Not me starting two multipart stories at the same time π as always, thoughts and opinions are welcome!
*
Where the fuck is it?
I wander back down the aisle and wonder if I should just go home. The only person here besides the bored cashier is a buff, grumpy man unloading clinking boxes on a dolly from a truck out back, and I don't want to bother him.
Arms crossed, I stare a hole into the selection of tequila before me. All we have at home is a half-empty case of Bud Lite, which Winnie refers to as "what I'd be drinking if I wanted to be sad for a few hours."
"Tryina steal?" a voice loudly announces not five feet from me. The cashier looks up from what sounds like the League of Legends mobile game long enough to see whether I actually am, then turns his attention back to his phone.
"Nah, I'm the distraction," I say, mildly startled, but always ready to play. "My associate is loading the good stuff up in the van right now."
The man, scruffy-looking in a beat-up brown leather jacket, laughs and sidles closer to me. "Of course. What are you pretending to look for?"
My spidey-senses tell me that I should be wary of men who approach others in the liquor store at two in the morning, and I slide my hands into the front pocket of my hoodie, thumb on my switchblade.
"Don Julio," I say, matter-of-factly. "Can't seem to find it."
"That's over by the cash register," the man says. "Walk right up to Sammy there - the guy not doing his job - turn your back to him, and look down. You can't miss it."
Does he work here? My hand relaxes a little in my pocket. "Well, thank you, sir. I was gonna go home and cry fake tears over empty shot glasses."
"That'd be an absolute fake shame," the man laughs. I do as he directs and opt for the second biggest bottle. Fifty bucks - Winnie better pay me back before Friday, or the car isn't getting gassed up until next Sunday. All the more reason to stay in the house.
"Have a good night," I wave to the guy, passing him on my way out. He's got his hands full with a case of coconut rum, but he smiles and says "Come again!"
Did he just clock-in? Third shifts are brutal.
. . .
The Friday morning sunlight graces my windowsill. I crack my eyes open.
Winnie and I ended up chasing shots with water last night, having run out of anything but organic cranberry juice around 4. I remember pulling out the deluxe Scrabble board, making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, watching the first half of Free Willy, and not much else. A good night.
But the liquor sits heavy in my stomach, so I resolve to get rid of it before it gets rid of itself. I might still be drunk.
"Heyyyyy, baby girl!" I shout, flouncing into Winnie's room. My little sister is curled up in a ball and snoring loudly at the foot of her own bed, but snorts when I make my entrance.
"Hhh," Winnie rasps. I pull back the cover to make sure she's alright. She is: the right side of her face is covered in drool, and she forgot to put her headscarf on before she crashed, but she's good.
"I think I drank too much; I need to throw up," I explain quickly. "Get up and get ready for Marvin."
Winnie rolls over and stares, eyes wide, up at the ceiling at the mention of her fiancΓ©'s name. "Shit," she proclaims.
"Shit is right, chug water with me and then take a cold shower," I instruct. I don't remember her taking as many shots as I did, but she's at least a hundred points lighter. Luckily she bounds out of bed and begins stripping. I fill two 2 liter bottles with tap water and meet her in the bathroom.
"Wanna race?" she gripes. She looks gray and sick, and I remind myself to start the coffeemaker while she's in the shower.
"I'd rather not, kid," I mutter. "This is stupid enough." I lift my bottle to my lips, and she does the same. She gets through half of hers before holding her head over the toilet and vomiting; I get through almost all of mine and step over to the tub, deciding not to crowd one spot. I look over after I'm done, one hand gripping the bar on the shower door and the other braced against the tile. "I'm too old for this shit," I moan, washing out the tub.
"I'm too engaged for this shit," Winnie mutters around her toothbrush. Her hefty rock winks on her finger.
I grunt in agreement before I say: "And Marv's too nice to a washed-up smartass like you." She snarls at me and cups her hand to fling ice cold water across my back and neck with deadly accuracy. "Shit, shit, okay! Only a little brokedown smartass. Here," I amend, leaving the shower head on for her. She shoots me a look and grumbles something before spitting into the sink and stepping past me into the Antarctic temperatures I left the water on. She shrieks, and I try to hold in a devious smile while I brush my own teeth and splash cold water onto my face.
I lean towards my reflection in the mirror and rub the moisture from my hands through my hair, wondering if I can get Winnie to grease my scalp, then remember dimly that she'll be gone for the weekend. A ski trip to the mountain resorts up North sounds fun. And cold. But I'll get the little apartment to myself for three whole days, so I don't even mind having to grease my own hair.
. . .
Marvin loads Winnie and her suitcase into his Ford Escape in record time, teasing my little sister about her pale face and dark eyebags. I want to join in, but she looks too pitiful, so I wait until they're about to pull off.