Cinnamon // Sally Face

T h i r t y - O n e

"I can't believe you took your mom's car!" Ash scolded Larry as the group headed to the school parking lot together. He decided that since he'd already taken the keys, he might as well drive himself, Violet, Sal, Todd, and Chug to school. 

"Would you rather walk home?" He asked, twirling the keys around his finger. "Catch, Sally Face."

The keys were flung in Sal's direction, slapping him in the chest as he hurried to catch them. "I'm not driving Lisa's car," he protested.

"Oh so now you don't want to?"

Violet frowned. Sal could drive too? Why hadn't he mentioned this to her? At this rate, she was beginning to think that she was the only person in the group unable to drive. "Is there anyone else here who can secretly drive a car?" She questioned, looking around at her friends.

"Ashley and I are the only ones with our temps. But yes, we all know how to drive," Todd informed her.

"Well, I don't."

"That's because you don't steal your mother's car and disappear with it whenever you want," Ash reassured her, shooting Larry a glare. "And Sal is no better for driving it."

The blue-haired teen groaned. "I didn't even ask to this time!"

Once the group approached Lisa's beaten-down car, Sal begrudgingly unlocked the trunk and threw his backpack inside. Everyone else did the same. Violet was the last to do so, meaning that she was the one to close the trunk. It took a few tries, but after giving her own backpack a good shove toward the bottom, it eventually shut.

By this time, Larry, Ash, and Todd had all filed into the back seat, leaving the passenger's seat open for her. Her eyes traveled to Sal, who was positioned behind the steering wheel. Her chest tightened. With the tension going on between the two of them, this ride would be unbearable. Plus, she had no idea if Sal was a good driver or not. Why did she have to be the one in the front seat if something bad happened.

Oh, who was she kidding? She wasn't worried in the slightest about his driving ability.

With a gulp, she made her way to the passenger's side and opened the door. The nauseatingly sweet smell of Lisa's car fragrance hit her nose immediately. She lowered herself into her seat and closed the door without a word. Sal didn't say anything either, but instead turned the key in the ignition. 

"Violet," Ash spoke from the back seat, "don't forget your seatbelt."

"Oh, yeah." She reached to her right side and grabbed the sticky strip of fabric, her hand slightly shaking. Being this nervous around Sal felt ridiculous. It's not like he assaulted her or something. He just...discontinued their friendship. He was still Sal Fisher, the guy who probably captured spiders and let them outside instead of stomping on them. He was harmless. 

After waiting for Violet to buckle her seatbelt, he eased his foot onto the gas and pulled the car out of its parking spot. She kept her head turned toward the window. Maybe she'd forget Sal was there if she didn't look at him. After all, that's what he'd been doing to her for the past few days. Why did she feel so bad about doing it back?

"Sal," Larry piped up after several minutes of agonizing silence, "you drive like my dead grandma."

Ash scoffed. "We're in a school zone, Larry." 

"So what? We're in high school. Most people have learned not to walk in front of cars by now."

As if on cue, Sal slammed on the breaks as someone dashed out in front of them to cross the street. Everyone was thrown forward, causing their seatbelts to lock and slam them back against their seats. 

"Apparently not," he stated. "Is everyone okay?"

Violet opened her mouth to say yes, but stopped as she noticed a car approaching them from behind in the side mirror. Even though they were stopped, this person didn't seem to be slowing down. "SA—"

Crash!

The entire car jolted forward from the impact, the tires squealing as they skidded toward the curb. Violet crossed her arms over her face. She knew a collision like this would trigger the airbags. And it did.

Everything after this was a blur. Violet felt the airbag smack against her with great force, causing her forearm to violently collide with the bridge of her nose. It then fell into her lap as it deflated. She could just barely make out the sound of people shouting outside of the car. It sounded as though they were underwater. 

She slowly lowered her arms and looked around. Everyone was struggling against the slightly deflated airbags to get out of the car. The back windshield had been shattered, causing glass to rain over Larry, Ash, and Todd. The tiny shards were tangled in their hair and left tiny cuts scattered across their skin. There weren't any visible injuries on Sal, although his prosthetic was now crooked on his face. He was the first to worm his way out of the car.

Violet let her gaze shift to the crowd of people surrounding them. Many of them stood with their jaws on the ground and their eyes bulging out of their heads. Others had gone on to whisper amonst themselves while pointing at them. 

Her door flung open, causing her to look over. Sal stood there, his prosthetic now positioned properly over his face. The rest of the group hovered behind him. 

"Are you okay?" His muffled voice panicked as he reached across her to unbuckle her seatbelt. "I am so sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

The smell of cinnamon filled Violet's nose as he lifted her out of the vehicle. But it was mixed with something else. Something metallic. She assumed that something had leaked from the car until Ash gasped and pointed at her face. "Your nose!" She exclaimed.

Now, the conversations around them were growing louder, although she could still hardly hear them. Kids were now pointing at her with reactions similar to Ash's. She frowned and reached up to touch her nose. Her fingers came into contact with something wet: blood. 

Sal pulled the sleeve of his sweater over his hand and reached up, gently dabbing at her lips and chin. "I'm so sorry..." he muttered over and over. It seemed that no matter how many times he dabbed a spot clean, the heavy flow of blood pouring from her nostrils soiled it again.

"Ow!" Violet hissed as he grazed his thumb over the bridge of her nose. 

He quickly retracted his hand. "Sorry! I'm sorry. I-I think it's broke, Vi."

Suddenly, she noticed red and blue lights reflecting off of his prosthetic. 

The police were here.