A New Attitude

by Charlotte Hughes

  “I’m replacing them anyway,” Marilee told him.

  Sam looked relieved. “Come take a look at Josh’s room.”

  She followed Sam through the house. She paused in the kitchen, where she found Lori using some kind of steam device to remove the old wallpaper. “The paper has already been stripped from the bathrooms, and I’ve got a man prepping the walls now. Lori should be able to start putting up the new stuff in the morning. I think you should let the men go ahead and paint the whole house, Marilee. May as well get it all done while they’re here. Lori recommended a soft beige.”

  Marilee nodded dumbly as she followed Sam upstairs. He opened the door to Josh’s room, where she found the room, including the trim, already painted. “Oh my,” she said.

  “I think it turned out well,” Sam said. “Come look what we’re doing to the nursery.”

  “Sam, I wasn’t expecting all this,” she said.

  “I wanted to do it for you, Marilee. I know how excited you are about Josh coming home.”

  The room that was to be the nursery had been papered in clouds, and Marilee could not hide her surprise. “Has Winnie seen this?” she asked.

  “Not yet,” Sam said. “I don’t want her to see it until it’s finished.”

  Marilee stepped inside the room. A man was at work nailing a cabinet to the wall next to a set of shelves. “Oh, Sam, she’s going to love it.” Marilee turned to him, and her eyes glistened. “I don’t know what to say, except thank you.” She hugged him, and he held her for a long moment.

  ON SUNDAY, WINNIE INSISTED on seeing the house, which had been painted and papered throughout. A proud Marilee personally escorted her to the nursery and opened the door. The girl gasped. “Is this for the baby?” she asked.

  “Yes. All we need is a crib. I know you’re going to keep her in the bassinet in your room in the beginning, so we have plenty of time to find one.” Marilee paused when she spied tears streaming down the girl’s cheek. “You’re crying, Winnie.”

  “Nobody has never done anything this nice for me,” the girl said. “Nobody. I am just beside myself.”

  Marilee put her arms around her. “I’d say it’s about time somebody did something nice for you.”

  “I have to call Clara and Ruby. Oh, and Mike.”

  “Mike?”

  Winnie looked slightly embarrassed. “He called me a few times while I was staying next door. He has the day off. We’re going out for burgers.”

  “Well, well—”

  “Don’t give me that look. We’re just friends.”

  “Go ahead and call,” Marilee said. “I’d better get downstairs. I have cakes in the oven.”

  “More cakes?”

  “Yes. Good thing my mother’s old freezer in the garage still works.”

  Clara and Ruby arrived first. There was much oohing and aahing over the place as Winnie led them through the house. When they joined Marilee downstairs, she was in the process of putting two pecan pies in the oven.

  “How many pies and cakes have you baked so far?” Clara asked.

  Marilee shrugged. “I’ve lost count. I bake every time I have a few minutes on my hands.”

  “Don’t knock yourself out,” Ruby said. “We’ve got women all over town baking.”

  “Not as good as mine,” she replied.

  The doorbell rang, and Winnie hurried off to answer it. Mike came into the room, smiling shyly. “Your place looks real nice, Mrs. Abernathy,” he said.

  “Call me Marilee.”

  “Let’s go upstairs,” Winnie said. “You have to see the nursery.”

  “Mind if I call Nell over?” Clara asked. “We need to have a brief meeting.”

  Marilee shrugged. “As long as I can keep doing what I’m doing.”

  Nell arrived a few minutes later. She had already toured the house with Sam and was delighted to see Winnie so pleased with the nursery. “I just knew she’d love it.”

  “Okay, let’s get started with the meeting,” Clara said. “I have a lunch appointment.”

  Ruby and Marilee exchanged looks but didn’t say anything. Marilee noticed Clara was wearing makeup.

  “I’m thinking we should hold the bazaar two weeks from now,” she said. “Saturday, November seventh. Everybody’s going to be concentrating on Halloween this coming Saturday, and I’m afraid we’ll be pushed for time.” She glanced at Ruby. “The VFW hall has been gracious enough to allow us to hold the bazaar inside in case the weather turns bad. They’ve also agreed to run a concession stand and cook hamburgers and hot dogs out back.”

  “We already have donations pouring in like crazy,” Ruby said, “thanks to Clara’s friend at the Gazette. And Della Framer has been more than generous. Thank goodness you ran into her.”

  “Speaking of the Gazette, Janie is going to write an article early next week and give us a free advertisement,” Clara said.

  “L&M Printing called yesterday,” Marilee told them. “We have about a thousand flyers.”

  Clara sighed her relief. “Things are finally beginning to happen.”

  Nell ran through her list. “The ladies from my church have agreed to help. I’ve assigned someone to the hospitality booth, handcrafts and quilts, the good junk, as we call it, and the toys and games. We thought it would be a good idea to have something for the children. Which reminds me, they’re lending us their dunking booth—and someone to man it.” The girls chuckled at this.

  She paused and scanned her list. “I figured Marilee and another lady from my church could take care of the baked goods, and Clara might enjoy running the books and magazines table, since she knows more about that than anyone else.”

  Clara nodded. “I’ll be happy to.”

  “Ruby, would you be interested in handling records, cassette tapes and videos?”

  “Sure.”

  Nell looked up. “What do you think?”

  Clara and Ruby stared at the woman. Marilee had paused in her work to stare, too.

  “Is anything wrong?” Nell asked. Her face reddened. “Perhaps I shouldn’t have just assumed everyone would want to take on the tasks I assigned them.”

  “Oh, no, that’s not a problem at all,” Ruby said. “It’s just—” She looked at Clara and Marilee and saw her amazement mirrored in their expressions. “When did you have time to do all this?”

  “I worked on it all last week,” Nell said. “And since Winnie’s been helping out, I’ve had even more time on my hands the past few days.”

  “You’ve gotten more done in the past couple of weeks than we’ve managed to do in months,” Marilee pointed out.

  Nell blushed. “I don’t work full-time like the rest of you, remember? Besides, I’ve done this sort of thing all my life.”

  Clara sat up straight in her chair and smacked a book with her gavel. She beamed. “Looks like we’ve got ourselves a bazaar, ladies!” She smiled prettily as she packed her folders away. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to be somewhere.” She almost slammed into Winnie and Mike as they exited the stairs.

  “Where’s Clara going in such a hurry?” Winnie asked. “Is her house on fire?”

  Ruby made a production of zipping her lip.

  GRADY PULLED INTO MARILEE’S DRIVEWAY Monday evening, but neither he nor Josh got out of the car right away. Marilee peered at them from behind the curtain, wishing her son would hurry and get out of the car. Should she go out to meet him? she wondered.

  “What’s taking so long?” Clara whispered, glimpsing a look over Marilee’s shoulder.

  “I suppose that good-for-nothing Grady is giving Josh one of those father-son talks,” Ruby said. “Like how to protect yourself against genital herpes.”

  “I still don’t think this surprise party is a good idea,” Winnie muttered.

  “Why not, dear?” Nell asked. “Marilee wants to make her son feel welcome.”

  “The kid is dealing with a lot right now,” Winnie replied. “He might be embarrassed with all the attention.”

 
Marilee wondered if the surprise party would indeed be too much for her son. Josh had always been on the shy side. He might very well take one look at the women and run right back to his father’s car.

  It was too late to worry about that now, though. Everything was in place. The house had been decorated with Welcome Home, Josh signs, streamers and balloons. Snacks and a large cake that Marilee had baked waited on the table. “I hope we’re not making a mistake,” she said.

  Grady and Josh climbed from the car. The boy followed his father to the trunk, and they pulled out several suitcases and boxes. Marilee closed her eyes and gave a silent word of thanks. Looked as if Josh planned on staying awhile. He and Grady carried the items to the front porch. His father gave him a brief hug before climbing into the car and pulling away.

  The doorbell rang, and Marilee froze on the spot.

  “Don’t just stand there,” Winnie hissed. “Open the door!”

  Taking a deep breath, Marilee walked over and opened it. Josh stepped into the room holding two of his suitcases.

  “Surprise!” the women shouted at the top of their lungs.

  Josh simply stood there, blinking in confusion.

  Marilee knew instantly she’d made the wrong decision. “Hello, Son. The girls and I wanted to throw you a welcoming party.”

  He nodded. “Thanks,” he said, but his look admonished her.

  Marilee’s smiled faded. The party was too much too soon, and she would have given anything to be able to take it back.

  “Is anyone going to invite the poor kid inside?” Winnie demanded. “Here, Josh, let me help you with your bags.”

  “Who are you?” he asked.

  “I’m an unmarried, pregnant, black girl,” she said. “I’ll bet you figured out the black-and-pregnant part all by yourself. Anyway, I live here. Your mama probably forgot to mention it.” She picked up his other suitcase. “Let me show you to your room, m’lord. You’re going to love it.”

  Josh followed her upstairs as the women watched from below. Winnie opened the door. “Ta-da!” she said, stepping aside so he could get a clear view. “What do you think?”

  “Sure beats where I’ve been living.” He slumped onto one of the beds.

  “Hey, don’t get too excited,” Winnie said, setting the bag on the floor. “Listen, I know this isn’t easy, walking into a house full of women, but your mama thought it would be nice to have a little party for you. I disagreed, of course, but nobody around here listens to me. So, if you need anything, you let me know.”

  “Maybe you could show me the escape hatch.”

  Winnie grinned. “We could tie your bedsheets together, and I could lower you to the ground through that window.”

  He smiled for the first time. “When is your baby due?”

  “Not until around Christmas.”

  “Where’s the father?”

  “Who knows? Probably off poking some other unsuspecting girl.”

  “He just split on you?”

  “Yep. Some men are like that.”

  “My dad ran out on my mom.”

  “I know. Life can be a real bitch.”

  “I’ve never lived in a house with a black person.”

  “I’d never lived with white folks until I got knocked up and my parents kicked me out,” Winnie said matter-of-factly. “And I can tell you, it’s different. For one thing, y’all don’t eat like black people.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, we eat things like chicken gizzards and pig’s knuckles. You ever had pig’s knuckles?”

  “Nope. Don’t plan to either.”

  “You haven’t lived until you’ve tried them. And polk salat and chitterlings, which is a highfalutin way of saying hog’s intestines.”

  Josh grimaced. “That’s disgusting.”

  “Hey, I know white folks who eat chocolate-covered ants. Now, that’s disgusting. I’d much rather eat hog’s intestines than bugs.” She studied him. “So, what do you do for fun?”

  Josh shrugged. “Well, lately I’ve been stealing cars.”

  “No kidding! I have an uncle who used to do that. Made good money, till he was caught and sent to the big house.”

  “You don’t believe me, do you?”

  “’Course I do. Which makes me glad I don’t own a car. I travel by bus. You haven’t stolen any buses, have you? I’d imagine it would be tough hiding them.”

  “What do you do? For fun, I mean?”

  “Mostly I study. I’m an honor-roll student.”

  “You play chess?”

  “Not only do I play, I kick butt at it.”

  “I have an awesome chess set. Got it for my birthday. Haven’t found anybody who can beat me.”

  “I can beat you blindfolded and with one hand behind my back.” Winnie glanced toward the door. “Look, your mom went to a lot of trouble for this party. Why don’t we go down and have some of that food?”

  Josh hesitated.

  “I swear, you won’t find one hog intestine on the table.”

  “Okay, but I don’t really feel like being around a bunch of old ladies.”

  “These are nice old ladies, and they’d do anything for your mom. You promise not to act like a jerk, I’ll let you beat me in a game of chess.”

  Finally, Josh nodded. “Okay, might as well get this over with.” They started from the room. “You won’t rat on me about stealing cars, will you?”

  “No, I figure that’s your business. But if you get busted, don’t come to me. I don’t have the money to bail you out of jail.”

  “I don’t do it anymore.”

  “I guess that makes you an ex-car thief, huh?”

  He followed her downstairs. Marilee met them at the bottom. “What do you think of your room?”

  “It’s nice,” Josh said. “I like the colors you picked out.”

  “May we eat now?” Winnie asked, eyeing the party platters of food on the table. “I’ve been starving myself all day so I could have a piece of cake.”

  Ruby opened the refrigerator and began pulling out soft drinks. Once they’d filled their plates, everyone found a place to sit. Marilee noticed Josh was sticking close to Winnie, and she saw the two had made friends quickly. After they’d eaten, Marilee carried in an armload of gifts. Josh looked embarrassed. “We didn’t spend a lot of money on them, honey. We just thought it would be nice to get you something. I hope you don’t mind.”

  Josh opened Winnie’s gift first and saw that she’d bought him a T-shirt.

  “Look at the back,” the girl urged.

  Josh turned it around and saw the name Phish printed on the back. “Cool,” he said.

  Marilee had found a pair of Nike Air Jordans on sale, and when he opened them he looked pleased. Nell, Ruby and Clara had pooled their money and purchased a small boom box.

  “Gee, thanks, everybody,” Josh said, loosening up for the first time. “This was really nice of you.”

  Someone knocked on the back door, but before anyone could answer, Sam stepped inside. “Am I too late for the party? I just got off work.”

  Marilee was happy to see him. “Come on in,” she said. “There’s still plenty of food.” She introduced him to Josh, and they shook hands.

  Josh started for the back door. “Where are you going?” Marilee asked anxiously.

  “I just want to grab some fresh air,” he said, closing the door behind him.

  “I’ll go out and sit with him,” Sam said, noting the worry in her eyes. He filled his plate and stepped outside. Sure enough, he found Josh sitting on the back steps. “You couldn’t take it either, could you?” Sam said.

  Josh looked up. “Too many women. They haven’t shut up since I walked through the door.”

  Sam shrugged. “They mean well. The one with white hair is my mother.”

  “You still live with your mom?”

  “I recently moved back because she wasn’t well.”

  “Oh. Do you live in the neighborhood?”

  “Next d
oor,” Sam said. When the boy didn’t respond, he added, “Think you’ll like living here?”

  “It’s different.”

  Sam figured the boy felt lost at the moment. “You like to fish?”

  “I haven’t been since my grandfather died. He used to take me a lot.”

  “If you like, we can go next weekend. It’ll get you out of the house.”

  “Yeah, okay.”

  “What do you say we get up early Sunday morning and go? Make a day of it?”

  “That’d be cool. But I don’t have a fishing rod.”

  “I’ve got plenty. I’m sure we can find someone to pack us some food, and we’ll take off as soon as the sun comes up. In the meantime, if things get to be too much over here, you can always stop by my place. I’ve got a big-screen TV and plenty of videos.”

  “You got any Jim Carrey movies?”

  Sam wasn’t a Jim Carrey fan, but he’d buy every movie the man had made, if it would help Josh become acclimated to his new home. “I’m sure I can find a couple. What do you think of Winnie?”

  “She’s cool.”

  “She tells it like it is.”

  Nell stepped out the back door a few minutes later. “Hello, boys,” she said. “I see you’re hiding out here. Don’t let me interrupt you, I’m on my way home and wanted to say good-night to Josh.”

  Josh stood. “Thanks again for the gift, Mrs. Brewer.”

  “Call me Nell. And you’re welcome.” She patted Josh’s cheek. “You sure are a handsome fellow. I’ll bet every girl in school is after you.”

  Josh blushed. “I don’t know about that.”

  “You need any tips on women, you ask my son,” she said, motioning to Sam. “He used to be quite a ladies’ man.”

  “Josh doesn’t want to hear all that, Mother,” Sam said. “I’ll be home after a while.”

  Nell said goodbye and picked her way across the lawn.

  Josh chuckled. “Sounds like you were pretty hot with the chicks when you were young.”

  Sam grinned. “I did okay.”

  “I’ve never even had a girlfriend.”

  “Don’t be in too big of a hurry. Women have a way of making you crazy. You like dogs?” he asked.

  “Yeah, but I could never have one. My dad’s allergic to pet fur.”

  “My friend has a female golden retriever. She had puppies some weeks back. They’re not full-blooded, they’re half Lab. I was going to ride over and look at them, if you want to go.”