Life In The Gumball Machine – Vinnie And Gordy’s Return
Page 20
The cloth dropped and he grunted as he stood. His footsteps got quiet as he walked out the door and headed down the hall.
“Fine,” I said to no one. I stared at the box spring for a while and said goodbye to all of my imaginary friends. Then, I rolled out and used the mattress to help me up.
My stomach was growling. I hurried downstairs hoping for something good for dinner. At the bottom of the stairs, it hit me—the smell of roast and potatoes. I turned the sharp right and skipped down the hall to the kitchen. Roast always makes me skip to the kitchen.
I shouted to the room, “Roast! My favorite!”
The table was set and Mom was at the stove, dishing stuff onto our plates. Mason bumped me as I walked to my seat at the table.
“Knock it off Mason. Mom!”
She didn’t even turn around. I think she’s so tired of our arguing that she just tunes us out.
As I sat down, Dad walked in the back door. He usually works until just before dinner, but sometimes he comes home much later and Mom has to fix him a plate after we’re already upstairs getting ready for bed. But not tonight.
“Hi, Dad.”
“Hi Tilly,” he said. His eyes looked tired, but he was smiling. He kissed Mom on the cheek and they gave each other that gushy look. When I grow up, I’m never doing that.
Mom took his briefcase. “Go change,” she said. “Dinner is just about ready.”
“Get everyone else started,” he said. “I’ll be back in a minute.”
Dad left the kitchen to change while Mom served us our dinner. Finally, mine was put in front of me. Sometimes Mom is so slow when I’m hungry. I had my fork ready and dug right in.
“Make sure you eat your beans, everybody.” Mom gave me this long look and then said, “And that means you too, Cooper. Remember, green beans make our tummies happy. Isn’t that right Tilly?”
I nodded and picked up a bean and showed Cooper how much I love green beans. I didn’t really love them. She’s been saying that thing about the happy tummies for as long as I can remember. I used to believe her and eat all of the green beans on my plate. I mean, who wouldn’t want a happy tummy, right? But, I never really noticed anything happier about my tummy after eating them, so now, I don’t really believe they make my tummy happy.
I always sit next to my little brother, Cooper. He’s six. He has red hair and freckles just like Mason and me. Most of the time, Cooper is awesome. He tells the funniest, silliest stories. He’s always talking. He never stops. Sometimes, Mom has to remind him to quit talking and take a bite of food. He’s a little bit shorter than me, and his red hair is almost brown. Mom keeps it cut real short. He doesn’t have blue eyes like Mason and me. He has brown eyes, like my mom.
Dad sat down but said he had to eat fast and get on a phone call for work. He was already out of the kitchen by the time I finished eating. I pushed my chair back, stood and headed toward the living room, but Mom stopped me.
“Excuse me, young lady.” Her arms were on her hips and her eyes got all squinty like they do when she’s cranky. I’m pretty sure she uses that look to remind me who’s in charge. “Where do you think you’re going? Get back here and help your brother with the dishes.”
I did my best whining, hoping to get out of it. “But Mom—you told me to do my homework. That’s what I’m going to do.”
Mason stomped his feet, just like a two-year-old. “Mom! Tell her she has to help me.”
Mom shook her head and her voice made that certain sound. It was that yelling sound even though she wasn’t yelling. Her lips tightened and she bit her teeth together—real tight.
“I mean it, Tilly. Get back here and help Mason.”
I don’t know why I’m so snotty to her. I can’t help it sometimes. But when she makes that sound and does that thing with her eyes, I do what she says.
“Fine.”
I stomped back to the kitchen table to start clearing. That’s my job. I clear the table and bring the dishes to the sink while Mason washes them. Some stuff goes in the dishwasher, but I have to dry the big stuff, like the pots.
After a while, Mom came back into the kitchen. “I have to run to the store. I’ll be back later. Cooper’s watching TV.” Then she turned to me and glared. “And stop your huffing and puffing Tilly. I mean it. I’m fed up with your attitude.”
“What? I didn’t do anything!”
She was almost at the back door, but then she stopped and looked at me again. “And take out that bag of trash. Honestly, Tilly. How many times do I have to ask?”
I wanted to say something snotty, but Mom was pretty mad, so I kept my mouth shut. After she left, Mason started bumping into me—hard, so I shoved him. Then we started pushing each other and shouting until Dad came in and yelled at us to keep it down or we’d both be grounded. We stopped for a bit, but Mason gave me one last shove into the kitchen counter before he ran toward the door, yelling.
“Hey, Tilly—don’t forget to take out that trash!” Then he laughed and pointed at me. He’s so irritating!
I looked at the trash. The big, black bag was tied up—just sitting there—like it was waiting for me.
Ugh! Just get it over with.
I grabbed it and dragged it to the back door and out onto the porch.
What’s in here, bricks or something? Why does Mom always have to fill it with so much stuff?
Once I pulled it near the edge of the stairs, I kicked it and watched as it rolled down the steps. The noise it made was pretty loud.
Whoops!
I ran down the steps. It was a little chilly out and I only had on shorts and a t-shirt. I should have thrown on a sweater. It was getting dark outside, but I could see that there was a pretty big hole in the bag.
Uh-oh.
I dragged it across the backyard, trying not to stretch that hole any bigger. When I got to the dumpster, I bent over to check it out. It looked the same, so that was good. It was too heavy for me to lift, and Dad said it was okay to leave it on the ground. So that’s what I did. I dragged it a little further, and then left it.
Pee-yoo. That dumpster sure was stinky!
I was glad that was finished. I was about to turn and go back into the house when I saw some movement out of the corner of my eye. Across the backyard fence and down a few houses, I saw a girl from my school sitting with her dog. It was dark and she looked like a shadow, but I knew it was her. She was new to the neighborhood. She and her family had moved in a couple of months ago. She’s in my homeroom class, but I don’t know what her name is. Mom keeps bugging me to go over and introduce myself—but I don’t really want to.
“She’s too quiet,” I said. “She acts like she doesn’t want to talk to anyone at school. No—wait. I mean she doesn’t talk to anyone at school.”
Mom shook her head. “She’s just like you, Tilly. You’re shy. She’s shy. You two would make the perfect pair.”
Mom’s right lots of times, I guess.
From where I stood in the backyard, it looked like the new girl’s black hair was cut short, but then she turned her head and I saw that it was in a ponytail. She’s a little shorter and chubbier than me, but that’s not why I don’t want to talk to her. She’s just too quiet. She seems boring.
I was staring at her when I heard a voice.
“You should go over and talk to her.”
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Thanks for reading the sample! I hope you enjoyed it. You can find the book online at many of the top retail locations.
Search for: Tilly’s Top-Secret Trapdoor
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Thanks for reading Life In The Gumball Machine – Vinnie and Gordy’s Return. I hope you enjoyed it! I appreciate your feedback. While it’s fresh on your mind, I hope you’ll write a review and let me know what you think!
~ Maureen Bartone ~
Other books by Maureen Bartone:
Life in the Gumball Machine
Tilly’s Top-Secret Trapdoor
National Indie Excelle
nce Awards® FINALIST
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Maureen Bartone is a National Indie Excellence Awards® FINALIST. She lives in the Twin Cities, Minnesota, with her husband, Geno. Together, they have three children, and two grandsons. Her favorite things are family, music, writing, dancing, and laughing, but especially being a wife, mother, and grandmother.
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