Two Weeks Between Love and Hate

The construction site Jillian was headed to had been abandoned for years due to a lack of funding. It was supposed to be a parking garage, but now it stood as a mere skeleton of its intended structure, with only a tall fence surrounding sporadic concrete pillars. She saw a gate that had been busted open, swinging gently. Jillian paused to take a deep breath. Her nerves were frayed, and she was more afraid than ever before. But not for herself. If Luis really had her sister, all she could do was hope everything worked out in the end. There was no running away.

It had been nearly twenty minutes since she received the last text message. As Jillian approached, she heard the light chatter of people inside. It took every ounce of her courage to keep moving one foot in front of the other. With another deep breath, she entered the site, her heart racing as she immediately noticed two black SUVs parked a hundred feet away from the entrance. Two men dressed like private security stood beside them.

The passenger door of the SUV on the left swung open, sending a chill down her spine and leaving her mouth dry. Stepping out was a guy of average height, bald-headed, sporting a baby blue overshirt over a white tank top. His pants were bright white pleated slacks, and he had some fancy reptile-skin boots with pointed tips. A thick cigar hung from the corner of his mouth, and he had a black goatee framing his wide grin. His eyes were hidden behind dark aviator shades. His gaze locked on Jillian and he pulled the cigar from his lips and spread his arms wide.

“Well, well, Roja. It’s been a while, eh?… You got fat.”

She shot daggers at the man. Her fists curled into tight balls that trembled with rage.

“Where’s my fucking sister, Luis?! I came like you asked, so let her go!” she yelled, stopping about thirty feet away from him, refusing to budge any closer. Luis just chuckled, taking another drag of his cigar.

“Haha, that's not how this works, mi amor. You’re in no position to demand anything, puta. The only position you belong in is on your back. You’ll do as I say, and then... mmm maybe I’ll consider letting your sister be.”

Her jaw clenched at his words. This bastard was going to regret it. She’d see to that.

Meanwhile, Jason drove as quickly as he could, eager to return to the farmer’s market and start searching the area. He figured Jillian couldn’t have strayed too far on foot. His heart pounded with worry, sending sharp pains through his chest. He knew he had to calm down, or he risked making things worse. Taking deep breaths, he tried to focus on the road, but his mind kept drifting to the worst-case scenario. Clutching the steering wheel tightly, he couldn’t shake Jillian’s last words from his mind. Sitting and waiting was just not an option for him.

When Jason had glanced at Jillian’s phone over her shoulder, he’d pieced together that something was going on with her sister, June. Something very wrong. The texts hinted that someone wanted Jillian in exchange for her sister, sending chills down Jason’s spine. Though he didn’t share Jillian’s bond with June, he cared deeply for the teen. She was a fantastic kid, and he couldn’t bear the thought of her getting hurt or worse. Finally reaching the area around the market, Jason circled around, scanning for his girlfriend. With each passing moment without a glimpse of her, his worry intensified, a knot tightening in his chest.

Luis took a few last puffs of his almost-finished cigar, then tossed it down into the dirt and crushed it with his boot.

“Why don’t you come over here, chica? It’s been ages since I’ve seen your pretty face. I want to show you how much I still love you.”

He licked his lips before his manic grin returned, and he opened his arms for her. Jillian glared at him and shook her head.

“I’d sooner jump off a cliff than trust you in any way, shape, or form. The only reason I’m here is because you’ve got my sister. Let her go, or I’m not budging from this spot,” she said firmly.

Luis didn’t seem perturbed by her refusal at all as he muttered something in Spanish, and his two guards beside him began to advance.

“Don’t come near me!” she warned, but before she knew it, she was caught in a tight bear hug from behind by a burly man and lifted into the air. “Let me go! Rrrgh, let go!” she screamed, struggling in his grasp. Luis just chuckled at her resistance.

“Come on now, calm down. You’re finally going back home where you belong. Safe and sound. A lot less comfortable now and much more secure. But I promise you will grow to love your box… eventually,” he said, watching as his little runaway was carried towards him, her legs flailing against the bodyguard, hitting him, though it didn’t faze him much.

As Jillian was carried over to Luis, she finally managed to angle one of her legs to land a solid kick with her heel right into the man’s groin.

“Ahhggh, you fucking cunt!” The bodyguard grunted in pain and forcefully threw her down in front of Luis. She hit the ground with a painful yelp, feeling the dirt and gravel scrape and dig into her hands and face as the wind was knocked out of her from the landing. Jillian struggled to catch her breath, clenching her teeth

“Oi, what the fuck do you think you’re doing, bendejo?!” Luis yelled at the guy, who was now clutching his crotch in agony.

“The bitch fucking kicked me in the balls!” he complained with a scowl.

Jillian let out a groan as she shakily pushed herself up, sitting with her legs to the side. Looking at her hands, she noticed they were bleeding from several spots where the skin was rubbed raw. She felt something wet trickling down her chin. When she reached up to touch it she quickly realized it was blood. Her cheek had been cut, and blood was dripping down her face.

Luis glanced down at her, his expression more disgusted than concerned. But Jillian looked back at him and met his gaze defiantly. Luis turned his attention to his bodyguard, his face twisting into a scowl.

“I have had it up to fucking here with you idiotas fucking everything up. You made the mistake of damaging my property. And it’s the last one you are going to make,” he said sharply, muttering a few more insults in Spanish.

With a snap of his fingers, a muffled gunshot filled the air, making Jillian flinch. The bodyguard clutching his crotch staggered forward a step, his eyes widening in shock before he collapsed in a heap next to her, face first. Another guard had snuck up and shot the man from behind while he was distracted.

She froze as she watched the man collapse beside her, a tiny hole in the back of his head catching her eye. She couldn’t hold back a scream, scrambling away from the lifeless figure, her breath coming in ragged gasps as she stared in shock.

“Y-y-y-you killed him, L-Luis!” Jillian took large gasps of air as the cold chill of pure fear ran through her veins.

“I think he will get over it. Boys, toss this basura in the trunk before he gets his pig blood all over the place,” Luis ordered, spitting on the lifeless body.

Holstering his silenced pistol, the bodyguard who had made the kill went to grab the man’s legs while the others moved in to help lift the massive body. Jillian trembled uncontrollably, her eyes fixed on the gruesome scene. Luis had his own man murdered without a second thought.

Suddenly, Jillian felt her face being grabbed and turned to look at Luis. He examined the cut on her cheek with a frown. Although he had hit her many times before, there had never been a permanent mark left behind. He always wanted her to look perfect for his twisted satisfaction. Now, her face was damaged, and it seemed like she would be left with a small scar. With a sigh, he shook his head and roughly pushed her away as he stood up.

“Looks like I’ll have to switch to the newer model, after all. Shame, I’ve put so much time into you,” he muttered, wiping his hand on his shirt. He retrieved another cigar from his interior pocket, quickly clipped the end, and lit it, taking quick puffs.

“Put her in the back with the other. We’ll dump them outside town.”

Jillian gazed up at Luis as he spoke. His words felt like ice, chilling her to the bone. The scratches on her face seemed to diminish her entire worth in his eyes. The threat of her impending demise didn’t terrify her as much as the safety of her sister did. She would sacrifice everything if it meant her sister got to live one more day. Crawling forward on her knees, she grabbed his shirt desperately.

“Papi, please, I’ll do anything if you just let my sister go,” she begged. Using that awful nickname again made her cringe. Luis looked down at her in disdain, puffing on his cigar and blowing the smoke in her face.

“You should have thought of that before you ran away, bitch,” he said indifferently. “I’m going to do what I want. And if that involves your little sister, there’s nothing you can do about it. As for you…You are too much of a liability now, Roja. Goodbye.”

He grinned as he raised his hand to snap his fingers, and one of the men prepared to pull out his weapon again.

“Put your fucking hands up!” a voice boomed across the yard. Luis and Jillian turned quickly to see Jason, gun in hand, pointed at Luis. Jillian’s eyes widened in shock.

“Jason!” she exclaimed. “What are you doing here!?”

Fear flashed in her eyes as he drew nearer, aiming the pistol at Luis. “I’m getting you out of here. Just hang tight,” Jason said, eyeing the men loading a body into the SUV. Seeing them reach for weapons, he turned back to Luis.

“Tell them to drop their guns, or I’ll blow your fucking brains out!” Jason warned loudly.

Luis casually took a drag from his cigar, showing no fear, like having a gun pointed at him was just a mere annoyance. He motioned for his men to hold their fire.

“Boy, I don’t know who you are, but you don’t know who you’re fuckin’ with,” he said, removing the cigar from his mouth and staring at Jason over his sunglasses.

Jason shot back, “Oh, I have a pretty good idea. You’re the piece of shit who abducted and abused my girlfriend. I ought to shoot you in the dick instead because that’s where all your brains are, obviously.”

Luis just chuckled darkly.

“You’ve got guts, kid, but you’ve got it all backward.” He took another drag of his cigar, blowing out the smoke.

“Sure, I kept her safe and used her body as much as I wanted, but she’s the one who pleaded with me to take her away from here,” Luis explained, his tone steady and confident.

“That’s bullshit,” Jason retorted with a growl, never lowering his weapon. Luis chuckled.

“Believe what you want, but she begged for me to take her away. You should have seen her when she was younger. So eager to please on her knees, hahaha!” Luis let out a loud belly laugh.

Jillian quickly interjected, her voice pleading, “Jason, please, just leave! Don’t listen to anything this bastard says, and go!”

Luis started to laugh even harder.

“See, she still would rather stay and be my fuck slave than be with you now that I’m back to get her. I trained her well, but not well enough to stay where she belongs.”

Jillian shot him a fiery glare.

“That’s not what I meant, you piece of-“

Her sentence was cut short as Luis struck her hard across the face with the back of his hand, making her cut even worse. Blood spattered all over the ground and his hand.

When Jillian got hit and fell to the ground, Jason’s anger boiled over. He flicked off the safety of his pistol and shouted, “You motherfucker!”

Jason growled, aiming for Luis’s head. But killing a person wasn’t that easy, not for normal people, and Jason’s hesitation was all Luis needed to see.

“Kill this pathetic wannabe hero, boys,” he commanded with a sinister grin.

But Before his cronies could draw their weapons, another more commanding voice interrupted.

“Police! Put your Hands up!”

Suddenly, a group of officers in SWAT gear and armed to the teeth appeared out of seemingly nowhere. Luis’s smirk disappeared when he saw more men swarming the site. The letters ATF written in white on their chests and backs. His crew knew better than to continue reaching for their weapons and quickly threw their hands up, surrendering quickly. Jillian lifted her head up slightly, spotting the police closing in.

“Fucking finally,” she muttered, feeling woozy as she rested her head back down on her arm as she lay there.

“You... You snitching fucking bitch!” Luis snarled, looming over Jillian, looking like he was about to stomp the life out of her. But he put his hands up as well just so he wouldn’t get shot for the moment.

“Jill!” Jason shouted loudly, making a move towards her. He was swiftly met with rifles aimed his way.

“Drop the gun and get down on the ground, now!” one of the agents barked.

“She’s hurt, and he’s!...” Suddenly, his words were drowned out by shouts of, “Taser, taser, taser!”

Jason felt an intense jolt of pain shoot through his body as two probes dug into his back. His muscles tightened, and he dropped the handgun as his whole body seized up. He let out a groan of anguish as he collapsed to the ground like a sack of bricks. In a flash, three officers sprang into action, landing on him and swiftly cuffing him from behind. Trying to breathe as he lay there with the officers detaining him, his body screamed from the current that just tore through him.

“Hey, just try to stay calm, okay? This is for everyone’s safety,” one of them said to him as the cuffs clicked into place.

Jason let out a strained groan of pain as he lay there, doing his best to go along with it. They helped him up, his legs shaky from the shock. They guided him to a nearby unmarked cruiser, settling him in gently.

“Just sit tight. The EMTs will be along to remove those probes from your back soon,” they informed him before closing the door.

There was so much happening that Jillian couldn’t keep track of what had happened to Jason. Her head was spinning, and she struggled to stay awake.

“You’re going to regret this, you bitch. I am gonna kill you,” Luis threatened, raising his scaled boot. “I’ll make your whole family suffer before they die,” he growled with immense rage

Jillian groaned as she slowly tried to sit up and glare at him defiantly, even in the face of potential death.

“Not this time, Luis,” she said wearily. “You think you have power,” she managed a chuckle. “You are nothing but a pathetic bug compared to my new friend.”

Even in her daze, she sounded confident, which earned her a hard, slightly nervous stare from Luis as he lowered his foot, distracted by this new confidence. The police were still screaming in the background for him to get down.

“Don’t try and bluff your way out of this, bitch. I will be out before you know it and back to make you suffer,” he spat, but Jillian just laughed.

“Why don't you stop and think for one fucking second in your life. Do you honestly think someone like me could have a SWAT team ready at a moment’s notice? You really are an idiot,” Jillian grinned, her teeth stained with blood.

Luis’s eyes widened as realization hit. How the hell did she manage to have the ATF here? As he thought, the police kept yelling orders at him, which he mostly ignored, but he kept his hands up,

“Wait... then how did you... who?” For the first time in a long while, it felt like his plans were coming undone.

“I told you. A new friend. Enjoy spending the rest of your life in prison, you fuck,” she said, still smiling despite the pain it caused in her injured cheek. It was worth it. He scowled at her.

“I’ll get out eventually, and when I do-“ Before he could finish, two different shotguns fired one after another, and heavy less lethal beanbags started to pelt Luis’s thick frame. He let out wails of agony as he was struck several times while Jillian made herself as small as possible.

Luis somehow managed to stay standing from the first volley but gasped as another barrage of bean bags slammed into his stomach and groin. Blood splotches started forming where he was hit on his white tank top. They didn't penetrate, but they hit hard enough to break the skin, forcing him to double over in pain and clutch his midsection as he fell to his knees, slamming his head into the ground in mind-shattering pain. He struggled immensely to catch his breath as several men rushed in and apprehended him.

Meanwhile, another figure hurried to Jillian’s side, scooping her up and carrying her away from the chaos as quickly as they could. In her dazed state, she squinted at the blurry face above her.

“J-Jason?” she murmured, barely conscious as the adrenaline faded from her. She leaned against the stranger’s chest. She was so tired.

“Stay with me, miss. We’ll get you help soon,” reassured a voice that definitely wasn’t Jason’s, but she was too tired to move anymore.

Jillian was quickly loaded into an ambulance nearby, laid on a stretcher, and loaded up.

“Nnngh, my sister... she’s in the car,” she managed to tell the officer before he rushed back to the scene.

“Huh?” he paused to listen to her.

“He... he took my sister,” Jillian groaned as the EMTs started tending to her.

“Don’t worry, miss, we’ll take care of it,” the officer assured her before rushing back to the construction yard. The EMTs administered some pain medication and prepared her for transport.

“Jason... where...is..my Jason?” she mumbled out, looking at one of the EMTs.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know who you’re talking about. But we need to get you to the hospital.”

Jillian’s face fell as she heard the reply, but she felt her own consciousness fading away slowly. The ambulance doors shut, and they sped her away from the chaos, heading for the hospital.

Meanwhile, Jason and the others were taken into custody while another team began clearing the vehicles left behind. There was a rumor of a possible hostage inside, so they cautiously opened the car doors, only to find them empty. Well, empty except for a lifeless body, several weapons strewn about, several half empty bags of narcotics…and a pink cellphone.

“All clear!” echoed through the air twice in quick succession as the teams meticulously checked the SUVs and gathered evidence, securing the scene.

June wandered the aisles of the farmer’s market, looking everywhere for her sister, Jason, or anyone she knew. She had gotten distracted by a flower stand and gotten separated from them. On top of that, she had lost her cell phone. She wasn’t sure how. She was usually so good about keeping it close that she didn’t even keep her phone password protected. The only time she thought she might have dropped it was when this large man in a fancy suit accidentally bumped into her. That had been a rather scary encounter.

But now, panic started to fill June as she looked around, her body trembling in fear as she caught people looking at her as she passed. Her heart beat rapidly, and her pace picked up. As she was about to turn the corner, she walked right into someone. Both of them let out yelps of surprise and fell back on their butts, thankfully not that hard.

“What the hell! Watch where the fuck you are going!” a female voice spat in anger. The woman June bumped into quickly got to her feet and glared down at June

June looked up at the girl with fear in her eyes, trembling even worse now.

“I-I-I-I’m s-s-sorry,” she said in a very low whisper. Her eyes brimmed with glistening tears, which finally spilled over, rolling down her cheeks.

“W-whoa, hey. I didn’t mean to make you cry. It’s alright… Hey… weren’t you with the people that stopped by my dad’s booth earlier?” Kelsea said, moving a strand of hair out of her face as she knelt down next to June, who was still sitting there, shaking.

“Are you alright? Where are the other two you were with?” She asked, looking around for them.

June tried to take a deep breath and wiped the tears from her eyes, sniffing. She wanted to revert to her sign language so badly, but there was no way this girl would understand. At least she was a somewhat familiar face.

“W-we got separated,” she spoke as loud as she could make herself, which was still barely enough to get over the chatter of the surrounding people. Kelsea let out a sigh as she could see just how timid and scared June was. As mad as she was with her father, she wouldn’t take it out on this poor girl.

“Come on, let’s get you off the ground,” she said, wrapping her arms around June’s and hoisting her up to her feet. “Are you alright? Hurt anywhere?” June quickly shook her head and signed that she was fine out of habit. Kelsea raised a brow in confusion at the hand gestures. June’s face flushed, and she looked away.

“S-sorry… I’m not great at speaking to people. But I’m fine,” she whispered back.

Kelsea took a deep breath and rubbed the back of her neck. She felt even worse for screaming at her now.

“I can help you look for them if you want, so you aren’t alone…if you like?” she offered, giving June a sad smile. It took a moment for her to respond, but eventually, she nodded. Just about anything was better than being alone right now. She found herself wishing that Kyle was with her, but this new girl at least seemed nice enough.

“T-thank you,” June whispered. Kelsea smiled at her and reached down, taking June’s hand in her own. June was a bit stunned when she felt her hand being taken, but she didn’t really complain. It was strangely comforting to hold even though they had just met. Her grasp was firm and soft at the same time, reminding June of her sister.

“Come on, let's go find those two. It’s a really tall guy and a short redhead like you, right?” Kelsea asked, and June nodded in response. “Right, it should be easy enough.”

Still smiling, she led them back into the fray of the farmer’s market in search of the couple.

After another twenty minutes of searching, they still didn’t find the hide or hair of either of the couple. It was like they left, but why would they leave knowing June was still here?

June only seemed to get more and more upset as time went on, worry written all over her face. Kelsea glanced over at June after a moment.

“Are you going to be okay? I am sure they are around somewhere,” she asked gently. June looked at the taller teen, her frown deepening as she shook her head.

“I… I don’t know…I stupidly stopped without warning and got separated from my sister and her boyfriend, who are now missing, probably in some kind of trouble, and I lost my phone. My mom’s gonna flip. I don’t know what else could go wrong,” she said, her voice a trembling whisper as she was on the brink of tears again. She was really talking a lot, which would’ve probably made Jillian happy if she were here.

Kelsea nodded slowly at June. “I get it... But why do you think something bad happened to them? Maybe they just snuck off to make out or something?”

June frowned at the suggestion.

“My sister wouldn’t just disappear like that if she knew I was missing,” she said with an unexpected firmness.

Kelsea sighed, realizing she struck a nerve. “Okay, okay, didn’t mean to upset you...”

There was a small silence between them as they continued to look around, hoping to spot the couple, though it seemed very unlikely. Eventually, June brought up a topic of her own to try and change the subject.

“Did… your dad do something to make you upset?”

She had noticed Kelsea's attitude toward her father earlier. Kelsea’s head shot towards June with a deep scowl. She debated not answering but eventually let out a heavy sigh.

“He treats me like I’m a little kid, even though I’m sixteen,” she grumbled. Without a word from June, Kelsea kept going. “He thinks anytime I mess up, it’s because of my mom’s influence. Like I’m destined to ruin my life and end up in jail. But I’m my own person, you know? Just because my mom screwed up doesn’t mean I will. It’s like I’m always under a microscope when he looks at me, trying to find out how I messed up. It’s not like he’s the parent of the year or anything like it. He spends every free moment outside of work in that stupid garden. It's like half the time, I don’t exist, and the other half, he looks at me like I am some juvenile delinquent, even though I score at the top of my class most of the time. I’m so friggin’ over it!”

It was like she was balloon filled to the edge of bursting, just waiting for the slightest prick to burst.

“Have you talked to your dad about how you feel?” June whispered to Kelsea, who shot her another quick glare but shook her head slowly, frowning.

“Not sure what that would solve,” she grumbled.

“Maybe you should tell him what you just told me,” June suggested with a smile.

Kelsea went quiet again, frowning deeply. She didn’t like the idea of talking to her father like that, feeling like it would just end in another fight. She was already in serious trouble after getting caught taking a hit from a friend's joint behind the gym at school. It wasn’t like she constantly did it or anything. Hell, it had been the first time she smoked at all. She just wanted to feel something besides stress for once.

She let out another sigh and stopped looking around.

“I don’t think they are here anymore. We looked everywhere. We should go back and tell that lady my dad won’t stop gawking at… She does have a pretty nice rack, though,” Kelsea admitted. June couldn’t help but giggle sweetly, looking away. Kelsea blushed deeply, the dark brown skin of her cheeks turning a shade pink. “W-what? Why are you laughing?”

She tried to scowl, but it just looked more like an embarrassed frown. June just shook her head and smiled at her.

“Nothing. It's just funny that you would say that. My mom has serious boob envy when it comes to Miss Katia. But she is very nice. You are right, though. We should head back.”

The two agreed and started to make their way back to the adults.

Back at the produce stall, Katia and Chris were still deep in conversation. She was picking up ideas about Jason’s dietary needs. It turns out that Katia had been unintentionally doing things wrong, cutting out good fats and proteins and loading him with high sodium seasonings and artificial flavorings. Chris told her about which meats and veggies Jason should be focusing on to keep his muscle growth up and bad cholesterol down. He’d been doing Keto for ages and suggested it for Katia but not for Jason. Not that he thought Katia needed to diet. He found her perfect just the way she was. Mid-chat, a small voice piped up next to Katia.

“Um…Miss Katia?”

Katia glanced over to see who was whispering to her and spotted June standing there with Kelsea not far behind, her arms folded and the same scowl on her face as when she left. She gave June a warm smile. She had never actually heard June speak before, so she was rather surprised but happy.

“June? What’s wrong, sweetie?” she asked, quickly noticing the troubled expression on June’s face.

“Oh... I uh, stopped to look at some flowers... and I lost my phone, and got separated from my sister and Jason… I... I-I’m really scared for them. We tried looking for them but couldn’t find them anywhere.”

She looked troubled but not as troubled as Katia expected. She looked to Kelsea, who was looking away, trying to seem like she had nothing to do with June, but it was pretty obvious that was far from the case.

“It’s okay, honey. Don’t worry. I’ll call your sister for you. I’m sure she’s looking everywhere for you too. Everything will be fine,” she comforted June, reaching out and gently rubbing her back with one hand while pulling out her phone with the other.

Katia tapped on Jillian’s name in her contacts, and the phone started ringing. She put it to her ear and waited for Jillian to pick up, but it just kept ringing until it went to voicemail.

“Hmm, that’s weird,” she muttered to herself. Deciding to try Jason next, she dialed his number. Again, it just rang and rang until it, too, went to voicemail.

She frowned deeply this time, feeling a bit confused as she glanced at her phone. She hoped they weren’t off fooling around while poor June was left all alone. But that didn’t really sound like something her son would do. And with how doting Jillian was on her sister, the thought was quickly banished from her mind. Katia turned to Chris and gave him an apologetic look.

“Sorry, Chris, but I need to go sort this mess out.”

Chris nodded understandingly, offering her a sympathetic smile.

“Please, it’s not a problem. If there’s anything you need, just give me a call or text. You’ve got my number, so please don’t be shy about it. I’ll do whatever I can.”

Chris flashed a friendly grin at the older woman. Kelsea’s scowl returned at her father gushing over this new woman. She just knew that once Katia was in the picture, the already meager amount of time her father spent with her was going to diminish even further.

Katia returned the smile and nodded appreciatively. “Thanks, Chris. I’ll be sure to give you a shout when things settle down. And thanks again for the veggies.”

She reached for the basket, but it was too heavy for one hand.

“Looks like I’ll need to make a return trip for these.”

They shared a chuckle as June nestled into Katia’s arms, even more scared now that they couldn’t reach her sister or Jason by phone. She just knew something was very, very wrong now. Leaving the market, Katia and June headed towards the parking lot, but the car wasn’t there. “Okay, something really isn’t right,” Katia remarked worriedly. “Jason mentioned going back home, but I figured he’d be back by now.” Checking her phone, she saw no missed calls or messages.

With few options left, they could only reach out for help or call a taxi. Katia hesitated to bother Ginny, who was looking after a sick child, so she nervously dialed Chris instead. He picked up almost immediately.

“Katia, hey! What’s up? Didn’t expect to hear from you so soon. Everything alright?” Chris said, sounding concerned.

Katia let out a nervous laugh.“Well, actually, Jason took the car we drove here somewhere, and he is not answering his phone,” Katia explained to Chris.

“That’s not good. Well, let me close up the stall, and I can give you a ride wherever you need to go if you’d like,” he offered.

“Oh, I couldn’t impose like that! I can just call for a taxi or something,” she said, a bit surprised.

“Please, it’s no trouble. I want to do it. This stall is just a hobby anyway, and I wasn’t planning on staying past lunch. Whatever I don’t sell, I eat. Although, I might need your help to finish all these leftover veggies one of these nights, haha,” he said with a laugh. But there was a long silence before Chris spoke again. “Um, Katia? You there?” he asked, sounding a bit nervous that he might have crossed some line.

“Yeah... but, um, did you just ask me out to dinner?” she asked, sounding a bit stunned. There was another long pause between them. When Chris finally came to his senses, he cleared his throat.

“Um... Well, I was just thinking of sharing some extras with you, but since that seal is already broken... Yeah, if you’re okay with it, I would love for you to join me for dinner sometime, Katia.” She blushed at his words, grateful he couldn’t see her. June stood beside Katia, still glancing around and looking for any signs of her sister or Jason. not willing to give up hope, but just standing there in the parking lot was not helping her nerves.

“Oh, umm,” Katia said, her voice slightly shaky. “…I’d really like that, Chris,” she finally managed, a bashful smile on her face. It seemed there was a silver lining to all this worry, at least.

“Great! So, why don’t you two start heading back over here? I’ll give you both a ride wherever you need to go. I don’t have much to pack up, so I’ll probably be ready by the time you get here,” Chris said cheerfully over the phone.

“Alright, sounds good. See you soon!”

After saying their goodbyes, Katia turned to June. “Chris is going to give us a ride back home. I’m sure those two will show up eventually. They’re adults and can take care of themselves. But let's get you back home first, okay?” June nodded in agreement as they headed back into the farmer’s market.

When Chris got off the phone, his smile looked like it almost reached his ears. But when he looked over at his daughter, she had a pain-filled scowl that screamed that she was upset.

“Kels… what's wrong?” His smile vanished as he tried to talk to his daughter.

“Nothing, everything is just fine, so don’t worry about me or anything,” Kelsea said as she quickly grabbed the car keys from her father’s jacket pocket and stomped away, heading for their truck. He watched his daughter rush off towards where they parked the car with a deep frown. His heart hurt seeing his daughter so upset. It seemed that Katia had only added fuel to the fire, which was Kelsea’s raging emotions.

He continued packing up his stall, tossing everything into a wagon to haul it back to his truck. He let out a big sigh as he took down the pop up canopy, his mind stuck on his daughter.

Shortly after, Katia and June returned, with Katia offering a shy smile to Chris. Feeling a bit bashful himself, Chris waved at them.

“Hey there, any news from those two yet?” he asked as the two women approached, but Katia shook her head in response.

“Dang, well, I’m almost done here, then we’re good to go,” Chris assured them as he finished packing.

“Let me give you a hand,” Katia offered, jumping in to help.

“June, if you want to wait with Kelsea, my silver truck is just around the corner of that building. I promise it's not far,” Chris said with a smile.

June was a little hesitant, but she nodded and headed around the corner, easily spotting the truck. When she opened the back door, she was greeted by Kelsea, who looked like a deer in the headlights, if a deer had bloodshot eyes and black smudges along her face.

Her mascara stained cheeks and red eyes, along with a few tears still rolling down her chin, were quite the sight to behold.

June stared at her for a moment before Kelsea cried out. “What are you doing?! Close the door!”

There was a bit of anger in her voice and June jumped a little, but quickly climbed into the truck’s back seat and closed the door.

“Are…you okay?” she whispered to Kelsea, who had quickly scooted to the opposite side of the truck, bringing her long legs up into her chest and wrapping her arms around them.

“I’m fine,” she grumbled with a loud sniff, pressing her lips against her knees as she sulked. Obviously not fine. June looked at her for a few moments before scooting closer. Looking around, she spotted a small pack of makeup wipes, which pretty obviously belonged to Kelsea. Grabbing them from the floor of the truck, June pulled out a wipe and moved even closer to Kelsea.

“Can I help?” she asked, trying her best to smile for the other girl. June held up the wipe to help clean up the streaks of mascara. Kelsea resisted at first but eventually relented, leaning back to give the smaller redhead access to her face.

June’s smile widened a little as she leaned in and started to wipe away the black smudges. Kelsea stared deeply into June’s bright blue eyes, a pang of jealousy shooting through her. She wished she had those eyes instead of the ugly blackish brown she had.

June suddenly reached out and placed a hand on Kelsea’s cheek, moving it softly, but didn’t remove it as she continued to clean. Kelsea felt her heart thump in her chest. Her eyes started to really take in all of June’s features. The soft pale skin, the massive amount of reddish brown freckles that covered her face, and the sharp yet delicate shape of her nose and chin.

She was almost sad when June was finished cleaning. She smiled at her, closing the pack of wipes.

“There, all done. Feel better?”

Her sweet smile once again made Kelsea’s heart beat faster as she nodded dumbly.

“Good.”