July (The Year of The Change Book 1) (38 page)

She pushed me up the stairs. "Nobody is worse than my brothers."

I giggled. “I haven’t decided where to put any of my furniture.” I rushed up the steps hoping to tidy something before Destiny entered. She was quick.

"Wow!" Her jaw dropped. Her forward momentum took her almost to my bed. "This room is huge!" She rotated in place twice before her eyes stopped bulging. "Oh, what I wouldn't give to have this room."

I hadn't had my own room since I lived with my grandparents and I'd never had anything that someone else would want. I liked the feeling.

She flopped on my bed. “You know, if we turned your bed just a little bit, so it’s lined up better with the walls…” She looked around, judging distance. “Your bed would be perfect right here, in the middle of the room.”

I scrunched up my nose as I studied the idea in my head. I could feel my face relax as the idea settled in and took hold. “What a cool idea.” I looked around, ideas whizzed through my brain.

We moved the bed, centering it under the bare bulb hanging from a rafter. Destiny suggested hanging material from the ceiling to drape down and behind the high headboard. I envisioned a curtain rod on either side of the center ceiling beam where the bare bulb hung from. It would take a lot of material, however, the effect would be a really cool. Maybe I would like the same thing at the foot board as well. It would be like having the canopy bed I'd always wanted.

We pulled the two small tables out from under the eaves and cleaned them up. Though not in good shape, they fit nicely on either side of my bed as night stands for my lamp and clock to sit on.

Another hour was spent unpacking boxes and telling each other about ourselves. It turned out Destiny’s a year younger and a sophomore this year. I probably wouldn’t have her in any of my junior classes, unless she was an egghead. Knowing someone on campus would make the transition so much easier. Maybe we would get to eat lunch together.

By the time we unpacked the last box, I was ready to get outside and do something else. Maybe it was the fresh air that called me to play in the sunshine. I missed the outdoors.

Destiny dusted her hands. "This room looks pretty good, if I do say so myself." She turned in a slow circle, nodding her head. "I think we've done as much as we can today. You want to come to my house? I'll show you my interior design magazines so you can get some ideas."

"That sounds great." I cleared it with Sue before we escaped to Destiny's multi colored house across the yard.

Someone had done a lot of work to restore her Victorian with ornate gingerbread trim. She told me her grandmother, who had lived in the house for twenty years, was the one who had the exterior painted so many different colors. Each color accented a different ornate feature. I adored how her house stood out and looked so alive with personality. Sue would never think of such a thing, let alone allow it to be done. It stood out way too much and
‘What would the neighbors think?’
she would rant.

Destiny opened their front door and a whole other world materialized. The smell of homemade bread baking wafted out and tugged at my stomach to come in. A round table with a large bouquet of aromatic blooms placed perfectly atop an ornate doily delighted the eye. A mammoth coat rack, complete with bench, took up most of one wall and a tapestry of three women in a garden covered the other. Bright, cheery yellow shown all around, glowing with the reflected sunshine. Somewhere down the hall lively classical music played, mixed with the sounds of a TV just off the entry.

In the living room, their giant TV played cartoons or an animated movie. I couldn’t tell which. Destiny’s little brother, eleven-year-old Eddy, lay on the floor with his head propped in his hand, dark hair curled around his rugby collar. In a large overstuffed chair was her big brother, eighteen-year-old Richard, who was partially hidden in the sports section of the newspaper.

Dad and he will get along great.

When Destiny introduced them. Eddy barely acknowledged there were humans in his vicinity. Richard did a double take and smiled.

When I said Richard was her big brother, I meant
BIG
brother. Wide, muscular shoulders with matching arms were barely contained by his football jersey. He had to be well over six and a half feet tall the way his legs stretched away from the chair. Not even Dad took up that much room when he was lounging. I’d always wanted a big brother and I could really use a strong one right now. He seemed nice and once again I felt a little envious of Destiny. Too bad I couldn't adopt him. Don’t get me wrong, Tim is great. The problem is I’m always worried he could get hurt. Now, Richard, on the other hand, would be the one doing the hurting. Unfortunately, it won't take him long before he becomes affected and I’d have to avoid him.

Sigh. I followed Destiny down the hall to see their kitchen, which was the personification of the creative cook. All the tools for making a great meal were out and at hand. Pots hung from a rack above the enormous gas stove. Utensils hung on the walls and all the cupboard doors had windows so you could see the colorful dishes stacked neatly inside. It could have been a professional’s kitchen as well stocked as it was. This was Gram’s favorite room on steroids. I stood in awe for a few moments before Cara walked in with a basket full of veggies from their garden. She smiled and I remembered to close my mouth.

"Wow, you have a great kitchen. Someday I want one just like this." Truly, this was the heart of their home where a lot of love was manifested in the food they prepared.

Cara smiled as she placed her basket next to the sink. "Thank you, Sylvia. I can't take credit for it though. This is Emma's domain that she shares with everyone."

Destiny filled a small plate with cinnamon rolls from the cooling rack and dragged me away. "Come on. The kitchen's great but my room is better."

Destiny wasn't exaggerating. Her room had the best light of the whole house. Through two tall windows, the rising morning sun shone in its glory.

"Great light." I went to the window and peered down. My drab monster loomed across the yard.

"I get direct sunlight in here all winter, which warms the room. The warmth is great except on Saturday when I want to sleep in."

Against one wall, her double canopy bed stood. A beautiful oil painting of mountains hung over the carved head-board. Two different night stands on either side looked like they were made to complement each other.

Gently, I ran a finger over the shiny, deep brown surface of the closest one. “What beautiful wood.”

“Yeah, I like my tables, even though they aren’t matched. I got them at two different flea markets.”

“I’ve always wanted to go to a flea market." Oklahoma has its fair share, unfortunately, Sue always turns her nose up at used ‘junk’.

"Oh, they’re tons of fun! The treasures you can find are amazing." She plopped on her bed.

I sat on the edge and let my eyes meander around, taking in all the light and decorations. "There are so many things I haven't done yet." I just hoped I would survive this year so I would have the chance to experience life.

"I'll find out when the next flea market is and you can come with us."

"Really? Thanks, I’d like that." I thought a moment as I looked around again, something was missing. "Hey, you don't have a dresser."

“My closet was so big we just built in drawers so I have more room around my bed. Richard did most of the carpentry, but Grandmother helped him.”
She has a big brother that can also build things, wow!

"I thought about putting my dresser in the closet. I just hate not having it to fill space."

"Well, in your room I can definitely see that. Don't worry about the space, minimalism is in right now."

I laughed. "Okay, if you say so."

A nice, well used keyboard was stationed between the tall windows. Sheets of music were stacked neatly on a small table to the right. A very complicated looking piece sat in the keyboard’s music stand.

I strode over to finger the keys. I wasn’t musical. I could sing okay, but after trying to learn the violin for two long years Sue told me I was tone deaf so I gave it up. "How long have you played?"

"I started taking lessons when I was eight but I wasn't very serious about it until we moved here. Grandmother convinced me knowing how to play will be very advantageous." She giggled. "In other words, it will be attractive to the guys.” She bounced her eye brows. "Do you play?"

I felt the blush rush in. "No, Sue says I don't have an ear for music."

"Oh, that's too bad. Do you like music?"

"I love music, especially the oldies."

"Oldies, like Back Street Boys?"

I snorted. "Older. I like Three Dog Night, Janice Joplin and the Osmond Brothers. Three Dog Night's my favorite."

"Who?" Her blank expression told me I would have to educate her.

"I'll show you the next time you're over."

"Okay." She didn't look too excited.

In one corner, a coat-stand overflowed with an odd assortment of hats and feather boas. I figured these were the perfect accessories for the diva in Destiny. In the other corner, sat a pink winged back chair with a purple quilt draped over the arm.

"Your room is so feminine and pulled together. I know my room will never look this good. I'll take any decorating tips you have to offer."

She perked right up. "Really? I have a ton of ideas."

We discussed some of her wilder ideas. At least I was hoping they were the wilder ones. I may have to rein her in. I had no doubt we could be good friends … until The Change messed things up.

She had an impressive collection of teen magazines and mystery novelettes. I leaned more towards mysteries than air brushed guys. I didn't mind looking and discussing the finer points of her ‘guy of the day’, though.

A quiet voice came from beside her door. “Destiny, dear, would you bring Sylvia up to visit? I’ve made morning tea and have rolls.”

I looked around and wondered if Destiny heard what I did. I wouldn’t put it past The Change to add voices to my oddity. My stomach heard rolls and woke with a growl. Destiny laughed as I grabbed my stomach and tried to quiet it.

She put her magazine down. "We'll be right up, Grandmother."

There was a soft click and I looked around for where it came from.

"That's our intercom. Grandmother had it installed after we moved in so she didn't have to walk all over the house to find someone. She doesn't approve of people yelling."

"We could sure use an intercom. Sue doesn't approve of yelling, either. She has the twins to run up the stairs." I laughed. "Although, they usually yell through the house until they find me."

"Yeah, the intercom is convenient, but there are times when I don't want to be found. My grandmother has an uncanny way of knowing which room I'm in." She shook her head as she put her magazines away.

"Yeah, there are times when I don't want to be found, too." Sigh. "It's better to be found than forgotten."

Destiny laughed as she led us from her room. I forced a smile. There were too many times when I'd been forgotten for my statement to be funny.

Destiny knocked on the attic door and Emma’s friendly voice answered.

“Come in.”

Destiny opened the door and we entered another era. The immaculate antiques crowding the room softened the edges of the massive space. Gram and Aunt Betty would’ve loved this room.

There were twinkle lights everywhere on the slopped ceilings which made it looked like a starry sky. I was enthralled. Twinkle lights would be perfect for my room and wondered if Sue would let me. Hmmm ….

Emma motioned us to join her at a small table by the window facing the front yard. "Come in, come in. Thank you for coming to keep an old woman company."

This must be where she was sitting the first day we were here. I imagined she watched all the comings and goings of her small family from that very window. She didn’t seem nearly as spooky now.

"Thank you for inviting me." My stomach rumbled, it wanted sweet rolls … now. I blushed at its brashness.

Emma’s lips curled slightly. "It is always good to get to know your neighbors." She uncovered an ornate tray with rolls and folded the cloth napkin before she neatly removed the plate of goodies from the sideboard and placed it in the middle of the table.

The small table where Emma sat was covered with a crocheted table cloth, so intricately stitched that no machine copy could ever compare with this kind of art. The curved leg, that I stubbed my toe on, looked to be mahogany. On top sat a teapot with red roses, three teacups all with different colored roses, and a matching sugar and creamer. The plate of cinnamon rolls and a plate of biscuits with jam rounded off the setting. My stomach drooled.

Emma sat in the farthest chair with the window behind her. “Sit down and I will pour the tea. I chose chamomile, I hope you like it, Sylvia, and I know Destiny does.”

I shrugged as I sat. “I don’t know. I’ve never had it before.” I thought a moment. “I don’t know that I’ve ever had anything, but the regular kind.” And that had been the traditional, southern iced tea that my Gram always served to guests and at dinner time.

Emma's brows rose as she turned her attention to the pretty teapot. "Oh, my. You have never tasted other teas?"

I shook my head. "No, ma'am. To be truthful, I didn't know there were other kinds."

Emma handed me a steaming cup. "There is a whole world of different teas."

Destiny took the cup offered her. "Grandmother blends her own teas."

The food wasn't being offered quickly enough and my stomach reminded everyone it was waiting. The heat in my face went up a couple of degrees and I slumped in my chair.

Emma picked up the plate of biscuits and held it out to me. "Sylvia, we shall educate your pallet. There is great joy in discovering new things." She smiled over the bowl of strawberry jam she offered me.

I sipped the tea, blanching at the bitterness. Emma scooted the sugar bowl in front of me and Destiny placed the creamer next to it.

It was fun to talk about Talkeetna. Emma knew everyone and everything that went on. She’s not a gossiper, but everything else she was willing to discuss. So we did. I got the complete run down of everything that happens and who all the neighbors are. She kept refilling my plate whenever it looked like it might become empty. I had to slow my intake so that I didn’t end up scarfing everything in sight.

She slipped a roll on my plate and took a biscuit for herself. "You have plenty of time to learn about Talkeetna. Would you please tell us about Oklahoma? I would love to hear about your friends and family."

The way she settled her gaze intently on me, I felt as though she really meant it. Tears prickled my eyes as she reminded me of my own grandmother, the only other adult who always gave me her complete attention.

I took a deep, steadying breath as I willed the tears to recede. “Our old house may have been small, but most of my memories are there.” There, I could still feel Gram.

With reluctance I admitted to them, with our new house painted and fixed inside, it wasn’t as bad as I’d first thought. The outside was still horrible, though. “Our house in Oklahoma had been plain and looked just like all the other houses in our subdivision. All our neighbors worked outside the home, both parents. It takes thirty minutes by bus to get to school and we lived a lot closer than we do here. The mall is fairly near our house and the water park isn’t too far away. They have the cutest lifeguards there.”

Destiny perked up. “I wish Talkeetna had a pool.”

I was sure she actually wished that Talkeetna had cute lifeguards.

The conversation slid around to family and I told them how Sue was my stepmother. And then, how Tim and Tam were hers by her first husband who died in a car accident when they were just babies. A drunk driver t-boned him on his way home from work and he died before they could get him out. Emma looked sad and tsk’d a lot. When I told about Gram my voice caught and I found it difficult to go on.

Emma leaned across the table, patted my hand and offered me another roll. “You miss her a lot, do you not?” She had an unusual way of talking.

I took the roll and just looked at it. “Yeah, she was everything to me. She and Gramps were the best.” A tear escaped and I wiped it away as fast as I could.

“Did she live near you in Oklahoma?” Destiny asked.

“No, she lived with my aunt Pauline and her family in Austin, Texas. When Gramps was alive, I went to live with them outside of Houston. I was eight and stayed until I was almost ten.” I missed that old musty house with no central air. I’d missed it since the day they’d taken me away from it. “Before Gram died, she told me I was special and that this year would bring great changes.” I smiled. Not telling about The Change had become an art form. “I was really counting on Gram to get me through this year.” I looked down at my tea cup and added. “You know, school and boys, and all that.” I took a bite of the roll and chewed slowly.

Emma gave a knowing smile. “Any time you need some Gram time, you come see me and I would be honored to stand in for her.” She squeezed my hand.

I squeezed hers back. “Thanks, I’ll remember that. You might get a little tired of seeing me, though.” That was, if I really took her up on her offer.

“I doubt that.” Her crinkly eyes shone in the light and looked as though she meant what she said.

Emma’s intercom crackled to life. “Grandmother?” It was Richard. “Tam is here for Sylvia. It’s their dinner time. Oh, speaking of dinner, are you going to toss the salad or do you trust me with that enormous task?”

Emma laughed to herself. “Where did the afternoon go? You know you are with good friends when the time flies by.” She smiled as she turned to me. “Richard seems to think the salad tastes better when I toss it.” She got up as we did and walked over to the intercom. “Richard, darling, I will be down shortly.” She turned to me and put her hand on my back. “Sylvia, I am so glad you and your family moved in next door. That house has been sad and lonely for far too long and I am sure that we will all be very good friends. I am serious about you coming over any time you want. Okay?” She hugged my waist.

I put an arm around Emma’s aged and surprisingly strong shoulders. “Thank you, I just might take you up on that.” Might, being the operative word.

We walked down to the first floor where Tam was watching TV with Eddy.

“Okay, Tam, I’m ready to go.”

My little sister glanced at me and back to the TV. It was a movie she’d wanted to see before we left Oklahoma.

“Come on, Tam, we don’t want to keep Mom waiting.”

Richard walked in. “You can borrow the movie any time.” He looked even bigger standing and I took an involuntary step back.

I forced a smile. “Thanks, Richard.” I tapped Tam on the shoe to get up. With Richard in the room, I was anxious to be gone before he started showing signs of being affected.

Richard snickered. “Looks like Tam has the same problem Eddy does.” He walked over and scooped her up off the floor.

“Hey!” Tam’s eyes went wide.

Richard walked to the entryway. “Where would you like me to throw her?”

I opened the door. “Ah, just throw her across the yard. I’ll pick her up when I get there.”

He stepped out with Tam clinging to his neck.

“No!” Tam clung tighter. “Don’t throw me!”

It took all my willpower to not burst out laughing.

Richard smiled at her. “Then where would you like me to put you?”

Tam smiled as she must’ve realized we were kidding. “Put me on my porch.”

“Okay.” Richard walked over to our yard.

I caught up, concerned how badly he’d been affected. “You don’t have to take her all the way to the porch. We can walk from here.

Tam frowned at me. “Speak for yourself.”

Dimples appeared in his cheeks. “I don’t mind.” He deposited her on the porch and Tam ran into the house and yelled for her mom. I hoped Sue wouldn’t get mad over Richard carrying her home.

Fear crept over me. I
turned toward him, held my breath and waited for Richard to get slap-happy.

“See ya later.” Richard turned and walked to his house without a glance back.

“Thank you, Richard.” Step by step, I inched toward my front door, never taking my eyes off him as I waited for it to hit him.

He waved over his shoulder. Huh, he didn’t seem muddled at all. Maybe he had a lot of self-control. That sure was a welcome change.

I went inside knowing I would go back to the Peterson’s to see my new friend Destiny, and her sweet BIG brother, that I hoped could keep his control, and of course, her wonderful grandmother. What would it be liked to tell Emma everything? To have someone to talk to about all this craziness would be the best thing ever. Of course, Emma could never be told anything. Dad was great, but sometimes I really needed a woman to talk to about the boys and all the feelings that overwhelmed me. I could just imagine how my dad would handle emotional stuff. It was best not to cause him ulcers. If my biological mother had stuck around, I could’ve talked to her about everything.

It won’t be too bad living in this neighborhood. I had one friend, maybe two, if Richard could keep from getting slap-happy. I chuckled to myself, yeah, right.

When I walked in with my stomach growling, dinner was on the table. Dad carried in black eyed peas and chuckled. He thought it was funny how loud my stomach had become. It was embarrassing. To Sue’s consternation, there was nothing I could do about it.

After blessing, Dad announced that he was getting a company computer so he could work from home. His old computer would become the family computer. My ears perked up.

Tim’s eyes brightened. “Can I have the family computer?”

“Your mom and I have discussed it and decided Sylvia should get it so she can do her homework.”

They would do anything to get me to have better grades. Unfortunately, I needed more brains, not more RAM. At any rate I would get my own computer.

Tim glowered at me and I ignored him. I’m the oldest, it’s my right. “Will it be connected to the internet?” That was the most important thing.

“Yes, as soon as we get DSL. Until then, only minimum time on in the evenings.”

I smiled at them. “Okay, thanks, now I can … study more.” I was thrilled.

Poor Tim looked like someone just kicked his puppy. I would need to find some way to make it up to him.

Dad swallowed. “If you want, after dinner, we can take everything upstairs and set it up.”

“That would be great. I owe Donny an email."

Dad raised his eyebrows at me. My father always did that when I mentioned Donny, even though he knew we were only friends.

Donny has been my buddy since I was eleven. He showed up after Christmas vacation in my fifth grade class. He was a little older and the other kids avoided him. They thought he was standoffish. He was just shy. I remembered the first day clearly. This tall, skinny kid with straight, brown hair, that needed a cut, walked in with the principal. His jeans were short and frayed holes showed his knobby knees. He kept his head down and never looked up.

The teacher introduced him and sent him to sit next to me in the back. I’d thought that the back of the room was where all new kids sat. Actually, it was where the tall kids were put. Donny and I were the tallest. I’d been new at the beginning of the year and remembered how hard it’d been and introduced myself. He barely looked at me, out of the corner of his eye. As the days went on and I kept talking to him, he begun to look at me when I jabbered on. He slowly went from one word answers to full sentences. By the end of the school year we were best buds.

It turned out he and his parents had been homeless for a year and he’d missed too much school. He had to repeat fifth grade while all of his friends were in sixth. When we met, his dad had just landed a good job and found an apartment with help from their church. It took a while before they could afford new clothes and Dony had out grown everything quickly.

When the other boys teased him about his clothes Donny got them back on the playground. Most kids would’ve fought, not Donny. He just made sure he was the best at all the games. He became so good all the other boys wanted him on their team. By then, they didn’t care what his clothes looked like.