0.1

'Oh, gosh... Turn it off...'

'Turn it off.........'

'Good lord, shut it up!'

'. . . . . . . . .'

'Wait, that's my alarm...'

'. . . . . . . . .'

'Well shoot...'

I rolled myself over in my bed, reaching blindly for my phone. The volume was steadily increasing, and I was getting increasingly frustrated with the constant beeping. I refused to open my eyes until my phone was in my hand. I wanted to at least pretend that I was still asleep.

'It's not six-thirty yet. It's just not. I refuse.'

I finally got ahold of my phone, and I forced my eyes open as I turned the screen to my face. Even though the screen was on the lowest brightness setting and the alarm screen was dark, I still found myself squinting and searching for the off switch through a set of eyelashes.

'Okay, Jamie. Swipe right on the thing to snooze.'

I followed my brain's instructions. My alarm turned off completely, which was not what I wanted at all.

'Gosh darn it... I did it again... Now I have to get up...'

I groaned loudly, rolling onto my back and dropping my phone onto the bed, next to me. I stared up at my ceiling for a moment. I thought I was just giving myself a moment to wake up, but part of me knows that I was just giving myself the opportunity to fall back asleep. You know how it is.

I glanced at my phone to check the time.

"Oh shoot!"

I threw my blankets aside and jumped up so quickly that I had my head spinning.

"I'm gonna be late!"

What I thought had been one minute of laying in bed had actually been twenty. I still had to shower, and dry my hair, and do my make up, and make myself look nice in the things we call clothes. In other words, I actually had to look the part of a "Lady." Eww. But back to me having so much crap to do to myself and not much time to do it.

I grabbed a pair of dress pants and a nicer, plaid, button-up from my closet and a bra and underwear from my dresser. I made a beeline for the bathroom with the clothes in my arms and I practically threw them onto the counter as I turned the shower on to warm up the water. I had a scowl on my face the whole time.

"Dude," I told myself as I started to strip. "You'd think that I'd be able to get myself out of bed on time by now."

I adjusted the water so that it was just cool enough not to burn me, and I got in.

"I'm, what, twenty-eight? I pay bills. I have a job. I'm trying to start a business. And, yet, somehow, getting up in the morning is an adult skill that still eludes me. I'm so freakin' stupid..."

I forced myself to take a breath as I rinsed my hair.

"No, it's all good. You've got this. I've got this. I just need to be fast. No distractions. I can stop for a coffee and breakfast on the way home."

I finished my shower fairly quickly. I dried myself off as quickly as possible and dressed myself just as fast. I towel dried my hair as best as I could, only to decide part of the way through that I wouldn't bother with a blow dryer. Instead, I just brushed the longer portions of my hair and braided them towards the back of my head. I brushed my teeth in record time and I shoved on my flats in seconds. I grabbed my keys and my purse, and I was out the door in a flash.

I threw my purse into the passenger seat of my van and started it up. Part of me wondered how "professional" I'd look with my wet hair, my makeup-free face, and my old, hand-me-down van with dents (from the previous owner) scattered over it. I knew that my hair would dry enough to not be too noticeable, though, and I feel perfectly content without makeup, so I just decided to ignore that part. Also, what bank employee would be looking at the vehicle I drive when considering giving me a loan? I chuckled at the thought as I plugged in my aux cord and turned on Spotify.

"I've got nothing to worry about," I told myself, letting myself relax as I turned the music up. "Nothing at all."

(( live performance ))

https://youtu.be/QlFF7rAkztg

(( studio recording ))

https://youtu.be/jSD5vSSGLOM

I smiled as one of my favorite songs started to play, and I sang along at the top of my lungs. I knew that the people driving next to me could easily hear me through my van's old walls, but I didn't care one bit. I was confident enough in my own singing abilities, and I was enjoying myself. The other drivers could just deal with it.

I looked into the rearview mirror as I stopped at a red light. A portion of my mousy brown hair fell out of its braid, and I narrowed my jade green eyes childishly as I attempted to push the strands back into the braid with an olive-toned hand. I stopped to stare at myself for a moment.

I never really considered myself beautiful. I was more or less average. My friends - who pay more attention than I do - have told me I have more of a "bottom hourglass" body shape, whatever that is, and I've noticed that I've got a bit of chub on my arms, tummy, and thighs. I'm no beauty guru or anything, and I usually dress as comfortably as possible with as little makeup as possible. My hair is cut in a pretty weird way compared to everyone else I know, too. My hair reaches my shoulders, and I have side-swept bangs and an undercut. However, my undercut isn't really shaved, but cut with layers as if the hair on top were short and would blend in. Everyone is pretty much used to that though, and they don't seem to mind; they all seem to like me just fine.

I live in a smaller town in southwest Louisiana in the United States. The place is just big enough to have a small mall (that isn't a strip mall), multiple fast food places, and more churches than I can count, but it's just small enough that everyone knows everyone. Everybody in the area has practically known me since the day I was born, and you bet your butt that I was made aware - in one way or another - when a person in our area was having a baby - whether I wanted to know or not.

I shook off my stare-off with myself when the light turned green, and I moved into the turning lane. I pulled into the bank's parking lot and pulled into a spot that was pretty close to the door. I didn't even bother taking any kind of deep, calming breath, or whatever. I was perfectly at ease. In fact, I was excited! I could feel my smile growing as I grabbed my purse. I got out of my van, locking the doors behind me as I started walking towards the front door. I shoved my keys in my pocket. Then I opened the door.

I wasn't surprised by what I saw inside. I mean, it's a bank. It's the same bank that my parents use. It's the same bank that my grandparents use. It's the same bank that my aunts, uncles, and cousins use. It's the same bank that my sisters use. It's the same bank that my brother is gonna use once he's old enough. I've been in that bank thousands of times, and nothing had changed.

I pulled out my phone to check the time; it was seven thirty-six. I had twenty-four minutes until my meeting at eight.

I shook my head at myself as I slid my phone into my pocket.

'And I thought I was gonna be late!'

I walked towards the chairs against the nearest wall, sitting next to a boy and his mother.

I smiled at both of them. "Hey, Mckinna! Hey, Landyn! What's up?"

"Hey! Miss Breaux, right? Jamie Breaux?" Mckinna asked, turning in her seat to look at me with a smile.

"Yep, that's me. It's been a while, huh? I haven't seen you since I left for culinary school. How've you been?"

"Miss B.!" The woman's response was interrupted by the nine-year-old next to her, and we laughed a bit at his excited smile.

"Yeah, bud! It be me. I be Miss B. How've you been, man? You taking care of your mom?" I ruffled the boy's hair.

He frowned slightly before fixing his hair. But he soon nodded enthusiastically, giving me a big, toothy grin. "Yeah, I've bee -- "

"Yeah, what?" Mckinna interrupted her son, giving him a questioning look.

"Yes, ma'am." Landyn corrected himself, giving me a smaller, almost embarrassed smile.

Mckinna nodded. "That's right."

"Oooh!" I smiled brightly at the kid, poking him on the shoulder gently. "The kid's got some awesome manners!"

Landyn laughed as I poked him. "Dude, stop!"

When I blankly stared at him, poking him again, he returned the gesture by poking my nose. I scrunched my nose, narrowing my eyes at him in mock confusion. I rubbed my nose gently, trying not to smile as he started laughing even harder. I shook my head at him.

"Excuse me," I told him, causing him to squeal a bit and his mother to chuckle. "but that is my nose, good sir, not yours. Back off."

Mckinna and I were in our third year of community college when we met. She and her boyfriend had just gotten engaged, and Landyn had just turned two at the time. I was working at a preschool, and it just happened to be the same school that Mckinna decided to bring Landyn to. I was Landyn's teacher's assistant, and I usually ended up being his babysitter, too, for about three years. Then I left for culinary school. I hadn't seen them in person once since then, but Mckinna is one of those friends that makes sure to stay in touch.

"You're so dumb," Landyn said, leaning onto his mother's shoulder comfortably.

I adjusted my invisible necktie. "I try to be." Then I paused. "Wait, dumb?"

I smiled, shaking my head at his laughter before turning back to Mckinna. "So how's the man? Connor's doing good?"

"Oh, he's been good." Mckinna nodded. "He's actually in a meeting right now." She pointed to a door across the room.

"You came for a loan, too?" I asked.

She nodded once more. "Yeah. We're trying to buy a bigger house." She leaned close to whisper in my ear. "Landyn's about to be a big brother. We're gonna tell him later today."

I could feel my heart tense up as I smiled at her. You know that feeling where you're so happy for someone that you actually, physically feel it in your chest? That's what I felt, and I tapped her shoulder feverishly in excitement.

"Oh my gosh! Congrats, Mckinna! I'm so happy for you!"

I watched as her face turned a pretty shade of pink and she tucked some hair behind her ear. "Thank you." Then she cleared her throat nervously. Then she smiled to shake off the nervousness. "So what's your loan for?"

I leaned back in my chair, looking out at the bank floor with a smile. "You know how I always liked to bake?"

"How could I forget? Landyn was always coming home with sweet stuff!"

I chuckled at the memory of sending the boy home with multiple Tupperware containers of baked goods when I'd babysit him, then I continued with, "Well, I'm getting a loan to open my own bakery."

Mckinna's eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"

"Oh, yeah. Hey, how does 'Top O' The Muffin To Ya!' sound for a name?" I asked, holding my hands up as if I were gesturing to a sign on a building.

"Dude," We glanced at Landyn as he glanced back at me. "That's perfect!"

I couldn't help but join in when Mckinna started laughing. But we stopped the instant we heard a loud, head-splitting bang from the center of the room. I barely registered the woman next to me covering her son's ears and holding him closer to herself. I froze in place, only moving my head as I turned to where the sound came from.

There were two men at the center of the room, each one wearing a ski mask and holding a firearm. I glanced around frantically as one of them started talking, seeing that two women with masks were standing near the tellers' desks and two more masked men were standing in front of the door. I could feel myself start to shake, and my mouth was suddenly insanely dry. I looked back to the men in the middle of the room.

"Okay, listen up," The speaker began. "Everyone puts their phone in the box, everyone sits on the floor in front of me, and everyone keeps their mouth shut."

The man on the speaker's left held up a cardboard box.

"You do that, and no one gets hurt."

My head snapped in the direction of the door as one of the men over there cocked his shotgun. Then I looked in the direction of the tellers' desks as I heard one of the women ask, "Care to fill this up for me, sweetheart? Bills, coins, whatever you got will work. Thanks."

At this point, Mckinna, Landyn, and I were the only ones that hadn't moved. So, I gently took Mckinna's arm and pulled her out of her seat. We dragged ourselves to the two men with the box. I saw Landyn grasp his mother's hand, and Mckinna and I didn't hesitate to pat his head and his shoulder in comfort. I could vaguely see the men smirking through their masks as we reached them.

"Hello, ladies." The leader said. Then he glanced at Landyn. "Hey, little man."

Landyn flinched back, but the man just chuckled.

"We'll take your cell phones, now. If you don't mind."

I hesitantly pulled my phone from my back pocket. I could see it shaking as my hand shook. I dragged my arm in front of my face and above the box's opening. I flinched as my phone hit the bottom of the box and rested on top of a pile of the other bank patrons' phones. My only link to anyone outside of the bank was now out of reach. I fought the bile rising in my throat as I watched Mckinna do the same as I did.

"Thank you very much! Now, if you'll have a seat, please."

Mckinna instantly began to drag herself and her son towards the other people huddled together on the floor. But me? I stood there in silence, staring at the box and clenching my fists.

'Is there really nothing I can do?'

"Young lady,"

I met the leader's eyes. He raised his gun and aimed it at my chest.

"I insist."

I stared for a moment longer, feeling tears well up in my eyes. But I eventually turned my back to the men and started walking. I knelt down next to Mckinna, sitting so that our shoulders were touching and subconsciously putting myself between the family and the armed robbers.

I forgot how long we sat like that, legs falling asleep as the tellers slowly did as the robbers demanded. Maybe they were hoping that, if they were slow enough, help would eventually arrive. I doubted it, though. If the cops didn't know there was a robbery, then they wouldn't know to come at all. But who knows, maybe they pressed one of those silent alarms or something.

Then I heard a scuffle not far behind me, and I turned to look. A door next to the tellers' desks had been opened, and one of the women was inside yelling at someone. I didn't even realize someone was still in there; the man who worked in that office left it when the robbers first arrived, and he was sitting right next to me. The woman walked out with an office phone that was cut at the cord, and she was leading a man out at gunpoint. My breath hitched in my throat.

"Hey!"

The other robbers turned to her when she yelled.

"This guy was in an office over there. Getting a bit friendly with the cops." She lifted a leg and kicked the man in the back, making him land right at the leader's feet.

"That so?" The leader squatted down, looking into the man's face with a sneer. "What's your name?"

The man on the floor shook in his spot, but his voice was surprisingly level when he responded with, "Connor. My name's Connor Fontenot."

"Level with me, Connor." The leader held out his hand, helping Connor to his feet. "You got any family?"

Connor cleared his throat. He nodded.

"Wife? Kids?"

"I -- " He cleared his throat again, sparing a short glance in Mckinna and Landyn's direction. "I have a wife and a son, and we have another baby on the way."

The man smirked underneath his mask and he draped an arm over Connor's shoulder, causing the young man to flinch. "That's great! Now, stay with me here. Imagine how devastated they would be if you were to die today. Can you just feel it, Connor?"

I watched as Connor's face was completely drained of color.

"Because that's exactly how they're going to feel in the next few hours when they find out how stupid you were just now."

*BANG*

"CONNOR!"

I could barely differentiate my own scream from everyone else's as Connor was shot right in front of us. The man just pointed the tip of his weapon into Connor's stomach, and he shot him. No real warning. He just... He shot him...

Everything followed just as quickly.

People screeched in justified terror, and I wrapped my arms around Mckinna as she broke down, her tears soaking into my sleeves.

She took one arm off of Landyn to grab my shirt.

Landyn ripped himself out of his mother's grasp,

and he started running straight for his father.

"Dad!"

Mine and Mckinna's heads shot up, turning to the boy as he came closer and closer to the robbers. I didn't hesitate to push Mckinna to the floor when she started to stand. I stood up, instead, and I bolted in Landyn's direction, hoping to grab him before the other men could.

"Woah, there, little man!" The leader reached down, swiftly latching onto Landyn's arm and pulling the boy towards himself. "What's your hurry?"

"Let him go!" I screamed, refusing to make eye contact with anyone besides the leader himself.

"That's my dad!"

As Landyn started hitting the man's arm, tears streaming down his red cheeks, I felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around my waist. I swung my legs violently each time the man holding me had me in the air, and I spent every second trying to get out of his hold when my feet could touch the floor. I had to get to Landyn!

"You hurt my dad!" Landyn shrieked, turning to face the man instead of where his father lay. "You shot him!"

I felt a small amount of pride as the boy began to kick the robber as hard as he could, but the pride was ultimately won out by fear when I saw the look in the robber's eyes.

"I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!"

I bit the hand of the person holding me as Landyn continued yelling. I bit as hard as I could. I could taste a coppery taste as I chomped down even harder, but there was too much adrenaline in my system for me to care. I had to get to Landyn.

"Why you little -- "

"Ahhgh!"

Just as the leader was getting ready to aim his gun, the man holding onto me let go, yelping in pain and looking down at his hand. I started running in the leader's direction. I could see a flash of confusion in his eyes, only for it to vanish as he aimed his weapon at me instead. I froze.

"Hey, hey!" The man glared at me, sparing a quick glance at the robber who was wiping blood onto his pants. "What happened to 'stay on the floor and no one gets hurt', huh?"

I heard Landyn yelp as the man squeezed his arm.

"Do you not care about this kid? Get back over there! You take one more step over here and I'll blow his brains out."

I panicked. I didn't think. It all just spilled out.

"You were going to shoot him anyway! You've already shot one man, and you're here to rob a bank. How can I know that you'll keep your word?"

He narrowed his eyes at me, but I could still see a small smirk through his mask. "I guess you can't."

"Look," I raised my hands in a calming motion, taking the smallest of steps forward.

I froze when his finger hovered over the trigger, and I took a breath. "He's just a kid. He's nine. All he knows is that his dad is dead and that you were the one who did it. Of course, he's upset!"

"So? What are you getting at? Hurry it up!"

I flinched as the man shouted, but I continued. "It's not his fault. Please, just let him go. He can't snitch on you to the cops or anything where we're at. Let his mom take him, and you can go on with what you're doing. You're plan doesn't hinge on you shooting a child, does it?"

Everything was silent for a moment. Even Landyn had managed to close his mouth, settling of trying to yank his arm away.

"It doesn't."

The man let go of Landyn, and I watched in overwhelming relief as the boy ran to meet his mother in the cluster of bank patrons. I collapsed to my knees, feeling a tear drip down my cheek.

"Thank you," I said softly, looking up at the leader.

I frowned as he kept his gun's sights on me.

"But it does rely on complacency. And you, ma'am, have been causing a bit too much drama for my liking."

I flinched as he pulled the trigger.

I heard a fraction of a scream.

Then everything went dark.