Realism Fan Fiction ❯ White lies ❯ Pocketful of Sunshine ( Chapter 5 )

White Lies: Chapter Five

 

The harsh banging of the front door resounded throughout the small apartment, the force on the other side causing the place to vibrate slightly. Of course, this was enough of a disturbance to cause the dosing boy on the couch to bolt upright, his groggy eyes forced open with shock.

The sun had just begun to peak through the slits in the blinds covering the large windows that made the majority of the fourth wall of the apartment. A groan escaped the dark haired male as Vince squinted his stormy blue eyes, his hand gripping the bridge of his nose.

“Who the hell...”

Vince winced as his soft deep voice had gone hoarse from the sudden transition from deep sleep to wide awake. He forced a small cough to properly clear his throat as he dragged his long legs off the side of the couch, which promptly resulted in the rest of him flopping ungracefully to the hardwood floor.

 

During all this time the pounding had remained, persistent and urgent. In Vince's dazed mind he could just imagine Mimi's pathetic excuse for an Uncle somehow managing to hunt down the location of his niece and now was banging on his door so rudely. As his mind awoke from the fall, he realized that this was a small town; the idea was not that farfetched.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Vince forced himself to his feet, forcing himself to walk across his small apartment. First he ducked his head inside his bedroom, checking on the dosing girl that slumbered inside. Surely enough, she was in the same position he had left her in last night, dead to the world around her, peaceful smile still on her lips. The damn smile was contagious, as he found himself mirroring that gentle smile of hers.

“I'm coming, just keep your pants on...”Vince grumbled as he turned away from the sleeping girl, stumbling over to the door in an ungraceful fashion. His mind may have been awakened, but his coordination was still dead asleep on the couch behind him. Grasping his hand on the doorknob, Vince took a deep breath, bracing himself for the worse as he unlocked the door and flung it open.

 

“What the hell Vince, what took you so long?” Yelled the dirty blonde-haired boy revealed on the other side of the door. The eighteen-year-old boy, clad in what seemed like attire more appropriate for a beach bum, playfully pushed Vince before inviting himself into the apartment.

“Kevin, you scared me half to death!” Vince growled softly, shutting the door behind him and locking it. Relief flowed through him like a breath of cool air, shrugging off his trench coat with ease. There was no use in hiding things from Kevin; there was little he did not already know about him. He shook his head slightly, his entire being now wide awake from such intrusion. “And keep your voice down, I have company dosing in the next room...” He added as he followed Kevin into the kitchen side of the front room.

At hearing this, Kevin pulled his head out of the pale fridge, pausing in mid-raid. He raised a blonde eyebrow at Vince; as if he had just witnessed him grow another head. Vince couldn't blame him, Kevin was his closest and only friend in this town...It would be news to him that someone else had come into his life.

“Really now? And here I was thinking I'm your only friend...” Kevin sneered playfully, grabbing an apple off the counter and sinking his teeth into the red skin. “I thought you didn't like people in your space.”

“I tolerate you don't I? Besides, she is having some...Family issues...So I'm helping her out, for at least the night.” It was Vince's turn to raise an eyebrow at his friend, whose mouth was hanging open unattractively...A half-eaten chunk of apple visible in his mouth. “What?”

“She...You have a female over? No wonder it took you so long to answer the door...” Kevin smirked as he swallowed the chunk of apple, nudging Vince in the ribs firmly, moving closer to him to whisper in his ear. “Is she hot?”

Vince rolled his eyes, shooting Kevin a disapproving look as he answered him to a push back into the corner of the counter. “She's...Alright. But she is a friend; I slept on the couch last night.”

“Ooh, rejection is harsh my friend, but don't worry, she'll come around!”

“Kevin grow up!” Vince rolled his eyes again at the blonde, who had returned to raiding his entire kitchen, leaving him to sit on the kitchen table, forgetting about the dosing girl for a moment.

 

It didn't take Kevin long before he found something worthy enough to replace the apple as his snack. Grabbing a half eaten bag of chips hiding in the depths of the cupboards, Kevin turned back to Vince, glancing at his now exposed torso.

“So does your...Friend...Know about...Well...?” Kevin was not sure how to properly form the words, so he chose to gesture to the gashes and scars scattered across Vince's arms, chest and abdomen.

“I've known her for a few days...Of course not.” Vince answered, looking down at his body in shock, as if he just realized that he had removed his trench coat with Mimi sleeping in the next room. However, a soft thud followed by a feminine groan hinted that Mimi was in another state right now. “Shit!” Vince could not move fast enough over to the counter, snatching his coat and slipping it onto his body with record speed. He managed to button it up just as Mimi stumbled out of his room, her hair messed up, and clothes in disarray.

 

“Good morning Vince—Oh! Hello...” Mimi jumped at the new presence within the apartment, attempting to managed her intense case of bed head. Stretching her arms above her head, she yawned and leaned against the doorframe, her eyes sparkling. Vince visibly gulped and nodded in her direction, looking over at Kevin with a blush on his cheeks.

“Morning Sleeping Beauty, I'm Kevin.” He took it upon himself to introduce himself to the drowsy girl, since Vince had suddenly contracted a case of shyness.

“Mimi...” She yawned out, pointing to herself as she stretched once again. Rubbing her eyes softly, she forced herself away from the door frame and walked between the two boys. She shot a small smile at Vince as she gently brushed past him, opening the fridge to retrieve the carton of orange juice she had seen there last night.

As Mimi bent over to search the depths of the fridge for the carton, Kevin's eyes swept down her body, pausing at intervals before glancing back up at Vince. A grin was plastered across his face as Kevin gave him a silent thumb up and an enthusiastic nod of approval, to which Vince simply shook his head.

But Vince found his eyes wandering as well, as if noticing for the first time her curves and how she carried herself. Even though she had been abused the moment she stepped into this town, she still remained so light and friendly. It was a quality to be admired.

“What's wrong Vince? Is there something on my face?” Mimi asked, tilting her head to the side, confusion written across her face.

Face flushing with hot blood, Vince dropped his gaze from her and shook his head rapidly, shooting a glare to Kevin who was vibrating from suppressed laughter.

 

“So you must be new in town.” Kevin was feeling merciful to his uncomfortable friend, so he did what any guy would do; Change the subject. “It's a good damn thing you met Vince, this loser knows this town better than anyone. And he's a damn good guy, If I do say so myself!” He grinned widely, nudging Vince in the ribs. Mimi leaned against the fridge door, watching as Kevin promoted Vince to her, like she was stuck in some twisted commercial, an amused smile on her lips.

“Don't I know it? I'm having some issues with my guardian, and once Vince found out he let me stay here!” Mimi played along with Kevin, her smile turning into a grin as she took a sip of orange juice.

 

“That reminds me...” Vince ignored the conversation between the two, forcing the blush from creeping onto his cheeks. “What are we going to do about that anyway Mimi?”

“Isn't it obvious? I'll just head home; hopefully I'll be able to come up with some excuse my uncle will believe.”

“But what if he hits you?”

“I'll deal with it.”

“Mimi I saw what he did to you! You have to call the cops or social services on this guy!”

“Why Vince? Chris is all I have, if I report him I'm stuck in the foster system, and we all know how those families can be...”

 

Kevin leaned against the kitchen counter in amazement at the two. The bickering between them was almost uncanny to that married couple, except with a darker subject. It was amusement to say the least, to watch the pointless argument between them. But, seeing Mimi with that glass of orange juice had made him thirsty as well, and their fight was blocking access to the fridge.

Reaching his left hand over to the sink, he grasped the detachable hose and pointed it at the two, turning the cold water on full blast.

“Tom, Jerry, this fight is pointless,” Kevin started, the shocked face of Mimi and Vince have little effect on his speech. “Mimi, I'm assuming you've been here all night, I'm sure whatever is waiting for you at home won't change is you stick around a few more hours. And Vince...Just shut up man.”

The two immediately ceased their bickering, especially now that they were both soaking wet now. Granted, Mimi had the short end of the stick, with her white shirt turning transparent, leaving Vince to go red enough to be considered a tomato.

“Uh...Well...I need a new shirt now...” Mimi sighed, crossing her arms over her chest, her cheeks matching Vince's in color. Kevin nodded and plucked the shirt off his own back, handing it to her as he gently brushed by her to get to the fridge.

“There ya go beautiful.”

 

Vince found himself glaring at his long-time friend, though he could not justify his reason for doing so. He had long since gotten used to Kevin's unique antics, especially when he wanted something done. However, seeing him acting so opening in front of Mimi, being the one to cause the blush on her cheeks and the smile on her lips; seemed to cause his blood to boil.

Turning away from the scene before he could witness anymore. Vince found himself fleeing to his bathroom, hopefully to find a few dry articles of clothing that had not made it to the wash. As he unbuttoned his trench coat, tossing it off as he shut the door, he caught his reflection in the lengthy mirror. Scars were streaked across his torso, some long enough to reach his back, which was nearly a mirror version of his torso.

“Heh...Still such a freak...” Vince said to himself as he glanced at the wounds, resting his hands on either side of the sink as dark thoughts ran through his mind. The word freak was a popular way to describe his self, everyone in his life had called him that at one time or another; even Kevin.

His body was far from what anyone would call attractive. Of course he held a toned frame, but it was nothing compared to the amount of marks on his skin, inflicted by others; and some even by himself. And he knew that this was just the tip of the iceberg of marks and damage done to him.

“Vince? Are you okay?” Mimi's soft voice floated through the door, causing Vince's head to shoot up at the sound.

How unfair was this? For him to finally meet someone that he could quite possibly relate to, yet he felt so...Unworthy...As if just because Mimi kept her chin up about her situation, he was ranked below her. Opening the medicine cabinet, Vince grasped the cold steel of a pair of scissors, glancing at his dark expression in the mirror.

 

“I'm fine Mimi...Just fine...”