Gregg’s buddy Tim was more serious and, according to Jana, more intelligent than Gregg was. He appeared easygoing because he dressed in loose shorts and old, beat-up sandals. Tim’s strawberry blond hair would be a lot curlier, Sierra decided, if he let it grow longer. But he kept it short and often hidden under a baseball cap, as it was right now.
“What did you find out?” Sierra asked, catching up to the two guys.
“We exchanged all four tickets at no charge,” Gregg said, “but the flight leaves later tonight. We won’t get to Kalispell until a little after midnight.”
“Does Jana know?” Sierra asked.
“No,” Gregg answered. “I happened to notice your skirt as we were going by, and since there probably weren’t two of those in the airport, I figured it was you.”
“There probably aren’t,” Sierra said brightly. She noted Gregg’s sarcasm, but it didn’t bother her.
“We better break the news to Jana,” Tim suggested. “It’s going to be a long day and night.”
“Unless,” Sierra said, grabbing both guys by the arm before they had a chance to walk away, “we make a little detour out of the airport. We could all pitch in for a cab and go to the mall for the day.”
“The Mall of America?” Tim asked.
Gregg’s eyes lit up. “Perfect! I like the way you think, Sierra.”
Sierra smiled. “Good. Now you get to convince Jana.”
2
ierra crawled into the backseat of the cab next to Gregg. She couldn’t believe the huge argument Jana and Gregg had gotten into when he told her they were going to the mall. At one point, Gregg said they would leave Jana at the airport and the three of them would go. That only made things worse. Then Sierra had told Jana to “lighten up” and “live a little,” but Jana became so mad her face turned red.
Sierra hadn’t realized how inflexible Jana was; this trip was turning out to reveal aspects of her that had remained hidden as long as they were safely tucked away in small-town Pineville.
Tim was the one who finally had convinced Jana to go. He had sat down next to her and had explained that the alternative would be to spend the whole day and half the night at the airport. Tim had suggested they call Jana’s parents. She liked that safety precaution. After Mr. and Mrs. Hill had given their blessing, along with a handful of cautions and instructions, Jana was willing to leave the airport.
Sierra thought Jana’s parents were more lenient than her parents would have been in the same situation. Although, if Sierra had been with her older brother, Wesley, she guessed her parents would have been fine with the arrangements. Wes had always been responsible, and Sierra imagined Gregg to be the same way.
Sierra considered calling her parents from the airport as the group made its plans. Her parents might appreciate knowing that she wouldn’t arrive in Montana as scheduled. However, her parents had left that morning with her younger brothers to drive up to Portland to see Granna Mae. They probably were still on the road. She decided she would rather call them tomorrow, after her parents had arrived at Granna Mae’s house, to let them know she was safely in Montana. Until she could make that claim, she didn’t want to call.
Not until the driver dropped them off at one of the many mall entrances did Sierra realize what a gigantic place they were about to enter. Even though they had a good eight hours before they had to be back at the airport, they wouldn’t be able to take in all this huge complex had to offer.
“We need a plan,” Jana said. “We need a meeting place in case we get lost.”
“Why don’t we just all stay together?” Sierra suggested. “Then we won’t have to worry.”
“I don’t know if the guys want to be with us the whole time,” Jana said.
“Like we have a choice,” Gregg said. “Don’t you remember that was one of the rules Mom laid down? I’m responsible for both of you the entire time. So come on; I don’t want to stand here wasting time. Let’s find those rides the taxi driver told us about.”
This was Sierra’s idea of fun—a spontaneous detour to a mall with an amusement park. Jana looked miserable. She kept glancing to the right and then to the left, as if someone were lurking in the shadows, ready to jump out and steal her backpack.
“What are you so nervous about?” Sierra asked her.
“I’m not nervous.”
“You’re acting nervous. Or scared or something.”
“I am not!” Jana snapped.
Sierra backed off. She fell into step with Gregg and let Jana walk with Tim.
“Don’t let her get to you,” Gregg said to Sierra. “She’s like that whenever she’s out of her comfort zone.”
I guess I haven’t seen Jana out of her comfort zone very often. This may be a more challenging weekend than I thought. What if she ends up being mad at me the whole time?
The four of them headed toward the complex’s center. As they rounded the corner, a wide, open area of the mall stretched out before them. Sierra stood next to Gregg at the railing and looked down one level to survey an entire amusement park with a roller coaster, log ride, Ferris wheel, food stands, trees, and at least half a dozen other rides.
“Look at that!” Sierra exclaimed. “It’s Disneyland in the middle of a mall.”
“It’s not Disneyland,” Tim corrected her, pointing to the right. “See the sign? It’s Nickelodeon Universe.”
Sierra laughed. “Come on. I have my camera. Let’s go take some pictures.”
“I don’t think so,” Jana said.
“Come on,” Gregg said, pulling his sister by the arm. “Lighten up and have some fun, will you?”
Jana glared at Gregg, as if to say, “You too?” She yanked her arm from his grasp and said, “Can’t we get something to drink first?” Jana cast a glance to Sierra. “I never got my lemonade.”
Sierra tried to brush off Jana’s biting words. Sierra’s sister, Tawni, acted the same way when she was out of her comfort zone. Sierra knew it was best not to react or it would only make the conflict grow.
“Okay, food and drinks first, then the roller coaster,” Sierra suggested.
“Not food,” Jana said. “Who wants to go on a roller coaster with a full stomach?”
“You decide, then,” Gregg challenged his sister. “What’s it going to be? Ride first or food first?”
Jana reluctantly gave into the consensus and headed toward the rides. She found a drinking fountain along the way and stopped for what Sierra thought was a dramatically long drink.
But then they were off. Tim figured out the ticket machine, and they each fed money into the slot at an alarmingly fast rate and then received in return a small ticket with a credited amount encoded on a thin magnetic strip.
“So much money,” Gregg remarked, “and all we get is this!”
“What should we go on first?” Sierra asked.
Tim made the decision; they headed for the Backyardigans Swing-Along. In the center of the ride was a huge tree with individual swings hanging from the ends of the reinforced limbs. Riders sat strapped in the seats, and the tree spun them in a great circle.
The four of them stood in line, watching as the centrifugal force pushed the riders away from the base of the tree and outward in a spin. Some riders made their swings twist and buck as they spun around. Sierra noticed that most of the riders were little kids, but she didn’t care. It looked like fun.
“Come on,” Sierra said to Jana when it was their turn to ride. “This should put you in a better mood.”
Jana turned to Sierra with a hurt look and said, “And what’s wrong with my mood?”
“You’re a little grumpy, that’s all.”
“I am not!” Jana snapped.
“Are you two going to stand there and fight or get on the ride?” Gregg asked.
Sierra and Jana stared at each other as people walked past them and scrambled to grab what could be considered the best seats on the ride.
“I’m not going on this ride,” Jana announced, walking to the
exit gate and leaving Sierra to stand there alone.
3
ierra’s feet dangled freely as the ride took off. She hated the way she felt. Part of her wanted to yell at Jana and tell her to grow up and stop being so stubborn. Another part of Sierra understood and felt a little compassion. She knew Jana was against this detour to the Mall of America, but did she have to ruin it for the rest of them?
As soon as the ride ended and they joined Jana, Gregg suggested, “Why don’t we buy something to eat?”
“Look, they have funnel cakes here,” Tim said, pointing to a small snack window.
“Funnel cakes?” Jana questioned. “They’re loaded with sugar, no doubt.”
“Should we find a restaurant?” Sierra suggested, trying to be diplomatic and not to be irritated with Jana.
They found a directory, and with more discussion than Sierra thought was necessary, finally agreed on where to eat. In Sierra’s opinion, they wasted nearly an hour of their limited time, sitting down to order and eat. As the others munched on a plate of nachos as an appetizer, Sierra consulted a brochure she had picked up at the directory and made suggestions of where they could go next.
By the time Jana had eaten half of her chicken Caesar salad, she was acting like a different person. When they hit the mall again, her attitude was much improved. Almost too much, because now Jana wanted to make the decisions.
“I think we should go shopping first and then go on more rides,” Jana said.
“I think we should use up the tickets first,” Gregg said. “They weren’t cheap.”
“I know, but we have plenty of time.” Jana looked more cheerful, but she also looked determined.
“What about you, Sierra?” Gregg asked.
“Log ride would be at the top of my list. But I can go along with what everyone else wants to do.” Sierra realized that growing up in a big family and not being the youngest certainly affected her attitude in situations like this. It was more important to be a team player than to get one’s own way.
“And what do you want, Tim? Shopping or log ride?” Gregg asked.
“Legoland,” Tim answered with a quiet smile.
“We have to all stick together,” Jana reminded them.
“But that doesn’t mean we have to do what you want to do the whole time.” The moment the words were out of her mouth, Sierra regretted them.
Jana looked hurt. “We’re not exactly doing what I want. I wanted to stay at the airport, where it was safe.”
“We’re here now,” Sierra said before Gregg had a chance to say anything. “Can you just make the best of it and not ruin the fun for everyone else?”
“How am I ruining everyone else’s fun? I’m not ruining anything! All I suggested is that we go shopping. After all, this is a mall, not just an amusement park. And shopping is fun.”
“Fine!” Gregg said, stepping in and showing by the tone of his voice that his patience had run out. “Let’s go shopping and stop wasting our time arguing about it.”
“Well,” Jana stammered in a calmer voice. “We can go on a ride first, if that’s what you guys want.”
Sierra closed her eyes and let out a frustrated huff. Why does everything have to be so complicated?
“How about this,” Gregg said, regaining the control of the situation. “Why don’t we go to Legoland first and then the log ride? That should use up all our tickets, and then we can go shopping.”
“Fine,” Sierra said.
“Fine,” Jana answered in a high-pitched voice.
“Legoland!” Tim said with a little-boy grin on his face. He began to tell them how Legoland would have been a dream come true to him ten years ago. He led the way into the maze of walls, tables, and castle arches all made of Legos. Half a dozen areas were set up in the corners where people of all ages sat making Lego creations. Tim immediately plopped down and finished a helicopter someone had left on the table.
“Can you make another one of those, only a little larger?” Sierra teased. “Then we can fly it to Montana.”
“Don’t laugh,” Gregg said, looking up at the large Lego airplanes strung overhead. “It’s probably been done. This is amazing. If I were six, I’d want to spend the whole day here.”
“Good thing you’re not six,” Jana muttered.
“I’m almost done,” Tim said, searching a mound of loose pieces. “Help me find a little red one shaped like this.” He held up a tiny, square, red bit of plastic. Sierra found the needed piece, and Tim snapped it into place.
“There,” he said. “What do you think?”
“A work of art,” Sierra said. She had to bite her lip to keep from adding, “And now can we go on the log ride?”
Tim smiled at Sierra. “I couldn’t have done it without you,” he said, playfully overdoing his admiration for her.
As Sierra glanced at Tim, she noticed he was still looking at her and smiling. Warmly. It was different than the way he had ever looked at her before.
Why is he looking at me like that? He and Gregg are both too old for me. Or I’m too young for them.
“Log ride,” Gregg reminded them. “You ready, Tim?”
Tim nodded. He seemed to be having a hard time walking away from his completed helicopter.
Sierra felt like laughing. None of her four brothers had ever expressed such loyalty to any of their Lego creations, at least not that she could remember.
Tim rose, and to Sierra’s surprise, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and said, “Thanks for finding the missing piece. You made my day.”
Sierra could feel her cheeks flush. She laughed and said, “Doesn’t take much to make your day, does it?” Sierra noticed that Jana wasn’t laughing.
“Can we go now?” Jana asked, stepping closer to Tim. He had taken his arm off Sierra’s shoulder, and now Jana stood right beside him. She cast a glance at Sierra that Sierra knew all too well. Jana had switched into her competitive mode.
What are you doing, Jana? Do you think Tim is showing interest in me so you have to step in and challenge my right to his attention? It’s not like that! Tim and Gregg are only “baby-sitting” us. I think. But what was Tim’s look about?
Jana moved closer to Tim as they walked to the line for the log ride. “This should be fun,” she said.
Tim gave her a startled look. Her sudden transformation from group grump to sweet flirt was a little too fast. He gave Jana a quick nod of agreement and echoed, “Yeah, it should be fun.” Then he caught up with Gregg’s long-legged strides and asked him if he still had the tickets.
“What are you doing?” Sierra asked, coming up beside Jana.
“I’m trying to relax and have fun. Isn’t that what everyone has been telling me to do?”
“Yes, but what’s with the flirting?” Sierra asked.
“I wasn’t flirting.”
“Jana,” Sierra paused, not sure what to say next. She felt like lecturing Jana the way Tawni often lectured Sierra, but she already knew from personal experience how much good that did. “Jana, he didn’t have his arm around me as a boyfriend thing.”
“I know.”
“This isn’t a sports event. It’s supposed to be vacation.”
“I know!” Jana looked at Sierra with exasperation. “I’m just trying to find my comfort zone, okay? Sorry if it seemed like I was competing with you.”
“That’s okay,” Sierra said. “I’ve just never seen you like this before. I don’t know what’s going on.”
“I don’t know what’s going on, either, and all this random stuff is driving me crazy.”
They stepped into line behind the guys at the log ride. “It’s fun,” Sierra said. “An adventure.”
“How can you enjoy this?” Jana asked. “You never know what’s going to happen next.”
“That’s what I like about it,” Sierra said.
Gregg elbowed Tim and motioned with his eyes for Tim to look at something to the left of them. Sierra kept talking to Jana but followed Tim’s and Gregg’
s line of sight.
Two girls who were probably close to Gregg and Tim’s age were standing there. They both had on shorts and were studying a map and then looking around. One of them pointed in the direction she apparently thought they should go. She had beautiful blond hair, and her legs were a dark, golden tan.
Sierra watched Gregg’s and Tim’s unsubtle glances at the girls and the guys’ elbowing each other. She felt sure that if Gregg and Tim weren’t “baby-sitting,” they would have left the line for the log ride to help the lost girls find their way around Nickelodeon Universe.
The girls took off, and Gregg turned his head, watching them go.
“Don’t strain your neck,” Sierra said sarcastically.
Gregg quickly looked at Sierra. He seemed surprised at having been caught. But then he bounced back with a tease for Sierra and said, “Be patient. One day that will be you, and you’ll be glad someone is watching.”
“What are you talking about?” Jana asked.
“Nothing,” Gregg said. He gave Sierra a smile, and with his expressive eyes warned her not to explain.
Sierra felt warmed. Gregg had just paid her a compliment. He thought one day she would be the kind of girl who turned heads. No one had ever hinted at such promise. It was always Tawni people raved about.
Sierra liked being away from her sister. She liked being around these older guys and being taken into their confidence in these odd little ways. She loved being on her own and having such freedom.
Jana nudged Sierra. “What were you guys talking about?”
Sierra leaned over and said quietly, “They were just looking at some girls.”
“You?” Jana asked.
“No, they weren’t looking at me. They were checking out some older girls that walked by. It was nothing.”
Jana seemed upset. “I think that is so rude. I can’t stand it when guys do that.”
“I know,” Sierra agreed. But she was thinking, Unless you’re the one they’re looking at.
Departures: Two Rediscovered Stories of Christy Miller and Sierra Jensen Page 9