"What an immature little brat you are, Harper!" Betty shrieked while she continued to wipe off Asher's face. He was making awful faces like she was hurting him with her wiping. Harper sat on the chair with her arms folded causing one of her sleeves to slide off her shoulder.
"He's the one being immature." Harper stated in a monotone voice. "Aww, how cute, getting your mommy to wipe all of the yucky moo moo off your face!" Harper continued to drink the rest of her bottled milk. She dislikes her boss entirely. Her name is Betty but she calls her B.J. Betty, or "blow job Betty". Why? B.J. Betty is the spy of the mall. She snitches to the owner of the mall on anyone who leaves their kiosk, or is sitting with their legs spread, or is eating or messing around at the kiosk, AND gets higher pay. Yea, totally giving him the B.J's.
"I've about had it, girl! You cause trouble nearly every week to this poor boy!" Betty said as she cleaned up the rest of the splattered milk, which started to smell since the sun had been heating it up from the sky windows. Asher tried so hard not to smile because Harper was getting yelled at. She could just see his lip quiver with enjoyment, paining him not to laugh. Harper gave him the well known "I'ma cut joo" look and turned her head at him angrily.
"Go on." B.J. Betty shooed him away with pity. Asher took a few steps back, looked at Harper right in the eyes, gave her a big smile and covered his mouth from laughing as he turned around and jogged back to Journey's. She fixed her faded red hair, which showed grey strands of aging, and looked at Harper and sighed, "Listen, you annoy me very very much, but I can't lose you."
Harper looked up rather shocked, "Wha..?"
B.J. Betty sighed, "Oh yes…You are quite a pain in the ass, but you are one of the only girls working here that always show up on time and have everything cleaned up…besides the milk. I can trust you more than some". Harper was confused, but went along with it. "Oh, but look at the time. Start closing up." Betty stated after she looked at her watch. The word closing made Harper's heart skip a beat. Finally it was closing time.
She looked over and could see Asher wiping off a pair of knee-highed converse shoes, and also chatting with a group of bleach blonde girls with short shorts and flip flops. They all giggled because he was "SO HOT". Harper debated if he was hot or not. She sat there and kept looking at him, trying to find any sort of hotness within. "Ugh!" she snarled "No way."
The kiosk was almost completely covered in its blue tarp when Asher suddenly shouted,
"LOOK A FAERIE!"
Harper tripped on the tarp when she tried to turn around and see the faerie. There wasn't one of course, but Harper couldn't help but look. She fell pretty hard on the tiled floor, but really didn't get hurt. She could hear the group of blonde girls laugh their tans off. Asher leaned against the half-covered kiosk and said poetically, "Once upon a time, there was a freak named Harper. She wasted her whole life searching for something that isn't real and died miserably. The End."
"What are you, five? I thought you were at least in your twenties. Does mocking my weight and my belief of faeries turn you on or something?" Harper sighed with a pounding headache. Asher just stood there sucking his sprite through a straw. His drink was almost empty so the straw was making that awful rattling noise which irked Harper to the point of wanting to snap.
"Ya know what, never mind." she said in a hurry. "I'm leaving." Harper picked up her purse and bag and stormed off. She turned around to yell at Asher because he always follows her to the door, but he was still back there by her kiosk, sipping his sprite.
Harper walked to her car in the blackness of the mall parking lot. No one could be heard besides the giggling amongst the annoying teenagers waiting in line in the movie theater. She then thought of herself as lucky to not work there because they stay open later in the night.
*chingle*
Car keys jingled from Harper's car door. She tossed all of her stuff into the backseat, not caring where they landed, and then sat down in the driver's seat. She turned on her ignition half way to where the radio started to play and then she stuck a colourful designed CD into her CD player. Music began to play.
"Turn around~" she sang to herself. "Look at what you seeeeeeeeee ee ee eeee eeee, In her face, the mirror of you dreeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaams~~". The theme song from The Neverending Story was playing.
Harper began to get so into the music that she closed her eyes and smiled and continued to sing. She also started to head bang in a 1980's sort of way, which would look ridiculous to others, but Harper didn't care.
"Reach the stars! Fly a fantasyyyyy ee ee eeeeee~ Dream a dream, and what you see will beeeeeee eee ee eee ee ee eeeee~~" Harper's car began to take flight! It lifted above all of the other cars in the parking lot and flew forward in extreme speeds. Harper opened her eyes, still singing, and she saw a bunch of tiny, colourful faeries flying around her car, guiding her to the faerie world. The world was brighter and darkness and stress fled from Harper. The faeries danced upon her windshield, playing little flutes and violins in tune with the song playing on her radio. She then felt a somewhat forceful tap on her shoulder. Harper turned, expecting to see a faerie or other mystical being, but instead saw Asher sitting next to her in the passenger seat. Her mouth opened out of shock and suddenly her windshield wipers turned on and smushed all the faeries into colourful, bloody paste.
Harper woke up.
She took several deep breaths and tried to tell herself that was only a weird nightmare, yet The Neverending Story theme continued to play.
Show your fear, for she may fade awaaaaaaaaaay~ In your hands, the birth of a new dayyyyyy~
Right then, Harper's cell phone started to vibrate violently in her pocket. After she quickly turned down the music, she grabbed her phone and answered, "Hey!"
"Harper.." a crying voice said and began to sob.
"Salem! If you are crying because of a song again, I'm gonna smack you!" said Harper in an irritable tone.
"No! It's Grandpa Leo...He doesn't have…much longer!" Salem began to sob hysterically. Harper felt as if her body went numb even though she knew this day was going to happen. She was more shocked then sad. "I'll come pick you up right now, Salem, so get ready and we'll go visit Grandpa Leo" Harper said as she hung up and immediately pulled out of her parking space.
Harper's heart was racing and, out of nowhere, began to rain. Of course it started to rain, she thought. A death can't be complete unless it rains. Way to go, movies.
About ten minutes later, Harper pulled up to her driveway and could see Salem, her fraternal twin sister, standing on the porch in her bumble bee pajamas. Salem quickly jumped in the car and they sped off, leaving mud splattered on their steps. Salem shivered and didn't talk for a while, even when Harper tried to make conversation. Apparently, the hospital had called Salem right before she got into bed and told her that their grandpa didn't have much longer to live and probably would die later that night. Even if Salem is twenty years old, she still took death like a child, if not worse.
Grandpa Leo was the only parent they grew up with, besides their Grandma NumNums, but they can't remember her since she died when they were three. Harper and Salem's parents died when they were not even a year old. They heard that their father committed suicide and their mother overdosed on pain killers. So, they were pretty close to their grandpa.
Most of Harper's memories with her grandpa started to flow within her mind, what memories she could remember at least, and she remembered all of the times he would teach her about faeries and elves and such. He made the faerie realm sound beautiful and peaceful and full of love and joy, and she craved it. However, for some odd reason, Salem never believed in the faeries. Her and Harper had fought over and over and over again because they had different beliefs, but they still got along, even if they teased each other from time to time.
They arrived quickly at the hospital, but unfortunately, they cannot find a parking space. Getting impatient and annoyed, Harper abruptly pulled into a handicapped parking area.
"I don't care if I get a ticket by these old farts," Harper grumped, "I'm going to see my Grandpa Leo!" Her and Salem lunged out of the car, slammed their doors, and ran towards the rotating hospital doors.
