Chapter's song: better when I'm dancing by Meghan Trainor

I couldn't sleep properly for the whole weekend. It felt like high school all over again. To be honest, my whole high school experience hadn't been one of the greatest. I was a geek, totally focused on getting the best grades to ace a college scholarship. Which was pointless once I learned that Juno couldn't support us by herself. I promised to help her out with the hope of giving my little brother the best I could. Even if that meant that I would have to clean toilets for the rest of my life.

I woke up early enough to get the bathroom for myself, but Seth beat me. Half an hour later, I was ready to kill him.

"Seth. Seriously. GET THE FUCK OUT OF THE BATHROOM!"

My grandma's door opened as I started to bang repeatedly on the door. "Hi honey, how are you?" She asked in her usual calm demeanor.

"I'd be totally awesome if someone hadn't been using the bathroom for the last hour!" I glared at the stupid door. Seth snickered inside. "Argh!" I kicked the door and he burst out laughing.

"You can use my bathroom, sweetie." Juno yawned at the same time she opened the door to her room for me. She had her own bathroom. Seth and I were the ones that had to share. Unfortunately.

Huffing, I glared at the door once more. "You're in big trouble, dude." I grabbed the towel I'd hang on the banister as I waited and thanked Juno for letting me use her bathroom.

"You're welcome!" She said as I stepped inside her room. My whole body froze.

There was a man in her bed. An old naked man. All I could see was his chest but it was more than enough, I was probably scarred for life. He smiled at me, and I think he said something but my eyes were wide as saucers and my stupid feet didn't move.

I couldn't believe that Mr. Gomez spent the night here and we didn't notice.

Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh. My God.

My grandmother was having sex while I was next door.

"I just ─Bye!" My heart thumped erratically inside my chest as I fled Junos' room.

I bumped into my brother on my way out. "What the hell, Seth!"

"What?" His hair was dripping as he grabbed me by the shoulders. He looked serious. "What happened? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Mr. Gomez is in there! Naked!" I closed my eyes and tried to picture anything but him. Cute little kittens. Think of cute little kittens. The image of the old man with that round-hairy belly popped again in my head.

Seth cracked up. "Yeah. Right!"

I grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him closer. "He is," my tone was dead serious.

He kept quiet and glanced at Juno's door. She had closed it again. We both looked at each other for a moment before we turned away, completely panicked.

"I have to go to school." Seth said hurriedly.

I patted him on the chest. "Next time, don't take so long!"

My shower lasted no more than six minutes. I didn't want to see our butcher in my grandmother's bed again. Plus, I heard a noise ─something disturbing that I suspected was a moan─ as I left the bathroom.

We didn't have breakfast. Seth and I fled the house without even saying goodbye to Juno. I couldn't get away from the house fast enough.

On the bright side, I was early to work. Like too early. Not even Bryan had arrived, so I had to wait for him. My teeth chattered. In my hurry to leave the house, I forgot to take a jacket with me.

Great way to start the week.

To top it all, I couldn't stop picturing Mr. Gomez in bed every time I closed my eyes.

For fuck's sake. I was totally scarred for life. Thank you, Juno.

"Good morning." Bryan's deep voice made me jump. He was frowning as his eyes set on me. "Why are you so early?"

"I'm nervous about school." And I had to flee my house because my grandmother was having sex. I forced a smile as I touched my neck. My whole face felt warm too.

He nodded, but his expression was tight, as if he didn't believe me. "Okay. I'm glad you're you're early. I could use the help before the rest of the students arrive."

"Sure." That would surely get my mind off the gutter.

He was right. We sorted out everything on the classroom and we double-checked the food's inventory for the day. Eight o'clock arrived and Tom wasn't in sight. Bryan didn't say anything but I could tell he was peeved about it.

People started to arrive. I welcomed them behind the front desk, giving them tags for their names. Unlike Nadia, I smiled at everyone and tried to be as gentle as I could.

Ten minutes later, I saw Monica cross through the hall. Her wide grin was her best attribute. She kissed me on the cheek as if we were old friends before leaning on the desk. "Do you work here?" she asked as I greeted other people and handed them their tags.

"Yeah. Sort of. I'll be taking the classes, but I have to help out with everything else."

She bit her lip. "I wouldn't mind working here either. Especially with those two hotties. I mean, that chef coat suits them well!" I chuckled at her words but my eyes travelled to Bryan. He was certainly handsome.

"Monica?" A blond guy stood in front of the desk. He tilted his head as he watched Monica. He was tall and had this whole bad-boy vibe around him. Or at least that's the impression I got. He was all dressed in black and a had a ring in his bottom lip.

"Andrew!" Monica grinned back. She kissed him on the cheek too before doing some sort of cool shake with their hands. "I didn't know you signed up for this!"

He shrugged. "I need a job."

"Don't we all?" Monica shook her head. She glanced at me, "Anyway, this is Jessica and this is Andrew, an old friend."

"Hi," I handed him his tag and the manila folder with the basic recipes we were doing. "Nice to meet you."

His eyes were dark and deep as cup of warm black coffee. He tilted his head. "And what does a girl like you is doing in a place like this?"

"What do you mean?" A girl like me? I almost huffed.

He raised an eyebrow. "You look different from the rest of us."

"Why? Because I don't a piercing or I'm not dressed in black?"

Andrew's lips tugged up. He crossed his arms. "You look preppy."

I was about to retort when Monica slapped him on the arm. "Stop it Andy. Jessie is cool, okay?"

"Whatever," his voice was calmed and expressionless but his eyes sparkled mischievously before he walked away.

I swallowed hard. He was the actual definition of a bad boy. "Should I be worried?" I asked Monica.

She laughed. "Andrew is harmless, he's like a dog who barks but doesn't bite." My eyes followed him as he shook hands with other people. "Besides, he's a good guy. Trust me," she added in a lower tone. "Just don't let him know that I told you that." She winked at me and stepped away to say greet someone else.

Still, Andrew didn't seem mean but he said what everyone else was thinking. I did stand out. Like the geeky, nerdy girl I'd always been. Ugh. High school all over again.

I did say that I was inspired didn't I? ;)

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