Page 18 of F*ck You

7

Lee

Iwalked around town with a nearly empty bottle of whiskey in my hand. A self-guided tour around town seemed to be the perfect thing to empty out the little liquor that was left in the bottle. There was only about a glass’s worth, but I was taking Miss Morris’ advice and living my best life. If that included downing my entire stash in public, then so be it. I was healing, dammit.

So much was going through my mind, I was desperate to silence the noise. I also decided it would be best to learn the area before finding a job. What if I got a job and then realized I absolutely hated it here? Then I’d have to pick up and drive until I ended up somewhere else.

The area seemed to have most things within walking distance, so I checked on my truck to make sure it hadn’t been messed with and then continued on foot. Although, if I was going to drive around, I would have left the whiskey behind. Drinking and driving wasn’t something I was fond of and never intended to practice. Despite all the horrible mistakes I’d made in my life, I was determined to not let that be one of them.

Traffic was fairly low, similar to that of a small town. I’d already gotten the feeling that most people here knew each other, but I didn’t know how welcoming most of them were to new arrivals. Other than Chase and Larsen, the other neighbors kept to themselves. I hadn’t even seen one walk out of their front door, which baffled me more than anything. How could someone live on the beach and not even step outside to feel the sand between their toes? Lucky fuckers had no idea how great they had it.

Noise and commotion rose up as I turned the corner onto a strip. There were stores everywhere, and I was pretty sure nearly every person in town and possibly the next town over were all huddled on this street, squeezing around each other to run from shop to shop. Finishing the last few drops of the whiskey and barely even feeling a buzz, I deposited the empty bottle into a trash can and swerved through the crowd of people.

“I really should have brought a backup bottle,” I mumbled to myself.

“What was that?” A boy most certainly way younger than I was stepped up to me and leaned in close to whisper his next words. “I could help you take the edge off…” He stepped back and licked his lips before catching his teeth on his bottom lip. His eyebrows moved up and down as though that were supposed to entice me.

“Honey, no.” I rolled my eyes and turned away. The very last thing I needed right now was to jump into someone else’s bed right after I set fire to my last one.

Although, maybe that wouldn’t be such a terrible thing to do. After all, the best way to get over someone was to get under someone, right? And there were some people here who didn’t seem to be entirely horrible.

Technically, I’d been over Todd for a long time now. We might have officially broken up only days ago, but our hearts—and apparently our bodies—separated long ago.

I browsed through a few stores, enjoying each air-conditioned shop before going out into the heat of the blazing sun once again.

There didn’t seem to be much I really cared for. I didn’t actually need anything, and so far, I didn’t see a single place where I wanted to put an application in. Every store here was overflowing with people, and I firmly believed that wasn’t something I could handle. Retail life was never for me, I would punch the first idiot customer I came across and be banned for life.

Although if I became desperate enough, then it was something I’d have to consider, certainly if I wanted to stay here for longer than two months.

Relief rushed through me as I reached the opposite end of the street and I could feel the ocean breeze cooling my skin. The blisters on my feet had gone down, and I barely even noticed them now as I walked.

This was where I needed to be, the ocean. Not some sweaty, overpopulated store that would give me swamp ass by the time I walked through the front door.

Eager to get away from the area, I made my way toward the marina where at least half a dozen boats were tied up. I squinted, trying to read the faraway signs as I neared. One of them was a help wanted sign, and my fucked up little heart brightened at the prospect of possibly spending my days on a boat, even if it was only cleaning up someone else’s mess.

“Hello? Anyone here?” I called as I stepped up on the boat. It was rather large and looked to be one of the ones that kept everything below deck.

A man appeared from the stairs that led down below, carrying a bucket and a mop. “I’m sorry, we’re not doing any tours today.”

“Actually, sir,” I began, right as he turned to head away from me. “I noticed the help wanted sign and was hoping I could get a job here.”

He turned around and looked at me for a moment, clearly not thrilled with what he saw, and I took a step back, prepared to run. “Have you ever worked on a boat before?”

I shook my head. “No, but I’m a hard worker and a fast learner.”

“Why do you want this job?”

“It’s the only way I can keep my freedom.” My words were honest. I could try working in one of the shops, but I highly doubted my attitude would let me stick around for long, and I needed something that could last. I shuddered at the thought of going back to where I came from and, truth be told, I didn’t really want to go out and find another place. Call it lazy, but I…no, actually, that was accurate. I was too lazy to find another place to live. Despite the issues I’d had here, they were only minor blips. “Long story short, if I can’t find a job around here soon, then I don’t know where I’ll end up. It could be a dumpster, and I’m not even exaggerating.”

I gave him my most pleading look. Guys were suckers for puppy dog eyes, right?

Sighing, he set the bucket down and handed me the mop. “If you want to work here that badly, then you can start now.”

My eyes flew open in disbelief. This wasn’t what I expected for today. I thought I would put in a few applications if I was lucky and then go back and drink on the beach. Hell, the whiskey flowing through my veins right now, albeit not enough to even give me a buzz, was begging for more.

“Everything alright? You look a bit stunned.”

I took the mop from him and held it close, sputtering as the wet strings got near my face. Yuck. “I’m fine, just surprised.”

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