While Mom’s reading, I decide to give Sunny a call and check in on her.
“Hey, Sun,” I say. “Another fabulous Sunny sleepover.”
“Totally. How’s the pharmacy today?”
I plop back down in one of the plastic chairs. I’m about to tell Sunny all about the Relaxation Room and my plans when I suddenly realize it’s too soon for that. I’m getting ahead of myself. “It’s slow. Listen, I’ve been reading some magazines. Some looooooove magazines. And I have some advice for you.”
“Lucy,” Sunny groans, half-laughing, half-annoyed. “What kind of magazines have you been reading?”
“Just, y’know, like women’s magazines, like Cosmo and stuff.” I reach into my pocket for a piece of strawberry gum. “And I was right—the key to landing a man is confidence.”
“Landing a man?” Sunny laughs again. “Lucy, we’re twelve, not fifty.”
“I know, I know.” I pop a bubble and the gum lands all over my face. It takes me a little while to get all of it off. “It’s just an expression.”
“Oh-kay.”
“So, yeah, you’re awesome. You should know that,” I tell Sunny. I hear my name from the office. “But I gotta go—my mom’s calling me. Talk to you later!”
“Lucy, you are my daughter, after all,” Mom says, coming out of the office to squeeze me in a tight hug. “I knew it. We’re cut from the same cloth. We have the same priorities.”
Okay, now she’s taking this too far.
“Mom, it’s just a good idea—that’s all.” I smile at her, pulling back from the hug. Strands of her blonde hair are stuck to my blue T-shirt. “It’s what we need. And the thing is, it won’t really cost the pharmacy anything. It’ll just add a level of ambience, like the article says,” I tell her.
Mom says, “Yup. And it stresses the importance of mental rest, breaks from this work-work-work lifestyle the world has placed on us.” She looks at me again, even more adoringly this time. “And we can take those denim couches out of the basement. I’ve been wanting to get rid of them anyway.”
“Genius! That solves the seating problem,” I tell her.
“Okay, go tell Grandma,” Mom says, walking away from me.
“No, you tell Grandma.”
Mom’s bouncing up and down on her toes, all perky, like a little girl. “Lucy, she’ll take it better from you. Trust me.”
I flip my hair over, trying to adjust my elastic headband. “Mom …”
“Lucy …”
I sigh. “Fine. You’re right. Grandma has a hard time saying no to me.”
Beauty tip: Laughter is good for the body and
the soul and also brings color to the cheeks.
She’s sitting behind the prescription counter, going through a stack of papers.
“Grandma, just take a break for one second. I want to tell you something.”
Finally she puts the stack of papers down, leans her elbows on it, and looks up at me. “Yes, my dear?”
I pull over a stool and sit next to her. “So you know I’ve been trying really hard to think of ways to improve the pharmacy and stuff?”
She nods.
“This morning I was reading through magazines, and one article gave me a really, really, really good idea.” I pause and smile at Grandma. “Ready?”
She nods again. Now she’s smiling.
“The section where we used to have the hunting supplies should be turned into a Relaxation Room! It’s already kind of blocked off, since you never liked hunting anyway. And it’s really not an expensive thing to do. And Mom said I could take the couches in the basement. And—”
“Lucy.” Grandma puts her hand on my shoulder. “Slow down. What exactly is a Relaxation Room?”
I try to slow down and explain it to her, emphasizing the fact that it won’t really cost anything. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Mom walking over to us. She’s carrying a brochure from her favorite magazine distributor.
“Luce, we need to subscribe to these Body & Wellness journals. They really focus on inner peace, relaxation, and stress-free living.” She looks up from the brochure. “I’ve been wanting to stock these forever, but now we have a real reason!”
Grandma gives me a look. “I thought it wasn’t going to cost us anything?”
“Well, I hadn’t thought of subscribing to those magazines, but it’s a really good idea because customers will feel even more relaxed reading that stuff.”
Grandma’s smiling again, and it’s good to know that she can’t resist my genius idea. It’s good to know that Mom supports it too.
“No candles, though,” Grandma says. “We can’t risk burning the store down for a few people’s feelings of calm.”
“Fine, fine,” I say. “Makes sense.”
“But we can have some calm, serene music playing,” Grandma says. “That’ll work.”
After Grandma okays the Relaxation Room, I head over to that space right away, just so that I can get a sense of how it should be organized.
“Um, Lucy?” I hear, and turn around.
Unfortunately, Erica Crane’s standing there, sifting through her Louis Vuitton bag. She swears it’s real, but I think it’s a fake.
“Isn’t it, like, illegal that your parents make you work here?” she asks. “’Cuz my uncle’s a lawyer, and he could totally report your family.”
I roll my eyes at her. “It’s not illegal, Erica. Thanks for your concern.”
“Hmm. I know what I’m talking about and—” Thankfully, her mother calls her from the front door of the pharmacy, saying she’s leaving. Erica doesn’t say good-bye, and I’m glad. I don’t want to hear another word.
I spend the rest of the day cleaning out the hunting section, getting rid of paper and other stuff that has been cluttering up the space. It feels so good to actually be doing something, not just hoping and praying that something will happen.
It’s the same feeling I got after I helped Courtney Adner for homecoming. And especially after she came back to tell me that I was her hero.
Maybe these things are pretty small, and they’re not making the pharmacy billions of dollars or anything. But they are helping people. And that’s what Grandma says is most important anyway.
When Grandma came to Old Mill Middle School last year for Professional Day, she gave the best speech. She told us why she became a pharmacist and why Grandpa became one too. She said it’s the best job, because it’s a way to be part of the community and to help people at the same time. I sat in the front row; Sunny sat next to me. And I was beaming, really and truly beaming. I was so proud of Grandma that day, but I guess I’m always proud of her. I’m proud of the way she helps people and loves it. And I’m really proud that even with business being bad, she’s happy every single day to go to work.
I hope I’m like that when I’m older and have a real job.
Business tip: Make sure you have an organized
filing system for bills and expenses.
I hear Grandma say, and I don’t like the sound of it.
Morrie is our accountant and financial adviser. He’s an old friend of Grandpa’s, and he’s been with the store since the beginning. Grandma believes everything he says, so when she gets stressed and worried, she calls him in for guidance. The past few times Morrie has been here, Grandma was in a really bad mood when he left.
“Hello, Lucy,” Morrie says when he gets to the office. “What’re you working on?”
“Oh, just playing online,” I say.
“Kids and the Internet, huh, Doris?” Morrie shakes his head. “My granddaughter Bevin spends hours and hours on the Internet, doing God knows what.”
“Morrie, sit,” Grandma says, pulling out a chair for him. “I need you to give it to me straight. Please, none of your fancy talk—‘if we do this, then maybe we can do that.’ None of that. I need to know where we stand.”
“Doris, I’ll just—”
“Don’t interrupt,” Grandma says, leaning back in her desk chair. “I pl
an to talk to Flo, and get some comps from her, and put the house on the market eventually.”
“All right, let’s look at the numbers,” Morrie says.
Grandma puts her hand on my shoulder. “Lucy, darling, can you fix up the skin-care aisle? It’s really looking terrible.”
It’s obvious Grandma is trying to find a reason to kick me out. “Sure,” I grumble.
“Jane, get in here,” Grandma calls from the office doorway as I’m on my way out. There are a few people in the Relaxation Room, but they don’t seem to be paying attention. I think they’re just killing time before their movie starts.
The skin-care stuff is already organized, so I walk over to the office and crouch down behind the prescription counter. It’s a good eavesdropping position; I can hear most everything, and no one can see me.
“Ma, can I talk to you for a second?” Mom asks before she walks into the office. “Alone?”
“Excuse me, Morrie.” Grandma walks outside the office and closes the door.
“I don’t want to talk to Morrie. He says the same thing every time. Gary this and Gary that. And I’m tired of him trying to set me up with his son,” Mom says. “We went out once, and he wasn’t my type. I wish he’d get over it!”
I’m kind of glad she says that. Because even though my dad moved to London when I was three years old and I only see him once a year now, my parents aren’t legally divorced; they’ve just been separated for a really long time.
Deep down, I hope they’ll get back together one day. I still have hope, because my dad still loves my mom. I know he does because he took her name when they got married instead of her taking his. That’s a big deal, I think.
“Jane,” Grandma says sharply, and I can see her shaking her head. “Get a grip. Morrie’s not here to set you up with Gary. He’s here to help us. What is wrong with you?”
“I’m just saying, Ma,” Mom whispers. “I really don’t—”
“Shhh! Shhh! Shhh!” Grandma shakes her head furiously and pulls Mom into the office.
“Sorry, Morrie,” Grandma says. “Please, go on.”
“First of all, looking toward the future a little, as far as I can tell, you’re not going to have the money to pay your taxes this year,” Morrie says. “And after I’ve accounted for everything, you probably won’t be able to afford the mortgage payments on the store. That refinancing really hurt you. The bills are going to be a struggle too.”
“So, you’re saying …” Mom’s voice trails off.
“Well, unless you win the lottery or inherit large sums of money from a mysterious relative,” Morrie says, “you’re really in danger. The pharmacy isn’t bringing in enough to support your lifestyle, let alone cover the store’s expenses.”
“But there are loans, aren’t there?” Mom asks. “I mean, just to get us back on our feet, maybe do some renovating?”
“Jane, I didn’t bring you in here for ideas. I brought you in here so you’ll know how grave the situation is,” Grandma says loudly, and I’m pretty sure the women in the Relaxation Room can hear her now. But when I turn to see, the women have left.
“Okay, let’s look at options,” Morrie says. Even through the door, I can hear the nervousness in his voice. “Dor, you mentioned selling the house? The home mortgage is completely paid off, so that’s a start.”
“Wait,” Mom says. “How much would we save if Claudia came home for a semester or two?”
There’s a moment of silence, and then Morrie says, “Well, not so much, considering you’re on a tuition payment plan and she has financial aid.”
“So selling the house, moving into the apartment upstairs?” Grandma asks. “That’s our best option, isn’t it?”
Again, there’s a break in the conversation. Finally, Morrie says, “Truthfully, it would be a Band-Aid on the situation. If things around here don’t improve businesswise, you’ll still run out of money eventually.”
“What are you saying, Morrie?” Grandma asks.
“Maybe think of some ways to expand the store. Think of possible markets you haven’t reached. People like to get many different items at one store, and you have the potential to offer that. You have a lot of unused space.”
“Morrie, please,” Grandma says, sounding more annoyed than before. “I don’t have the time or the energy for such radical ideas.”
No one says anything for a few seconds, and then Morrie says, “My son Gary’s been sitting on a pile of money, not enough to live on for the rest of his life, but enough for now, from when he won all that money at the casino last summer. I know he would love to invest in something.”
“Oh, Morrie,” Mom says. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
My mom is so freaked out about the possibility of getting forced to go on a date with Gary again. I wonder what happened when they did go out. It must have been really awful.
“Hmm.” Morrie clears his throat. “If Gary lent you the money, it would just be a type of loan, you know. And Dor, a new way to expand the store doesn’t have to be radical. It might be just waiting to present itself!”
Mom’s been suggesting a health-food section for years, so that could be an idea. That’s a way to expand. But would that really save the store?
I try to think of other ways we could expand, but it’s just a weird thing to think about. How do you expand a store that’s been around and been the same forever? We have the Relaxation Room, but it’s not like we can make money from offering people a place to relax. After thinking for a few minutes, all I can come up with is that the grocery store does DVD rentals now. Maybe we could do that too.
All in all, though, no idea I can come up with seems very good. And besides, it would take a lot to convince Grandma to try something new.
Things are even worse than I thought.
Beauty tip: Dabbing a little concealer under
your eyes will brighten up your face.
I’m telling Sunny more about all those landing-a-man articles I read. I’m determined to make her dream of Evan Mass a reality.
“Lucy, I really appreciate your help and everything, but the thing is, we’re talking about me here.” Sunny moves her chair closer to mine. “Let’s face it, guys like Evan go out with girls like Erica Crane. The nicest boys always go for the meanest girls. It’s just the way the world works.”
She looks across the cafeteria to where he’s sitting and then quickly looks away. That’s my cue to look over. We try not to make our spying obvious. Evan Mass has thick, black hair, and it’s pin straight. His eyes are blue, so blue they look almost fake, kind of like the blue part of a snow cone.
I look back at Sunny, lowering my eyes to give her a cold, hard stare. “Sunny, how do you know that?”
She shrugs. “I just do. Asha always tells me. It’s easy for us to like American guys, but they don’t always like us back.”
I can’t take much more of Sunny’s negative thinking and talking. It’s dumb, and it’s annoying, and if she actually does think like this, then I don’t need to listen to her going on and on about Evan Mass.
“We need a plan, Sunny,” I tell her. “Action. We need to think of stuff you can talk to him about at Earth Club.”
Sunny puts the back of her hand against my forehead and laughs. “Lucy Desberg, are you sick? What has gotten into you?”
I laugh too, but then I’m back to business. “C’mon, let’s make a plan.”
“Lucy,” she groans. “Seriously, it’s okay. Sometimes it’s fun just to think about him and stare at him across the cafeteria.”
I give her a look. “Really?” I pick a tater tot off of Sunny’s lunch tray and pop it into my mouth.
Sunny rolls her lips together and gives me a pathetic look. “Kinda.”
That’s one of the major differences between Sunny and me. We’re best friends and everything, but she likes to stay in dreamland, while I want to take a nonstop flight to reality and actually do something.
At Earth Club later, Sunny talks to
Evan less than she did last time. I don’t know how that’s even possible, but it’s true. I try to ignore how stupid she’s being and focus on actual environmental stuff, though, since I am stuck in the club.
At least we’re not collecting recyclables this time. Today we’re researching what it would take to make Old Mill Middle School a green school. From what I’m reading, going green can actually be really simple. Like, instead of carrying our dirty gym clothes home in plastic bags, we could bring in cloth bags and reuse them. That’s really easy! And every year at the Memorial Day Carnival, we could make sure that none of the kids let the balloons fly away. There are lots of little things like that.
“Since we’re just beginning our research today, it might be good to look at green businesses as well,” Mrs. Deleccio says to all of us. “Just to get an example of what all kinds of communities are doing. Think churches, apartment buildings, anything you can.”
After she says that, I remember Claudia telling me about that eco-spa she went to for her birthday. That’s the only green business I’ve ever heard of.
I wonder what kinds of green businesses there are in Connecticut, so I do a search and I find a Web site that lists all of the state’s green businesses. There are green car dealerships that sell only hybrids. And there are green bakeries that sell only organic baked goods and have cork flooring and recycled wallpaper. It’s kind of unbelievable that there are so many places like this out there, all of them doing their part to save the earth.
Then I do a search for green businesses nearby in Old Mill and Waterside and the surrounding towns. The first thing that comes up is our town Web site, OldMill.gov. I click on News from Mayor Danes, and a page with a letter from the mayor opens up.
I finish looking through the page with the grant information; it seems really complicated. Like, you need all of this financial information and a whole business proposal. That letter from Mayor Danes makes it sound easy, but it’s actually really hard.
“Lucy, did you hear me?”
I look up from the computer and see Sunny and Yamir standing over me. Is Earth Club over already? I didn’t even realize.
My Life in Pink & Green Page 5