Pelatina

Chapter 4

And, sure enough, Giacone had driven up after five minutes. While I had been waiting for him, I had been pacing in small circles, not necessarily thinking about anything but was rather looking at the sky and clouds.

By the time that he arrived in his small car, my legs were tired from standing. The car was going at a relatively fast speed, and there was a concerned expression on his face, as he parked the car on the side of the road, climbed out, and walked towards me. “Are you okay?”

I didn’t answer his question, but jogged up to him, threw my arms around his stomach, and laid my cheek against his chest.

“Was it your mom?” he asked.

I nodded and squeezed hard, fighting back the tears. “I need you to take me somewhere. I don’t care where. Anywhere but my house.”

“You can come to my house for a while, if you would like. We have a guest room where you could sleep.”

“All right. I would like that Giacone.”

He pulled away from the hug and began walking towards the driver’s side of the car.

“And Giacone?”

“Yes?” He responded immediately.

“Thank you for everything that you have done for me.”

“No problem. I like you, and you deserve to have a friend.”

I smiled and bent my head to get into his car.

For a couple of minutes, Giacone and I didn’t talk to each other. But, when we finally did, he was the one that began. “So, how long do you plan to avoid your house?”

I shook my head and shrugged, “I really don’t know. Until I cool off, I guess.”

“Well, you can stay at my house as long as my parents allow it.”

“I am so sorry I had to call you, but I just didn’t...”

Giacone interrupted, “It’s alright.”

“..Have any other friends,” I frowned.

Another seemingly long moment passed by.

“You can sleep in the guest bedroom; it is already clean.”

I didn’t respond, but I nodded and looked at him.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

I shrugged, “Well, basically, my mom just treats me like a servant and yells at me all of the time. I just....” I paused, “I just can’t stand it anymore. I need to have a break from her.”

“I understand. Well, we are here,” he announced as we drove into a driveway.

I looked out the sparkling window and looked at the house. It was a cute, traditional-looking house. “So, this is your house? I like it...”

“Thanks, wait until you see the inside. My mom is kind of a clean-freak.”

A smile formed on my lips. Finally, I was getting my mind off of my family.

The car came to a stop right outside of the garage, and we both climbed out. What will his parents think when they see me? Maybe I shouldn’t be here because I could get him in trouble...

He began walking towards the brown door to the left, and I followed him. I patiently waited for him to unlock the door and open it.

He allowed me to walk in before him,and I immediately noticed that he had been right. His mom was a neat-freak. My eyes jumped to the glimmering and spotless floors. “Wow...this is....really clean,” a large smile formed from my lips.

“Yes, I know. Kind of embarrassing, really,” he paused and chuckled, “I’ll show you where you can sleep so you can put that bag of yours somewhere.”

Giacone began walking forward, following the hallways. I did the same, right behind him.

The room he led me into was average-size, with a small, wooden bed in a corner. I walked up to it, and slid my backpack off my back and onto the bed.

I heard Giacone sigh behind me and announce, “Well, I am going

to leave you to settle in....Would you like anything to eat?”

“Umm...I am not so hungry after eating, but may I have some water please?”

“Sure. I’ll be in the kitchen. At the other end of the house.” He smiled and closed the door, leaving me alone in the room.

I flopped on my back into the soft mattress, which I had to admit felt like a cloud...whatever that feels like.

I didn’t stay like that for long, for my throat was dry, and I was needing water. So, I sat up, stretched my legs, and found my way to the kitchen.

Giacone was sitting in front of the old T.V., watching the news with a glass of lemonade. I mean, that thing was ancient! Even my family didn’t have a T.V. that old.

I walked towards the couch and sat down beside him. He looked at me after turning down the volume of the T.V. with a remote control, “Oh, hey. I’ll go get your water for you.” He stood up, walked to the kitchen, and returned with a glass of ice water.

“Thanks,” I forced a smile before gulping down the water.

“No problem.”

“So...what were you watching?” Although, I didn’t necessarily have to ask, for I could just look at the large screen.

He looked at me, and I could see fear in his eyes. “Just the news about what’s going on in Washington D.C. Should I turn it off, or do you want to watch it?”

“You can leave it on. We should probably be watching it anyway.”

Giacone shrugged and turned up the volume. Immediately, I wish he hadn’t.

The people in the footage were going crazy at the capital. Large mobs were chanting and waving their arms in the air. My eyes widened, “Oh my...what’s going on?”

He didn’t look at me, but continued to stare at the T.V. screen, “I’m not sure. Some fighting broke out with some people who are unhappy with the government several days ago, and it isn’t ending.”

“Oh. Do you think it will end soon?” But, I already knew the answer from looking at the footage. I could hear screams echoing through the room and people fighting each other, shouting and holding up posters that said, “We want a better leader!”

“I really don’t know. I don’t think it will, but I don’t know much about this stuff.”
He grinned, and turned off the T.V.