by Laurel Veil
“An orphanage tour—how can I possibly say no?”
She giggled as I entered her number into my cell.
“Today!” snapped her manager.
“See ya!” she yelled.
“Bye.”
I couldn’t believe what had just happened. I was usually a loner, but Toni had to be about the easiest-going person I’d ever met. I had a pretty good feeling, too, that with her, what you saw was what you got. I didn’t sense anything fake about her, unlike some of the girls I’d tried, unsuccessfully, to be friends with at school.
* * *
I drove a little under the speed limit while I listened to my GPS guide me to my aunt and uncle’s. I made a few turns and then entered their neighborhood. Colorful, petite houses lined the streets. I was pleasantly surprised when I turned right, and the trees thinned, and I could see the ocean. The voice on the speaker told me to stop in front of a beach house. I knew they had moved to another house within the neighborhood, but I didn’t know their new house was on the beach.
I doubled-checked the address before I got too excited. Yes! This was it. Hesitantly, I eased out of my Jeep. With every step, I began to regret my decision to come. I barely remembered them. What if I couldn’t stand them? I suddenly felt so homesick, I considered jumping back in my vehicle and leaving. Homesick. H-o-m-e-s-i-c-k. Homesick. I stopped and took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Was I insane? This place was beautiful. Everything was going to be OK.
Just then, a woman with brown, sun-streaked hair waved at me from the balcony.
“Ronnie, is that you?” She said as she came down the steps.
“Aunt Pam! I didn’t recognize you from way up there.” As she came closer and her face came into focus, my memory suddenly flooded with thoughts of us building sand castles and having picnics on the beach. I remembered her kind eyes and how friendly she’d been.
She threw her arms around me and squeezed tightly. “Let me take a look at you,” she said as she pushed me away. “Oh, my goodness, you are simply beautiful.” She gently grabbed a handful of my hair. “With all these long blond curls, you’ll fit in just fine around here. Where are your things?” She peered around me.
“I don’t have much.” I stepped back toward my Jeep and took out my duffle bag.
“You travel light for a girl. I like that.” She smiled.
I shaded my eyes from the sun as I gazed up at their beach house. “I love your home, Aunt Pam. What a great place to get to spend my summer!” I smiled.
“Oh, that’s our place, hon. You’re more than welcome up there, but that’s your place over there.” She motioned with a nod of her head.
My place? Her words rang in my ears. Did I hear her correctly? A much smaller version of their beach house sat off to the side and back a little way, closer to the water.
“I hope you won’t mind being by yourself over there.”
“Are you kidding me? This—is—awesome!” I couldn’t control my smile as I admired my new home.
She laughed. “That’s what I thought you’d say.”
Aunt Pam explained why she and my Uncle Bill had moved as we walked up the wooden steps to the little beach house where I’d be staying. “We got this property from my parents. They’re both still around but these stairs are too much for them now. They still live here, in Light House Cove—they just switched houses with me and Uncle Bill.”
She pointed. “That’s obviously the main house there. They built this place a little later to rent out to tourists during the summer for extra income. Bill and I will eventually do the same after we get it fixed up. We were actually hoping you could help us with that.”
“Sure!” I said enthusiastically.
She pulled a key from her pocket and unlocked the door.
“Be warned. It’s not fancy and like I said, it needs work.” She opened the door and let me pass.
With wide eyes, I looked around. It was completely empty, which was fine by me. That meant I wouldn’t have to sort through anything or haul any stuff down the stairs. There were windows everywhere, and French doors on the back wall opened up to a deck that wrapped completely around the house. A tiny kitchen was on the left and a cozy den to the right. I peeked through a door down a short hallway and saw a tiny bathroom with a bedroom next to it.
“The roof and the deck are new. We would like you to put a coat of waterproofing sealant on the deck and stairs to protect them. You ever do anything like that before?”
“I’m a fast learner.”
Aunt Pam smiled at my answer.
“It’s easy. You just brush it on like paint. And speaking of paint… we wanted a new coat on the inside. The outside was just done, right before we added the new deck and staircase.”
“I painted mine and Dad’s house.”
“That’s what your dad said. He said you did a really good job, too. Anyway, it will probably be young people who want to rent this place, so we were thinking… You’re young—who better to decorate it? We thought we could give you a small budget and you could hit some flea markets around here.”
“I don’t know how good of an interior decorator I am, Aunt Pam, but I would love to try.”
“That’s the spirit! So, I put a couple sleeping bags, blankets and pillows over there for you.” She pointed to a corner in the den. “You can sleep in here or out back on the deck. There’s some lounge chairs out there that would make a nice bed. I put a few groceries and things you might need in the kitchen, soap, dishes, utensils, small appliances. And some toiletries in the bathroom—you know, the basics. Oh, and next to the hall closet is a utility room, so you can do your laundry. You’ll see the detergent and fabric softener on the shelf.”
“Thanks for everything, Aunt Pam. I can’t wait to get started!”
“You just got here. Take a minute to get settled.” She looked at her watch. “Bill should be home from the station in about an hour. I know he’s dying to see you.”
She started to go and then turned back. “Oh, that reminds me. There’re some kids in the neighborhood he’s going to ask to help you. I think he’s hoping to keep them busy and out of trouble.” She laughed. “Anyway, he said if they accepted the job offer he would bring them by and introduce them to you today.”
“Sounds good,” I lied, and watched my aunt walk back to her house.
Great. Everything had been going so perfectly, and now this. I hated working with people. The only time I ever did was when I was forced to in school. And, it was always the same—I did all the work, and everyone shared the credit.
I hoped Uncle Bill wasn’t going to bring over a group of girls. That never turned out well for me. I’d never quite fit in with any clique at school. My dad worried it was because of my broken relationship with my mother. I just thought it was because I couldn’t stand drama, drill team or cheerleading. I’d learned that having no friend was better than having a bad one. And reading a good book was a better way to spend my time. I was never even embarrassed to go to the theater alone.
I took my bag to the bedroom. There were hangers in the closet, so I took everything out but my socks and undergarments, and hung them before they could get too wrinkled. I placed my extra shoes on the floor and closed the door, then turned on the ceiling fans and bumped the thermostat down, just enough to kick on the air. My very own place. I couldn’t believe my luck!
I stepped out onto the balcony and lay back in a lounge chair. As the wind tossed my hair around, I decided I was definitely going to be sleeping out here tonight.
I must have dozed off, because I was startled awake by someone calling my name.
“Ronnie! Hey, Ronnie!”
I looked down to see Toni, from earlier today, stepping out of my uncle’s squad car and waving up at me.
“I can’t believe you’re Officer Bill’s niece! He just asked me to help you out this summer! I told The Lunch Box sayonara.”
My uncle Bill closed his car door and waved at me too. He looked a lot like my dad, only y
ounger. I went downstairs to greet them.
“Ronnie! How are ya?” he asked.
“Fine!” I said as he gave me a big hug.
“So, Toni here was just filling me in. I hear you two met earlier today.”
“Yeah, at The Lunch Box. I stopped there when I first got here.”
“Well, she lives here in Lighthouse Cove and I asked her to give you a hand.”
“Great!” I said, but this time I meant it.
We all turned to look when a car pulled into the drive.
“Oh good, the others are here now,” said Bill.
My stomach twisted in a knot as I watched two guys and a girl get out.
“Officer Easton. What up, sir?” said the biggest one. His auburn hair was buzzed off, making his face look a little pudgier than what it actually was. He shook hands with my uncle and then looked at me.
“And you must be his lovely niece.”
“Ronnie.” I smiled as he took my hand. I thought he was going to shake it, but he kissed it instead.
My uncle pushed him back playfully. “Yeah, okay. Enough of that, Jimmy.”
Jimmy laughed and then turned to Toni. “Hi there.” He grinned before kissing her hand as well.
I thought she was going to turn purple before she quit blushing.
“This is Jade,” said my uncle.
Jade had black, shoulder-length hair and she looked annoyed.
“Hi,” I said.
“Hey,” she mumbled without making eye contact.
“I’m Dane,” said the other guy in a low voice.
That was when I really noticed him—his dark, wavy hair, broad shoulders and chocolate eyes.
“Hi.” I smiled.
Jade took a step toward him. I think she was claiming her territory. Me-ow. Could she get any more catty? Her green eyes even resembled a feline. I knew at that moment the two of us weren’t going to be touring orphanages together anytime soon. Dane was definitely good looking, and he seemed nice, but birds of a feather. If someone like Jade could be his girlfriend, he must be a real jerk. I liked Jimmy, though.
“If it’s OK with you, Ronnie, we’ll go on up now and I’ll explain what needs to be done.”
I nodded and we all followed my uncle. He gave us all the same rundown Aunt Pam had given me earlier.
Toni whispered, “I can’t believe you have your own Jeep and your own place.” We giggled with excitement. This really would be a fun summer after all.
* * *
“If you guys could get started on the deck tomorrow, that would be great,” said Uncle Bill.
Before everyone left, we agreed to meet around ten.
Toni stayed behind to visit. “Jimmy is so cute,” she said, all smiles, when we were finally alone. “I recognize them all from school, but we don’t hang out.” She paused just long enough to take a breath. “Did you see the way he kissed my hand? Do you think he likes me?”
“Definitely.” I smiled.
We stepped out onto the back deck, then each sat in a lounge chair and listened to the waves as they rolled in.
“I could get used to this,” I said.
“No kidding,” Toni agreed. She bolted up. “Hey, we should go to the boardwalk tonight! We could grab a bite and they have rides on the pier and—”
“You don’t have to convince me. I’m in.”
We vegged for a while longer and then Toni left to get ready.
“I’ll be back soon,” she said excitedly.
“I can pick you up, if—”
But she was already bouncing down the stairs.
3.
The Boardwalk
I threw on some shorts and a cute top, made sure my nails weren’t chipped and slipped on my sparkly flip-flops.
Toni knocked and let herself in just as I finished fluffing my hair and adding a quick coat of lip gloss.
“You look cute,” I told Toni. She and I were dressed similarly, but her thick brown hair was pulled back in a fat French braid.
“Thanks.” She smiled.
I grabbed my keys from the kitchen counter and gave them a little jingle. “Ready?” I asked.
Toni squealed and softly clapped her hands while bouncing on the balls of her feet. “I can’t believe you can drive. And you have a Jeep! This—is—so—awesome!”
Driving was still pretty exciting for me too. “Let’s go!” I smiled.
* * *
A thin, pale crescent moon was already starting to show itself in the clear sky. It was going to be a beautiful night, so we rode with the windows down.
The traffic was a little heavy, but we managed to find a place to park. Soon we were flowing with the current of pedestrians. The sun was about to set, and it made the sky the color of cotton candy. It was a beautiful backdrop for the lights of the giant Ferris wheel. It was so tall, it made my stomach tickle just looking up at it.
“We’ll have to ride it,” said Toni when she saw me looking.
As anxious as it made me feel, I wanted to ride it too. “Definitely,” I agreed.
Noisy games, buzzers and bells filled the air, along with the smell of popcorn. And, lively music pumped through speakers tethered to poles high above us.
“Whatta ya want to do first?” I asked, not sure which way we should turn.
“Come on!” Toni grabbed my hand and pulled. We didn’t stop until we were standing in front of a huge funhouse.
“I don’t know,” I whined a little. I hated funhouses. They creeped me out. Whenever I walked through them, I got the same feeling as when I’d toured Thorton Mansion.
“Oh, come on,” she coaxed. “Don’t be such a chicken. I’ll buy. Besides,” she whispered, “Merv looks lonely.” She laughed.
“Four bucks,” said the attendant. He wore a blue shirt with his name, Merv, embroidered on the white tag just above his pocket, and he looked in desperate need of a shave and shampooing.
He smiled at me. “Have fun, darlin’.” He was missing more teeth than I’d first realized, and his breath smelled like the smoking section in an Applebee’s. He took hold of my elbow to help me as I took the first of three steps into the funhouse.
I didn’t want to smile and encourage him, but I didn’t want to make him angry either, so I settled for a quick grin and said, “That’s okay. I got it.”
“You sure do.” He looked me up and down. I wanted to jerk my elbow away and jam it in his eye.
“Ew,” whispered Toni. “Someone likes you.”
“What’s taking so long?” someone called out from behind us.
I had been so preoccupied with Merv the Perv, I hadn’t noticed the line forming.
Just then, Toni’s face lit up. “Hey!” she beamed.
It was Jimmy, with Jade and Dane in tow.
Merv took their money and stepped aside.
“Oh good,” Toni said, “Now we don’t have to go alone.”
Yay.
“You aren’t scared, are ya?” Jimmy asked Toni.
Toni glanced at me and then looked back at Jimmy. She bit her bottom lip. “Well… maybe just a little.”
Oh, brother. She has it bad.
“Are you gonna move or just stand there all night?”
hissed Jade.
Without apologizing, I quickly stepped to the side and let her pass.
“Don’t let her bother you,” Dane said, then shrugged. “It’s just how she is. You know what I mean?”
“Sure,” I said. Enabler. E-n-a-b-l-e-r. Enabler.
“It’s kinda like how some people are just naturally nice... but the opposite.”
A lopsided grin touched his lips. I rolled my eyes and walked away. “Wait up,” I called to Toni.
We laughed as we made our way in and out of dark rooms and through a maze of mirrors.
Dane chuckled when he saw all our reflections side by side, as we huddled up in front of a long mirror. “We’re like the gang on Scooby Doo,” he said.
“Zoinks!” said Jimmy. “I’m like Shaggy, man.”
<
br /> “I’m Daphne,” Jade said, admiring herself.
“I guess I’m Velma,” said Toni.
Jade laughed. “More like the Mystery Machine.”
“You are so rude,” I snapped.
