I sat on the living room floor, watching as my parents ate their last slices of pizza. Mom daintily finished off her final bite, perfect white teeth flashing, then wiped the grease residue gently from her face with a napkin. At her look, Dad nodded his head quickly, shoved the last remnants of his slice into his mouth then wiped his hands on his pants.
I studied them, wondering how they fell in love when there was such a contrast between them. Mom was always so proper. Dad, on the other hand, had me wondering if he wasn't raised in the northern forests, surrounded by he-man lumberjacks who held daily snot rocket competitions.
Shaking my thoughts away, I put down my half eaten slice and leaned back against a box.
“So, as we were saying before, if you talk to the therapist, and I mean talk, then your mother and I will buy you a car. You'll be responsible for paying for the gas and insurance of course—'
“And it won't be anything new.”
“Unless your mother can 'talk' the salesman down.” He emphasized 'talk' in such a way that it made me wonder if Mom was secretly a prostitute or a master of torture. I hoped it was torture.
“But, it will be enough to give you the freedom that you've been wanting for the past year,” she continued. “It's a win-win situation Star, so please just think it over—”
“I mean, you really wouldn't want to have us drop you off everywhere, would you? We'd be sure to make every exchange as embarrassing as possible for you—”
“Your father doesn't mean that, we'd never do that to you. Well, he probably would, but I'd try my best to restrain him.” She finished with a shrug and a tight smile.
I was bemused. I wasn't even arguing, yet they were going on and on like they thought I would. They were right to assume as much, but they couldn't pick a better bribe than that of freedom. I held up my hand to stall their further arguments.
“You do realize that this is bribery, right? And with Dads threat it moves it up a notch to blackmail?” Mom cast her eyes downward while Dad turned a lovely shade of red.
“We don't like to look at it that way.” Mom said softly, still refusing to look at me.
“Of course you wouldn't. It's unseemly to be like normal parents and use guilt and coercion to get your bratty kid to straighten up.”
“Star, you're not a brat. You just have some issues.”
“Oh, issues. I see. Isn't that just a polite term for crazy?” I asked Dad with a raised brow.
Seeing the amused gleam in my eyes, Dad jumped right into the fun. “You know, you may be right.”
Mom paled visibly. “Of course that's not what I meant! I'd never— Star, you're not—” she trailed off and waved her hands helplessly, her mouth opening and closing but nothing was coming out.
I took mercy on her and motioned for her to stop. “Well, since you put it that way— Okay.”
“Seriously?” Dad asked.
“Yup. You used the one thing I couldn't turn down. Doesn't mean I'm happy about it.”
“You're not going to wail about it? Give us a lecture about the injustice of it all and how we're just determined to throw you into an asylum with all the other crazies? Are you sure you don't want to— oomph!” Dad rubbed his ribs while Mom sat with an innocent look on her face like she didn't just elbow him.
“This is great, pumpkin! You'll see that it won't be as bad as you're imagining.” Her obvious delight was bubbling over, causing a blinding smile to spread across her face.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. You're happy, I'll be happy, it's the right thing to do. Now, let's get down to the good part. When do we go car shopping?”
“Well, we can go out tomorrow after we unpack some, then afterward you can check out the town, look for potential job opportunities.” Mom was beaming at me like I was the best thing since sliced bread.
“They’ll work.” I stood up and stretched. “I'll leave you guys to your bubble of happiness. Night.” Giving them a small wave, I headed toward my room
I sighed as I looked at my own oasis of solitude. Maybe they were right. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.
Chapter Four
I jerked awake as an insistent shrilling noise blared beside my head. I searched for my phone, my ears demanded that I shut it up. Or destroy it. Either one would do. I gave the offending piece of technology an icy glare when I finally found it. “Well, I'm awake now you piece of—”
“Star, honey! It's time to wake up!” Mom's shout shook me out of my death stare. I yawned and stretched cat-like across my bed, feeling soothed by the morning rays warmly caressing my sleepy body. A smile spread across my face as I thought about our car shopping today, but my smile faded as I thought about job hunting. I wasn't a snob and didn't have any aversions to working. I just wasn't looking forward to working whatever type of job a small town like this had to offer. It definitely didn't rank high on my list of happy thoughts. With that little kernel of misery added to the million already residing in my mind, I braced myself for what lay ahead.
Mom was manning the stove when I walked in, which was never a good thing. I cringed as I smelled the first whiff of burnt bacon. I hoped there would at least something edible. Ah ha! Toast! Sauntering up to the island, I hopped up to sit on top of the granite. Grabbing a piece of toast, I frowned when I noticed the toast was almost completely black. I sighed, dropping the toast back onto the plate, staring in surprise when it made an audible bang.
“Oh, there you are honey. Go ahead and fix yourself a plate, I'm just finishing up the bacon.” She motioned with the spatula toward the array of burnt food.
“Mom, you love me, right?” I began swinging my legs back and forth while giving her my best pleading look.
Turning around, she leaned against the stove, disregarding the smoke rising behind her. “Of course I do. Why would you ask that Star?”
“Well, are you trying to poison me?”
“Of course not! What gave you that ridiculous idea?”
“It's simple really, you're cooking.”
“Hey now, I know I'm not the best cook, but it won't kill you to eat anything!”
I smirked as I lifted up the piece of toast and held it out toward her. “Seriously?” Dropping it to the floor the 'toast' shattered, wicked looking shards skating across the tile. I grinned at my mother's look of horror. She couldn't cook to save her life, but I always loved the fact that she tried so hard to create a home cooked meal. It was sweet, if dangerous.
“Valid point. Breakfast menu at McDonald's or breakfast at a local cafe? She turned off the burner and threw the pan dejectedly into the sink.
“McDonald's!” Dad yelled, startling both of us. I grinned as I turned to look at the doorway where my father was standing. “You were waiting for that this whole time, weren't you? No, don't you dare give me that look! I know what you're up to Mr.” I snorted as mom shook the spatula threateningly at him.
“Are spatulas considered a deadly weapon?” He asked me while eying mom with trepidation.
I hid my smile and turned toward mom. “Depends on the thrust and trajectory I suppose.”
“Well, I guess the food wasn't meant to kill us after all, just debilitate us long enough to where she could finish the job herself.” He moved quickly out of the way as the spatula hit right where his head was.
“I'll show you assault with a deadly weapon! Paul, get your butt back here!” I burst out laughing as mom untied her apron and chased after him.
“Now children, no fighting” I yelled after them. I stopped short and looked away in embarrassment as I witnessed Dad bending Mom over his arm and kissing her senseless. “Jesus H! Mom, Dad, do I need to have 'the talk' with you? Please keep the PDA down to a minimum!”
Laughing, they broke apart, both flushed and looking at one another with eyes shining with love.
“You can look now Star, we're not making kissy faces anymore, although I don't know why you're complaining when you tripped all over yourself because of the pizza guy. Literally.” Dad said as he helped Mom into her
light jacket.
“Ugh! Seriously, can we just forget about that?”
“Um, no. We haven't seen that much grace from you in a while.”
I punched him in the arm as I stalked past them. “You're just jealous because you don't have my mad ninja skills. When a murderous talking pizza tries to kill you like in the movie House IV, you'll wish you had me around to destroy it. With my face!” I turned around and gestured to my face while walking backwards.
“Oh yes, I'll be sure to call the president about your cute weapon of mass destruction.” I swatted his hand away as he pinched my cheek.
I rolled my eyes as Mom waved us into the car. Climbing into the back seat, I gazed at the tree line. “You know, if the house wasn't so awesome there's no way in hell you could convince me to live near all these trees.”
“God Star, please tell me we're not back on the mutant mountain freaks thing again.” Mom said with a sigh.
“Just saying.” I cast a wide-eyed look her way. With a warning glare, Mom turned back around. Plugging my earphones in, I ignored my parents and twirled my hair around my fingers. Resigning myself to the long drive into town with thoughts of mutant mountain men and serial killers keeping me company.
“I still can't believe they have a McDonald’s here.” I said sipping my Mocha with a sigh of pleasure.
“Not an isolated wilderness as you first thought?” Mom said with a laugh.
I shrugged, returning to my thoughts and coffee. We quickly made our way to the only car dealership in Shiloh. I didn't know what to expect and doubted there would be anything I'd like. More than likely I'd be stuck with a supped up monster truck. Why couldn't we have gone to a larger city? Oh yeah, that's right. Because my parents were all about 'helping' me. Oh the joy.
Not wanting to see what the lot had to offer, I kept my eyes to the ground, lost in thoughts about serial killers chasing after me in giant trucks.
I freaked out when a hand grasped my shoulder. I quickly grabbed a hold of it and moved behind the offender, the momentum causing him to drop to his knees with his arm hooked behind his back at a painful angle. “What the hell!” he yelled. Seeing he was a car dealer and not a serial killer, I quickly dropped his hand and covered my mouth, moving away from him in total mortification.
“I'm so sorry!” I squeaked out from behind my hands as my parents rushed to his side to help him up. What a great day, I've already added assault onto my 'accomplished' list.
The man stood up and glared at me as he wiped the dirt from his knees. “What in the hell was that for?” His voice was thick with a southern twang.
“I'm so very sorry Mr.—” Mom quickly intercepted, trailing off as she looked at his name tag. “Mr. Billy Jo.” Her glare quickly cut off both my father's and my startled laughter. “My daughter was surprised that is all. We're from Los Angeles so she's had to learn how to protect herself.”
Billy Jo gave me a quick once over and nodded his assent of the apology. “All right. Well what can I do for y'all today?”
“We're looking for a dependable car for our daughter. Something that has good gas mileage but can handle itself in the Virginia weather.” She flashed a mega-watt smile his way.
By the way his eyes were slightly glaze as he looked at Mom I could tell he was stunned. I bet she could make a killing as a hypnotist. She could probably get him to bark like a dog. For the life of me I could never figure out how with just a smile and bat of her lashes, Mom got the complete attention of any male within the vicinity. I looked over at Dad to gauge his reaction, but he just gave me a small smirk and a wink.
“Dad, doesn't it bother you that mom's handling the whole car buying thing? Isn't that like against the male prerogative or something?” I asked him as we followed behind Mom and Billy Jo.
He watched as Mom worked Billy Jo over, a small smile on his face. “No, it really doesn't. Don't get me wrong, I'm all about the 'he man, she woman' thing sometimes, but just watch and learn. You're Mom's the best at convincing people her thoughts were their ideas all along.”
Stopping a short distance behind them, I watched in fascination as Mom smiled, looked at Billy Jo through under her eyelashes, and gave off the perfect impression of a helpless female. I could almost feel the testosterone level in Billy Jo building up. She had him wrapped around her little finger.
She laid her hand gently on Billy Jo's forearm. “Is this safe?”
He scratched his head while looking at the SUV in question. “Well ma'am, that there is a Chevy Equinox. It's got four wheel drive, which is good for when it gets snowy and the like. Plus, there's plenty of airbags and the brakes on it are top of the line.”
“That sounds wonderful. You must know a lot about cars.” I swore if his chest puffed up anymore it would pop. Manly pride was a killer. “Star, darling, why don't you come over here and look at this nice vehicle.” I was so focused on watching mom work Billy Jo over that I failed to pay attention to the car they were talking about. I headed over, dreading what she had picked out. It was perfect. Smooth lines swept along the length of it, giving it a feeling of beauty as well as dependability. The deep metallic black practically gleamed in the sunlight.
“Wow.” I couldn't help but stare. I walked forward and placed my hands gently on the driver side window, looking into the interior.
“Now, if ya want a different color, I'm sure we can order one for ya. Maybe a nice blue or silver. Something light that y’all girly types like.”
I paused, mentally calculating how much he must know about fashion and figured he was a complete idiot. My ensemble was anything but girly. I didn't even own anything girly. Today I wore tight black acid washed jeans, a hot pink tank top with an off the shoulder black half tee on top and my knee high boots. It was not girly. I rolled my eyes and composed my face into a serious mask. “I like black. It's dark, just like my soul.”
Mom stared at me in disbelief. I smirked and turned back to the vehicle. It wasn't my fault that hillbilly had no sense of humor. I ignored Mom's airy laugh as she tried to make up for my sarcasm.
“Now, how much does this beauty cost?”
“Well.... The base price for it is eighteen thousand...” Billy Jo started to say.
I looked over my shoulder at the sound of Mom's gasp. She was standing with her hand over her heart. Her wide eyes looking like weeping pools of amethyst.
“That's just the asking price!” he sputtered out quickly. “Since this isn't the latest edition, and we've been needin' to get it off the lot since the best sellers are trucks and the like. And since y’all are so nice and just moved here and everything, I can offer it to ya at… Twelve thousand!”
I was shocked, even with the best arguments, I didn't think they'd be able to get the price down below sixteen, but Mom went and dropped it by six grand just by looking like a wounded deer. I definitely needed to learn that. I shook my head, hoping to snap my mind out of its stupor.
“That's perfect! Paul, you can take it over from here.” She smiled in triumph as she walked over to me. My eyes moved between her and Billy Jo, amused at his stunned reaction.
“Mom, you're my hero.”
“I'll teach you the tricks of the trade later. Oh, and Billy Jo?” She called over her shoulder, cranking up the volume of her smile again, “Would you be a dear and get the keys for Starlette? She'll be walking around this lovely town while my husband and I fill out all the necessary paperwork. I don't want her to have to wait around for us when there are plenty of other activities that she could be enjoying.”
I watched as he jumped to do her bidding, quickly walking over to the key box, unlocked it and dug around for the SUV's keys and grabbed a temporary plate. He barely paid me a second glance as he handed them over, his attention once again focused on Mom as he was attaching the plate to the SUV. The sound of Dad clearing his throat jerked him back to the present. With a sheepish smile he began herding Dad into the office. Staring after them, I watched as Dad turned around and gave me a knowing wink.
>
With a quick hug, Mom trailed after her husband and the smitten car dealer. “Be home by dinner!” she called over her shoulder. Staring after my parents, I couldn't quite comprehend the scene she was just privy too. I shook my head and smiled brightly as I turned toward my new car. I couldn't believe it was mine! I let out a happy sigh as I started it up, sending a happy beep of goodbye as I drove away. I was determined to keep the day as upbeat as possible.
Chapter Five
Heading toward the historic downtown area, I breathed the new car smell deeply into my lungs. I couldn't erase the large, cheesy smile that continued to stay plastered on my face. Looking for a parking spot, I smoothly parallel parked in front of a hunting store. Jumping out of the car, I quickly hit the power locks, and made my way down the bricked sidewalk. Glancing over my shoulder to look at my car, I prayed no one would be stupid enough to either bump into it or scratch it. That's all I needed, having something happen to it on the day of purchase. Mom and Dad would love me for that.
With my head held high, I walked down the street, looking from shop to shop for something that would peak my interest. 'Hunting... fishing... general store... shoe repair... seriously, doesn't this town have something worthwhile?' At the end of the block, I noticed The Nook was still bustling with people. Curious, I dashed across the street and stepped inside the store. My eyes widened as I took in shelf after shelf of books.
The Nook was filled with natural light from the wall of windows. Against the left side was a little café selling different types of coffee concoctions as well as pastries. I took in a healthy sniff of the caffeine flavored air, still catching the musty scent of old and new books underneath the pleasing aroma from the little café.
Walking slowly around, I scoped out the book section. Little reading nooks were scattered throughout the store, offering a comfy place to relax and read. Must be where the name came from. Toward the back, a spiral staircase led up to the second floor. Before I could proceed further, a girl about my age stepped in front of me.
The Prophecy ds-1 Page 4
