Monday afternoon
"So," Burt came walking into the kitchen, "all I have to do is go with this to the bank, and then, we´re rich…. I was hoping we could go all three of us. He looked to me, and then to Carole.
"Sure," I jumped down from the kitchen bench.
"What is it with you Lex? Why can´t you just sit on chairs, like normal people do?"
"Who said I was normal?" I walked out in the hallway, and took my jacket, and my cap, then I walked outside before Burt and Carole, and sat down on the stairs. When they came outside, I stood up, and walked with them down the driveway, and towards the city.
"Burt?" I asked after a minute or two in silence.
"Yeah."
"Which bank did you say we´re going to?"
"The one on the opposite side of the head- street from JC." Burt said like it was nothing, and I guess that to him it was just an ordinary bank… but I stopped, when I remembered which bank it was. Burt and Carole walked a few meters, but when they noticed I wasn´t next to them anymore, they stopped and turned around.
"Lex, you okay?" Burt asked.
"Yeah," I said shortly. "I´m fine, just… nothing." We kept on walking, I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. Harder and harder, faster and faster. When we got into the bank, Burt went to get a queue ticket, then he came to sit down in one of the sofas in the bank´s waiting hall. Next to Carole, he held the ticket in front of him, sighed and said.
"I´ve got number 98, that one," he pointed to the counter. "is on number 85." Carole laughed little, but I didn´t even smile. I sat leaned forward, with my elbows on my knees. I snitched at the memories, more clear than ever, the sound of a gone- shot, someone screaming, Maddie letting goof my hand and collapsing next to me, "Maddie…" shaking her shoulder. "Maddie… WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?.. Maddie wake up, wake up." Another gunshot, pain… and then, I collapsed, but still with Maddie´s hand in mine."
"Lex… Lex… Come on, earth to Lex." I woke up from my dreams with Burt shaking my shoulder.
"Lex calm down," Carole said. "Breathe, now you´re hyper- ventilating!"
"I remember now," I almost whispered.
"Remember what?"
"Things I couldn´t remember before… I can remember everything."
"What are you talking ab…?" Burt began.
"I feel sick," I stood up and rushed out of the bank. I could hear Burt and Carole shout my name, but I didn´t care about them, I just kept on running, within a few seconds I was out the doors, I walked a few steps to the side and sat down with my back against the wall. I had one leg stretched out, the other one bent, and one of my arms resting on the bent knee. I was just trying to take deep, calming breaths. After not very long, also Burt and Carole came walking outside, they stopped and looked around, but didn´t see me, so I called out.
"I´m here." I said, they turned around, saw me and came squatting down next to me.
"You´re okay? What happened?"
"This is where it happened." I began. "This is where Maddie was killed…. I guess there were stuff I couldn´t remember, because of the chock or something, but now, I could suddenly remember it all, I… I… Maddie was shot first… she collapsed, I tried to wake her up… and then… there was another shot, but as I collapsed I was holding her hand…. I was holding her hand."
"Lex…"
"Could you please, just leave me alone for a minute, I´ll come into the bank again in a while, I just need to clear up my minds a little."
"Yes, yes of course," Burt clapped my shoulders, then they together walked into the bank again, and left me alone. I looked down to the ground, but looked up again when I could hear someone screaming. I stood up when I saw what it was, but I could see it was a mum shouting at her daughter. I watched them in silence, acting like I wasn´t looking at them, but still listening to every word they said. Or, maybe it was more the mum doing the talking.
"I CANNOT BELIEVE I EVER WANTED A CHILD." The woman screamed, and it was clear, that she was drunk, a girl, about eleven or twelve years old. "You´ve meant nothing but trouble for me Vie, I hate you. NOW, I want you to stay sitting at that bench, until I get back, DO YOU UNDERSTAND" Vie- as I guessed was the girl´s name, nodded and sat down on the bench. The woman turned around and walked fast into one on the stores at the other side of the street. As I could see the woman was in the store, and the door had closed behind her, I slowly walked over to the bench, and sat down on the other side of the bench from Vie. When I had gotten this close, I could see that she was wearing white sweat pants, that were move grey an brown than white, and that she was wearing a thin rain- coat, she had her half face under inside the jacket, so I could not see her face, but I could see that she was dirty.
"Hi," I leaned towards Vie a bit. "Are you Vie?" she looked up a bit, and I could now she that the original color of her hair was blonde, and that she had green eyes. She looked down again, and almost whispered me yes.
"I´m Lex. Short for Alexandria, is Vie short for something?"
"No."
"Okay, well I think it´s a really pretty name…. I´m sorry to barge into your private- life. But… I could not help to hear the… well… to hear what your mum was saying…"
"Okay,"
"You know Vie, you´re not alone. Until in September this year, I used to be where you still are. I used to live with my dad, he had some problems with alcohol, and he… well, he used to beat me, pretty much. But thanks to a teacher of mine, who did not believe when I told him, that I had just fallen in the stairs. Today I´m happy he did not believe me, now I`m living at the house of a couple of his friends, and you know… my life´s kind of great, even though the memories aren´t."
"My mum´s fine… she´s just got some problems, but she loves me."
"Yeah, I know… where did these come from?" I pointed to her arm, where dark blue and purple bruises were seen.
"I… I..:" Vie stuttered and pulled her sleeve down.
"I know, you fell in the stairs, didn´t you?" Vie nodded. I sighed. "It´s all right, you don´t have to tell me today, but if you want help to call social services, want somewhere to stay one night, or for a while, or whatever," I searched through my pockets after a paper and a pen, I found what I was looking for, and quickly wrote down my name, address and cell phone- number on the paper, then I reached it to Vie.
"Keep this in your jacket, then you´ll always carry it with you, and Vie…"
"yeah,"
"You´re not alone. And don´t be afraid to call or show up whenever you want, even if it´s in the middle of the night." Vie nodded. "I gotta go, Burt and Carole are in the bank, they´ll get worried if I don´t come in again soon." I stood up. "We´ll take the reason why… some other time."
"Yeah." Vie answered me. She was now looking up fully. I turned around, took a step and then.
"Lex?"
"Yeah," I turned around.
"Shouldn´t you ask your foster- parents if it´s okay for me to come over, before you say that I could`" I squatted down in front of Vie, took her hand, smiled a little. And answered her.
"And what do you think they would do? Kick you out of the house? No, I know them, and I know that any friend of mine, is a friend of theirs, and I know, that if you show up, even if you so are soaking wet and freezing cold, they´ll fix you a hot bath, some clean clothes, a hot chocolate and somewhere to sleep."
"You promise?"
"Promise" I hooked my little finger in hers. Then I smiled, stood up and turned around, I took one step, and then…
"Lex?"
"Yeah," I turned towards Vie again.
"Thanks"
"You´re welcome."
So, I deleted that author´s note- chap, so some of you, won´t be able to review this, but I´d like to know what you think, so either, you comment for two chaps on the next chap, you review without logging in, or you just send me a PM.
What do you think about Vie?
