Andrew did not move except for the up and down of his stomach. Breathing, good.

I laid down next to him. I tipped his hat off with a flick of my finger, his brown eyes were slightly open, red, like his cheeks.

Like he had cried.

"Hey, you really wanna know 'bout this locket?" I asked, I gave in. 

He looked up like he hadn't noticed me in the beginning. Andrew shook around for a while, then stared at me.

"Well," he said curiously "now that you mention it, yeah. Yeah, I would."

I sighed, then showed him the heart locket, the size of a quarter. He took it from my hands and examined it. He saw the detail, he smooth front, and in the back, engraved there was the words "DUSTIE".

"Well I guess the guy who gave you this was a bad speller." Andrew muttered.

"Pfft, yeah." I laughed.

Andrew handed the locket back and pushed his hat on the grass instead of on his stomach. "So, Dust, tell me about this locket. Like you said."

I sighed heavily. 

"Okay, so, a year ago, I met this guy, Johnny-"

Andrew snorted, then burst out laughing.

"HEY. Just 'cause his name is Johnny doesn't mean he's a jerk." 

"Whatever!" Andrew muttered. "Continue."

I stared at him for a moment to see if he needed to interrupt again, then resumed.

"Okay, so, I met him at a Subway,he was 18, older guy, so what? We dated 'fer about 5 months. Then, he gave me this locket," I said jingling the locket in front of his face. 

"Then ran off. Me, real happy. Thought we would get married or some s**t. But then the note said 'It's over'. Next day, I called him up, he said he 'didn't want to date anyone anymore.' But the next day I saw him makin' out with some chick." I said, sniffles were coming. 

Don't. Cry.

Andrew looked at me like I was a sick puppy in distress. 

"Who was it?" He asked curiously.

"Eh, some busty chick from Minnesota, 17. Her name's Penelope Graid."

I began to cry, trying to hold it in, the hiccups were coming. Sometimes I didn't like to talk about it, I tried to make it feel like it was a funny "ha-ha" conversation but it failed. 

Andrew inched closer to me and said nothing, he seemed like the type that couldn't handle when people cried. I just stared at Andrew, and he stared back, and like that moment in the movies when two people stare into each others eyes, we kissed.