Chapter 15

The time I had to spend with my mother wasn't as long as I wanted it to be, but I knew even the day she first got here that she had to go back to my dad sooner or later. I had a lot of fun with her though, she even let me miss one day of school just to get more time together. Of course I argued that I hate ditching school but she won me over with the argument that she's my mother and ultimately is in charge of me. Somewhat. I really don't want to face Zoey again, but I know I can't run from my problems forever.

But now, it's time for her to go back to California, which is so far away. We're currently at the airport waiting for her flight to be called and if the person I'm here for is anyone other than my mother, I wouldn't be up this early.

"Braska, have you found a job yet?" Mom asks, holding a sleepy Jason close to her chest.

I totally forgot about that. "No, but-"

She sighs and checks her phone. "Maybe I can move my flight to a later date. At least until I'm sure you have a clear footing on-"

"Mom," I interrupt, "you don't have to worry about it. Besides, with Dad's medication and everything else...you need the money and to get that money you need to get back as soon as possible. The hospitals in California pays so much better than the ones here and I'd rather you get the money as soon as possible so we can pay for the chemo and all that."

Mom gives me a sad smile in return. "Honey, the doctors are saying that there's not a high chance of him getting better. He's not responding as well as they want to the chemo and they're saying he might not even..." Her voice starts cracking towards the end until she eventually breaks out, quietly letting a steady flow of tears run from her eyes.

Seeing her cry makes me want to sob so I give her a tight hug, making sure to not wake the sleeping child in her arms. "Mom, the medication will work, I promise. Slowly but surely he's getting better. You're his biggest rock and he needs you there. I want to do my part by getting the money to pay for Jason and myself."

"But what kind of a mother am I for doing that to do?" she argues. "I can't ask my daughter to fend for herself, not when I can help her! And honey, you don't even have a job right now. My first priority is always you two. Maybe I can make arrangements to have you guys stay over at Haley's-"

"No!" I cut off, aware of her family life. Haley confided in me earlier this week about problems that goes on in her house, making me regret the picture perfect photo I initially envisioned about her family.

Before Mom could say anything, the boarding for Flight 217 gets announced. She sniffles her tears and hands Jason over to me while I help her with the luggage and bags. "Promise to call me at least five times a day? If you call less than that, I will call Cassandra and-"

"Mom, calm down. You're going to miss your flight," I tell her. We exchange last goodbyes before she boards her plane and I sit back down on the seat, rubbing Jason's head.

***

"Where's Mommy?" Jason asks, tiredly rubbing his eyes. Thankfully he slept through my shower since I left him on my bed. My room is closest to the hall bathroom, which is where I decided to shower.

"She had to go back to Dad," I reply, brushing my hair.

"How come she never takes us?" he curiously asks, grabbing a book from my bookshelf.

Because she doesn't want you seeing Dad as he is now, hollow and half dead. "Because she doesn't want us to miss out on our schoolwork," I answer.

He grins up at me and stretches his tiny arms. "It's Sunday right?" he asks, and I nod in response. "So what are you doing today?"

"Um...I can call Lucas and have you go over to his house to play with Adam." I shrug, grabbing my phone and texting Lucas the plan. I roll my eyes when he response in less than a minute. That boy probably keeps his phone at hand all day.

"What about you?" he asks.

Jason doesn't know about Tony's mother dying, or Tony being out of state so I can't say I'm looking for a new job since he knows I work at Tony's. Technically I still work at Tony's but it's obvious that he won't be in business for a long while and I need money pronto. "I have a meeting with someone," I reply. "Go get ready to go to Lucas' house while I make breakfast."

He immediately jumps up and rushes towards the bathroom while I make my way towards the kitchen. I pass by a mirror along the way and check my attire. This seems okay for asking around for jobs right? I'm wearing my nicest flats, low rise skinny jeans with no holes, and a pale green button up shirt. This is pretty professional for a teenager right?

Shaking my head, I decide that it's the best I've got so I make my way towards the kitchen and start making breakfast. I put bread in the toaster while cracking four eggs in a pan, two for the each of us. I grab another pan and start on the bacon. While everything is cooking, I grab two glasses and fill it with milk before placing them on the table.

Just as Jason arrives in the kitchen, I finish plating everything and placing them on the kitchen counter. "Don't rush," I warn, since Jason is stuffing the toast in his mouth. "I don't want you to choke.

After we finish eating, I wait for him to brush his teeth before dropping him off at Lucas' house. Lucas has soccer practice but he did have the time to drop me off at the mall, which I'm grateful for since his house is on the other side of the city away from the mall.

When I enter the mall, I make a promise to myself that I'm not going to leave unless I have a job. It's still pretty early in the morning so not a lot of people were around and some businesses are just opening up. Good, I can talk to the managers without having to worry about other distractions.

I enter a doughnut place and ask if they need any help. "Sorry sweetie, we're not looking around to hire. But, I do know one store that recently opened. They might be looking for more employees," she adds, probably after seeing my face as soon as she said sorry.

"Really? What store is it?" I eagerly ask. I need to get there and swoop in for a job before someone else takes it.

"Gems of Dusk. It just opened on the second floor. The escalator over there is the closest one to it. It'll just be a little walk and it's to your far right. It's the most dim store in that area, can't miss it," she explains, pointing towards an escalator.

I have a feeling I know what store she's talking about, making my stomach drop down to my knees. Nonetheless, I thank her and buy a couple of glazed doughnuts before walking away. I stuff it in my bag before following her directions, even though I already know where to go.

I walk inside the store and smile to myself to see it open. Even though I've already been here a couple of times, it still stuns me to see how dark it is. The only light came from the shelves that light up the jewelry, making the gems stand out even more.

I make my way towards the counter that I know is at the very back. The area is poorly lit but I can make an outline of someone standing at the counter. Walking up the person, I clear my throat before being met with steel, dark blue eyes.

Layton.

"Nebraska? What are you doing here?" he asks. Suddenly I'm nervous about asking him of all people for a job and out of instinct, I start playing with my bracelet. He watches the movement and I see a hint of a smile on his face. Or maybe he's laughing at me? I really wish this area had more light so I can clearly see him better.

"Oh uh, I was just um, looking for a job?" I say, making it sound like a question. I mentally slap myself at how awful my sentence sounded. I can't get a job if I sound like a nervous cat. I need to show him that I can be assertive. Assertiveness is one quality most managers look for in a potential worker. At least that's what Haley told me.

"Okay. You're hired," he says, opening the counter to let me through.

Whoa, just like that? Doesn't he have to talk to the- oh...that's why he's here all the time! He must be the manager of the store then. Wait, how old is he? Most store managers are in their thirties and Layton looks nowhere near that age.

Plus, shouldn't there be an interview or something? Shouldn't be test me or something to see if I meet the standards and requirements to work here?

"Just like that?" I ask, looking at him incredulously.

He pauses in his step and turns around to shrug at me. "Yeah, it's not that hard to work in a jewelry store. All you really need to know is where everything is and how to put the jewelry carefully in a bag so the stones don't break. It's not that hard, plus we need more employees," he explains. It's still a little hard to believe that the process is just that simple but now I have a job that pays so I'm not going to complain.

"Thanks! I really appreciate this," I tell him gratefully.

He smiles back at me. "We still need to discuss payment and working hours, so wanna come to the back with me?" he asks, motioning towards a door. There's three things I can think of that could happen if I walk inside a dark room with a really hot guy, and only one involves this job.

I shove that feeling down and walk inside the room. Looking around, I notice that there's only a sturdy, mahogany table with two chairs on either end. Of course there's a big bookcase but it's filled with binders and huge telephone book sized books rather than actual novels. I take in how lit up the room is compared to the rest of the store but it's still pretty low compared to what I'm used to.

He sits down in one of the chairs and motions for me to sit across him. I follow his instructions while he takes out several files and paperwork from the drawers in the desk. Hm, if he's the manager then he must spend most of his time back here working on paperwork and all that stuff. I can't hear anything from outside so that means that the walls are pretty thick. Does he just spend most of his time here?

I can't imagine living like that. It's just so...dark. I hate the dark.

"So what would you like to discuss first?" he asks, snapping me out of my thoughts as he starts writing something down.

"My payment," I instantly reply. There's no point in accepting this job if I don't get enough for it. I know it's a long shot to expect anything besides minimum wage but I really need money. Maybe I can negotiate for something if he doesn't offer me enough. But, since we're...acquaintances he'll help me a little bit more? Ugh, wait I can't just ask him to do me favors. I'll figure it out as I go.

"How does...two hundred a shift sound?" he asks, making my eyes pop out.

"Come again?"

_____________________

Dudes...big news....

-

-

-

I GRADUATED!

middle school at least. Now I only have four more years of school left before I'm off to college. Can life just slow down for me? Take me back to when coloring was homework and nap times were encouraged.

Vote if you're proud that I got the second highest GPA in the entire school? Nah just kidding, but really though, vote if you actually like this chapter