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A Simple Life: Chapter 9
🕑 Added 2023-02-13 20:58:22 +0000 UTCIf you liked the roommate you're going to love the big brother. Trigger warning.
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My day takes another annoying turn as I arrive at work to find out that I had been rescheduled tomorrow to work the morning instead of the afternoon thanks to someone calling in sick.
“You know I wouldn’t give you the turnaround if I could help it.” My manager Brenda tells me. When I, as I always do, agree to the last minute change she is all smiles. “You are a lifesaver Avery. I won’t forget this.” I’d heard that before.
While not happy about it nothing was going to spoil my good mood today. With an extra pep in my step and a cheerful note in my voice I breeze through my closing shift. To my surprise I sleep like a rock that night. No tossing and turning, no bad dreams, no sweats or terrors, nothing! Just a rock solid six and half hours of oblivious slumber before my alarm rouses me again. I felt like a million bucks. A shower, shave, and a good grooming later and I am on my way straight back to the store again for opening in much the same mood.
The hung over cashier gripes about my morning cheerfulness but I just giggle and go about my work. It is about noon when my mind irresistibly is drawn into the thing it had been orbiting all morning. Winona. What prompted this return was the women’s nylons that I was hanging on the rack. I always enjoyed stocking these items and my mind always wandered when I did so. The stockinged legs, all smooth and silky and posed so nicely, looked so pretty and so sexy. Taking the next one from the box my fingers brush the long shapely legs on the package. I smile as I think back to how Winona had held that lovely sleeveless dress up against me to see how I looked in it. She told me I looked good. She said that blue was my color. That the dress made my eyes pop. Pa-pow! She had said. I liked how she said that. I giggle at the naughty thoughts burbling up in my mind. Was she only speaking about the color, or was it the fine feminine garment that she thought looked so good on me? What would she say…if she saw me in these?
“Hey pussy.” Comes a blunt voice.
I drop the nylons and scramble to pick it up again. I turn to see a familiar burly bearded man with hair the same color as mine. “J-Jack! Wh-what are you d-d-doing here?”
“Duh-duh-duh.” My eldest brother mocks my stutter. “Shopping.” He motions to this cart. “What do you think dummy?”
“Right.” I say, focusing extra hard to control my vocal tick. “Of course.”
He looks at what is in my hands and lets out a laugh that echoes through the store. Immediately I blush as I knew why he was laughing. With my eyes I plead with him not to go there, but of course he does. He couldn’t help himself. “Maybe those’ll fit you better than Mom’s, eh? Ha ha ha!”
My face burns as I turn away from him and hang the nylons on the peg. “I’m just stocking them. It’s my j-j…rrrr…It’s my job!”
“Probably the best part of this shitty job, eh?” He elbows me. “You try them on sometimes in the back? I bet you do.”
“No!” I stew then try to ignore him and carry on stocking.
When I was a teen he and Joshua, the middle brother, had come home early from school to catch me wearing Mom’s nylons, panties and bra. It was the only time I’d done it but I had never lived it down since. Their cruelty that day stood out as the worst of a very long list of things they had ever done to me. Taping my arms tight to my sides so that I could not move them they tossed me out in the front yard and went back inside, locking the door behind them. They laughed at me through the front window as I struggled to get to my feet. They laughed even harder when a few of the neighbor kids walked by and saw me. I hid tucked away in a bush for over an hour before my sister got home from college and freed me, not without a few chuckles of her own though. But the worst part...I got into as much trouble as they did after Mom got home from work.
Not even my great morning the day before could save me from the wretched feelings washing over me now. I knew that Jack thought that he was just being funny. But it wasn’t funny to me. It was no use. I couldn’t ignore him. Angrily I grab the cart of stock and make for the store room. I wanted to get off of the floor and find a place to hide before I did or said something stupid. Or, more likely, cried like a little bitch.
“Hold on Avie.” Jack stops me. “Lauren and I are having a get together tomorrow. Barbecue, some tunes, watch the game at the end. I’m picking up snacks for it now. You and Kayla should come by. We’d love to see you.”
“I-I-I’ll think about it.”
“I know you. That means no.” He steps in. I flinch as he reaches for me, thankfully he was only patting my back. “Come on. Get out of your shell little brother. Live a little. Come mingle and make some friends.”
“We’ll see.”
“Yeah right.” He says. “Come on. Lauren says that she never sees you. It’s like you’re trying to cut us out of your life or something.” He gives me a shake. “Bring Kayla. We’ll talk you up buddy. Get you right back in there with her.” He chuckles. “How you ever let that sweet piece of chocolate friend-zone you like that I’ll never know.”
“She’s my f-friend.” I whisper. “We’re friends. That’s it.”
“You are such a pussy.” He nudges me. “Speaking of Kayla. Remember that dike she went out with after you.”
The blood rushes from my face. I felt as if I were falling. “Yeah?”
“She’s back in town.” He says. “She’s up at the old garage I hear. Her and her busted ass old truck. I guess her Dad somehow weaseled them back onto the island.” He leans in. “They’re letting anybody in nowadays. You know what I mean?” He says that last part in a low voice so it doesn’t carry too far. “So you better grab Kayla before she slips in there again. Come on Avie, it’ll be fun. Anytime after noon is cool.”
I turn back toward my brother, my fists clenched at my sides. “I don’t want to come to your p-p-p-…” I snort in frustration. “…your party!”
“Okay, geez. Don’t blow a gasket Avie. Just don’t say I never did anything nice for ya.”
“You’re not nice!” I seethe. “Lauren’s nice but you’re not nice at all! You’re n-nasty!” He looks stunned at my outburst, not half as stunned as I was though. Letting my anger carry me I continue. “That woman’s name is Winona and she is a very nice lady.”
“A lady!?” He scoffs. “A dog lady maybe. Woof!”
“D-d-d-d-don’t y-y-you…!”
“Duh-duh-duh.”
With a mind of its own my right fist swings. With all of my strength I let loose the very first punch I had ever thrown in anger. It’s target, the side of my big brother’s fat, ugly, empty head. Unfortunately, Jack being the natural fighter and ruffian that he was, traits that he inherited from our biological father, instinctively pulls his head back so that my fist whiffs by harmlessly in front of him. He looks at me in disbelief.
“Avie! Did you just…?”
“Get out of here!” I say, my hands shaking with impotent rage as snooping eyes begin to peer down the ends of the aisle at us. “Leave me alone Jack.”
“You know this Winona?” Slowly an evil grin spreads on his face. He jabs a finger into my chest. “You like her! Ha!”
“I never…I only just…shut up!” I am breathing fast and shallow. I can’t think straight. Too many thoughts. Too many feelings. When things got bad like this, especially when my brothers were involved, I never knew what to say or how to say it. No matter what I did I always just made things worse. I wanted this to end. I just wanted to get away. To the forest. To Mama and her kittens. To Grandpa’s boat. Anywhere but here.
“Ha ha ha!” He chortles. “It’s true! She’s like twice your size pip-squeak! Ha ha ha!”
“S-s-stop.”
“Well shit, bring her to the party then. We’ll give her a good old islander welcome.”
Near my wits end at the mere thought of him talking to Winona I try to hit his broad chest, a strike he easily slaps away. “G-g-go away Jack. Just go away!” I whimper, on the verge of tears. “Go awayyy.”
He rises up to loom over me. “One time I can let go. But try to hit me twice? You know that’s not going to fly Avie.”
“W-wait.” I plead. “I’m at work.”
“Nighty-night time little brother.”
“No!” I cry as he reaches out for me. “Not here!”
He puts his hands on me. The next thing I knew I was staring up at the ceiling of the manager’s office.
