{"product_id":"2940013269286","title":"A Call in The Dark Part II","description":"Please see Part I before get Part II for A call in the dark series of fiction\u003cbr\u003eThe following is highlighted some of the section for part II.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA Call In The Dark Part II\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‘Yeah, I’d only get a few dollars for him anyway,’ I said, taking the Vans off.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‘So then, the Vans…?’ said the girl.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‘Oh, I’m taking them,’ I said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‘That’s what I like to hear,’ she laughed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI made sure I swung the plastic bag with the Vans in them as if it was a Gucci handbag, wanting everyone to see that I had just spent $120 of my own money on a pair of shoes without any help from my deadbeat father. He just snorted when he saw them.\u003cbr\u003eWe walked to the car and I made a big deal of getting the box out of the car and examining the white and pink Vans in minute detail. ‘These are so cool,’ I said, with mock enthusiasm. ‘These are most awesome shoes, and so worth it. Such a good price, I think I should have bought two. What do you think Dad?’\u003cbr\u003e‘Can’t you shut it,’ he said, looking dead straight ahead.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI shut up after that. It was the worst fight my dad and I had had for a long time. He never told me to shut up, and I was rarely such a smart arse. I was on a roll. First the argument with Topps, then Crass, now Dad. A hat-trick! What a winner I was turning out\u003cbr\u003eto be.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI didn’t know what to do when I got home. I just knew I didn’t want to be around Dad. So I stayed in my room and listened to music and read, trying to get those words out of my head. Shut it. Ugly. That would take a while to wash off. I could sulk with the best of them. I wasn’t going to forgive him for saying that, not for a long time. Even if it meant getting up for breakfast early and leaving school before he woke, or going to Skye’s every night for a week and coming home late, I’d avoid him. Let him cook his own dinner and we’d see how much he liked toasted cheese sandwiches. Perhaps I could leave some recipe books out for him, circling the easiest recipes? Like scrambled eggs. Let him get the hint that I was done with him. That’d shut him up.\u003cbr\u003eI heard the front door slam and the car start up. He was going to Dave’s, for sure. One day he was going to get caught by a police breathalyser. Then we’d see how much he liked spending his money when got some huge fine. At least I was alone now and\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ecould go and watch TV. But Dad had never just stormed out of the house without saying something, no matter how mad he was.\u003cbr\u003eAfter a few minutes I walked out into the kitchen. On the table was a note. As I suspected, it said, “Gone to Dave’s. Back late” scrawled in black pen. Underneath the note I saw the corner of a twenty dollar note. I lifted up the note and saw there was a bunch of notes. I counted them. $120 exactly.\u003cbr\u003eI sorted the notes out neatly and held them in my hand. Almost a weekend’s pay, after tax. Should I keep it? I deserved it. I mean, Dad probably spends that much on booze every second week. I even unconsciously smelt the notes as I thought about it. The notes stank, like a stale cupboard open for the first time in months. Why did money smell so bad? Wasn’t it just paper? Money stinks.\u003cbr\u003eAfter a few moments thinking, I left the money back on the table and went and got a bowl of Nutri-Grain.\u003cbr\u003eI could pay my own way.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e--------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr\u003eCaptain Pierre","brand":"Captain Pierre","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47157613691120,"sku":"2940013269286","price":1.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940013269286_p0.jpg?v=1763579075","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940013269286","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}