Page 10 of Mother Parker
Fuck Parker. What’s wrong with you?
I looked up and let my self-wallowing sink to the back of my mind. Where was I? It was really stupid of me not to pay attention to where I was going when I didn’t even know the place.
Glancing left to right, I tried to familiarize myself with the streets. That didn’t help. At least the trees’ shadows told me which way was north. I turned right, hoping it wouldn’t be too hard to find the Outpost.
If I was going to live in Mayberry Holm for the foreseeable future, I needed to get a ride. But how could I when I had nothing to my name? I needed to get my life back on track. If that was even possible.
It turned out my sense of direction was correct as the street I took got me to the beach, and I walked the winding path to Wyatt’s bar.
Step. Splash.
Step. Splash.
The waves seemed determined to give rhythm to my walking. It was annoying, and as much as I tried, I couldn’t tune it out once I picked it up.
I rubbed my eyes and let out another long breath. When I opened them again, there were spots everywhere.
There was bright pink light to my side. I turned to it. Was that Crow-boy back to use me for the crows’ dinner?
My vision cleared. He wasn’t there.
The nerve of that guy to smile while his crows attacked me. Stupid man. With his stupid pink hair and stupid glossy white skin and those stupid big eyes looking me up and down like I was the monster of our stupid encounter.
I hadn’t seen anyone quite like him before. But then again, I had been surrounded by huge muscled men most of the time, and when I wasn’t, I was busy falling in love with the wrong women and getting dumped. It didn’t leave much in the way of socializing outside my circle.
Not that I cared to.
People like Crow-boy and people like me were hardly from the same planet, let alone the same universe. Even if I did make friends with someone like him, what would we even talk about? I had no interest in makeup or questionable fashion, and I doubted he had any interest in guns or exercise.
My boot landed on the patio surrounding the Outpost, and I shook Crow-boy and his kind out of my head.
I pushed through the door and looked up. Three tables were occupied, and the pool table was in use by two men and a woman. Autumn was behind the bar, scrolling through her phone.
She glanced up at me as I approached and sat on a barstool.
“Good morning. Who pissed in your coffee?” she asked, raising an eyebrow and biting her lips into a grin.
“Haven’t had one yet,” I grumbled.
Why was everyone determined to piss me off today?
“One coffee for Officer Grumpypants,” she said and turned her back to me.
“No piss in it, thanks,” I said. “And fuck you.”
“Oh boy. Is that how you spoke to your wife first thing in the morning? Because I can see why she would have left.”
She reached for a mug and poured some of the black gold I didn’t realize I desperately needed until I smelled it.
I threw daggers at her, but she didn’t seem to care.
“Don’t you dare look at me like that. You lost the privilege when you kept us out of your life,” she said. “Cream?”
“Sugar,” I huffed and took the mug she set in front of me.
She rolled her eyes and handed me a sugar pourer.
“Jeez. I didn’t think anyone could make the word sugar taste so bitter. I was wrong.”
