Shotgun 𐚁₊⊹

You rolled your eyes. You were mad at Benny, and didn’t want to hear about him spending his Friday night desperately trying to track you down. It was all his fault you were stuck babysitting your neighbor’s kid tonight, afterall. Last weekend, he drunkenly begged you to hang out longer at the most recent kegger at the Moon Tower, knowing damn well you had a curfew to make. He had been your ride that night, promising to sober up and drive you home in a bit. Before you knew it, all your friends had gone home, Benny had passed out in the bed of his truck, and no viable rides were left in the lot. You were forced to sleep in the bed of his truck next to him, knowing there would be hell to pay once you got home, your curfew long passed. 

There indeed was hell to pay. You were tasked with spending your Friday night babysitting your neighbor's evil 6 year old child who didn’t listen to a word you said all night. It was the perfect, shitty night to end your shitty week. You chose to give Benny the silent treatment all week, not even letting him touch you or hold your hand. You ignored his apologies and pushed past the flowers that appeared in your locker each morning. He would have to work harder than that. 

“Are you ever going to forgive him?” Jodi asked, clearly humored by the whole thing. 

“No.” You spoke quickly, before sighing and backtracking. “I will when he earns it.”

“And how do you plan for him to do that?”

You paused, twirling the cord of the phone as you pondered. “Not sure… yet. I’ll know when it happens.”

Jodi snorted and you could practically see her eyes roll through the phone. “Sure, you will.” 

Your phone call with your friend soon ended after Jodi's ride got to her place, the honking echoing through the phone. You found yourself undeniably jealous of Jodi right now. You were impossibly bored. Nothing good on TV, all your friends were busy, and even Tommy was asleep, unable to occupy your time with his annoying habits.

You wondered what Benny was up to. Was he still calling around, or did he give up? He was probably out with his friend right now, at least two beers in and winning at pool against Don. Benny wouldn’t miss out on a good time just to sulk in his bedroom because you wouldn’t talk to him. 

Asshole. You thought, a frown taking over your features. You pushed the bowl of popcorn to the side and flopped backwards on the couch with a huff. You shut your eyes, deciding the only relief you would get from the boredom overtaking you would be the release of sleep. As you felt yourself drifting off towards rest, you were startled awake by a sharp knocking sound. 

You jolted awake, flying upward into a sitting position as another knock rang out. Tommy’s parents wouldn’t knock on the door of their own home, and they weren’t even meant to arrive home for another three hours. You hadn’t told anyone but Jodi where you were, and you knew she wouldn’t just turn up without warning. 

As your heart began to pound, the knocking became louder, more frequent. You slowly stood and tiptoed towards the kitchen, worried that somehow whatever stranger that was outside would hear the pitter-patter of your sock covered feet on the plush carpet. You avoided turning on any lights and the knocking continued, reaching blindly in the dark for something t;'o defend yourself with. Your hand found the cold handle of a knife, unsheathing it from the knife block. 

You crept down the foyer, holding your breath and knife in front of you. Luckily, the lacy white curtains covering the windows by the door were still drawn, hiding you from the eyes of the predator that was outside. 

The floorboards beneath your feet let out a sharp creak. You hissed, your breath catching as the knocking stopped in response. They heard you.

“Little girl,” A high pitched, eerie voice called out from behind the door. You held the knife up in a defensive stance. “Open the door.”

Your brow furrowed. That voice sounded… off? Like someone was disguising their voice for a sick laugh. Who would do that? You thought, before out a groan, drop your hand holding the knife to your side in annoyance. Fucking Don. 

You unlocked the door, flinging it open sudden enough to make the person on the other side jump backwards. Your suspicions were confirmed, as standing there was not only Don with a huge grin on his face, but Pink with an apologetic smile gracing his features. 

“What the fuck is the matter with you!” You barked, waving the knife in your hand wildly. 

Don just cackled, holding his ribs like he was the funniest person on earth. “We got you!”

“Yeah, yeah.” You grumbled, not finding the humor in any of this. You pointed the knife at Pink. “Were you in on this too?”

Pink held his hands up in defense. “Hey, I told him not to.” Pink promised, before admitting, “We came here to get you to call Benny.”

You cocked your head in confusion. “Why?”

Don’s laughter died out enough to say, “He’s been sulking all night. Won’t even come out with us. He’s all ‘why won’t she call me back’ and ‘her Mom said she’s out babysitting and didn’t even tell me’. He’s been a buzz killer all week because of you.”

That made you pause, a squeeze of delight running through you as you heard that he not only refused to go out, but was as sad as you all week.

“He wouldn’t go out with you guys?” You asked for confirmation, contemplating if this was a moment of forgiveness you told Jodi about.

“He won’t even walk away from the phone in case you call. The most we got out of him was that he knew you were here because your Mom told him about your whole babysitting punishment, and he didn’t want to get you in more trouble.” Pink confirmed. 

You took a deep breath, back towards the door. “I’ll call him. Thanks, Pink.” You gave him a small smile, which he returned gratefully. 

“What about me?” Don spoke up, throwing his hands in the air. “I got you out here.”

“Yeah, by scaring the shit out of me.” You pointed out.

You waved a quick goodbye to the boys before heading back inside. You sat on the couch, carefully entering a phone number you knew all too well.

At the first ring, you heard a quick. “Hello?” 

You smiled. “Get your ass over here.”

You could practically see the joy on his face as he replied. “On my way, sweetheart.”