Page 5 of Doll Face

Macy showered, changed into her uniform, and took her medication before grabbing a quick bite to eat before she headed back out. Macy hopped on the bus that would take her into the downtown area of the city, getting off at her stop. When she walked into the arcade, Tommy Reynard waved at her. Tommy had already been working at the arcade when she’d been hired. From the first moment they met, they knew they were destined to be besties.

“I’ll be right out,” she told him and he nodded.

She went to clock in and put her keys in her cubby before slipping on her name badge and heading out to the arcade floor. Kids of all ages ran around, tapping their keycards against the machines to play the game. It was loud, bright, and over the top, but a part of her liked all that. She was all alone in the world, so being in the presence of so much chaos pushed that loneliness aside.

“Hey,” Tommy greeted.

She lifted her chin up in a what’s up gesture. “Did I miss anything cool?”

“A clean-up in the men’s bathroom.”

Macy laughed. “Glad I missed it.”

She moved off to start her shift behind the rewards counter. With each win, the tickets won got uploaded to their key card, making her job a little easier than if they were using paper tickets. Because it was only a Tuesday, it wasn’t quite that busy like it would be on the weekend. Tonight, since it was a school night, was mostly young adults.

The night dragged by. Tommy was at the front, loading cards with cash and greeting customers as they entered. During his break, he hung out with her, munching on licorice.

“So, there was this guy today,” she said, and took a deep puff of her inhaler, holding the medicine in for a moment before releasing her breath.

“Good looking guy?”

“So incredibly good looking,” she admitted, slipping her inhaler back into her pocket. “Tall. Handsome. Gorgeous brown eyes. I’m going to dream about him tonight.”

“Sounds yummy. At least you have something for your spank bank.”

Her jaw dropped and she giggled. “Tommy!”

“What?” he asked, grinning. “We all do it, darling.”

She rolled her eyes.

“Uh oh, heads up,” Tommy muttered.

Macy followed his line of sight, giving a little groan as she spotted three gang members entering the arcade. Actually, she had no idea if they were in a real gang or not, but they certainly acted like they were tough little shits. Unfortunately, she’d somehow gotten on their radar, so they came in several times a week to harass her.

“Chica!” said one of the thugs, a Hispanic boy who thought he was a man. A bandana wrapped around his forehead and his pants hung on his waist with a lick and a prayer.

“Mm, mm, mm,” said the second boy, looking her up and down in a disgusting leer. She refused to think of them as men. This one was a white kid with hair so dirty and matted it grossed her out. “How about we go outside and I can show you how much your body rocks.”

The third punk raised his fingers in a V shape to his lips, flickering his tongue between them, the meaning obvious. Luckily, the security guard wandered over and hung around her counter, watching the three of them.

“Move along,” the guard told them.

“Fuck you,” the third boy said, and he did one of those abrupt darts forward meant to throw the person off kilter. The guard jumped and the three thugs laughed.

“Get out of here,” the guard ordered. “I’ve called the police.”

“Yeah, yeah,” the first boy said. “See you around, slut.”

The three punks slithered out the same way they had slithered in, laughing and doing rude hand gestures. Tommy walked up to her counter.

“You okay?” he asked her.

She nodded, and then looked at the guard. “Thank you.”

“When we close, I’ll keep a look out for you until you get on your bus,” he said.

She let out a relieved breath. “I appreciate it.”

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