by SaJoBa3
Necropolis Now Two
2.1 Raisinville, Population 2712
Saturday was born hot and humid, but by afternoon had chilled to simply icky cool. Sarah spent the day avoiding doing chores and rearranging her schedule to include homework. There wasn’t much to her schedule, just some odd hours at the Poppyseed Cafe where she bussed tables for her mother and the usual haunts she made through the library.
Still, Driver’s Education was next spring and Sarah Foster was on the list of possible future learner’s permit holders. She wanted nothing to get in the way of that class. After all, driving opened up possibilities of getting out of Raisinville. And if she wanted to go anywhere, she’d have to do it herself – once she got a car; no way would Croy drive her anywhere in his rust-bucket on wheels, and Deidre was scared senseless at the thought of powering a car.
Sarah didn’t know why, but she guessed it was Grandma Churchill’s driving skills that made Deidre so gun-shy of anything on four wheels.
Chores adequately skirted and with hours of daylight left, she headed to join Deidre babysitting the Leonard girls at the edge of town. She only got halfway there when Deidre’s squealing laugh was heard down the sidewalk. Sarah stopped before the library, which was the last business on the street, and waited.
Sure enough, Deidre appeared, sandwiched between Lexi and Lisa, holding hands and singing a Justin Bieber song as they half-hopped down the sidewalk. Sarah groaned and waited, arms crossed.
As soon as Deidre saw her, the song stopped and she nearly clunked the twin seven-year-old girls to a halt as she caught sight of Sarah.
Sarah grinned. “Ha!” she called, pointing. “You do know the words!”
Deidre turned a bright shade of red and shook her head until her ponytail did figure-eights. “I was just keeping up with them...” She looked around, hoping none of their high school friends had heard. “I don’t really know the words.”
“I heard you!” Sarah nodded and met the three at the last fire hydrant of town. “So much for that ‘silly-songs-for-silly-people’ shit you’re always saying, Deidre.”
Lexi and Lisa both gasped, pointing as one at Sarah. “You said the sh-word!”
Deidre threw a miffed look of chagrin at Sarah, her grandmotherly tone in force. “Yes, Sarah, how could you? You know the rules.”
Sarah managed to look apologetic. “Oh, yes, such a bad mouth.”
Deidre grinned. “Yes, you do.”
“Not like I’m tattooed or anything,” Sarah said as she fell into step with them.
Deidre gave her a warning look.
Sarah smiled innocently. “Where you heading?”
“Spaghetti night!” the girls chorused, then set off into a titter of giggles.
Sarah groaned. “At the Poppyseed?” She knew it was; aside from McDonald’s, the Poppyseed Cafe was the only notable place to eat in town. No one counted Dot’s Donuts as an eatery despite their famous red raspberry jam-filled donuts. She looked to Deidre and asked, “Really?”
Deidre nodded and prodded the girls along the sidewalk. “Yes. Dinner’s on the Leonards and your mom tonight.”
Sarah hitched up her ponytail, frowning as the brightly painted yellow and purple cafe came into view down the street. “Yeah, well, I’m not bussing your tables.”
Lexi and Lisa ran ahead of them.
Deidre glanced sideways at Sarah. “You’re not working today, are you?”
Sarah sighed. “No. I was supposed to do some stuff for Mom earlier, but I kinda put it off.” She pouted. “Now she’ll ask and I’ll have to tell her blew off my chores.”
Deidre picked up her pace as her stomach growled. “Maybe we can help when we’re done with supper.”
Sarah reluctantly trotted to keep up with her. “No, it’s stuff Mom wants me to do; you know how she is about privacy things.”
Deidre nodded. She did know. Raisinville was small and privacy almost unheard of, but as a landlady to one of the few rentable properties in town, June Foster kept the locked garage-turned-storage shed at the rental house at 417 Brooks Street private. Sarah knew the diatribe by heart; no motorcycles, no storage facilities, no pets, and no smoking. Her mother was adamant about the rules to the little two-bedroom house she lent. The small storage shed at the back of the cramped yard behind the rental house was off-limits, period.
“What were you supposed to do?” Deidre asked, smiling as Lexi and Lisa both stopped at the curb where the crosswalk met the four-corner stop signs ahead.
“Hurry!” the girls sang out in unison as they turned to wave Sarah and Deidre over to them. “Come on!”
Sarah jogged to keep up with Deidre’s decidedly smoother gait. “Just pick up some stuff from the shed. You know,” she said between strides, “drop off a few boxes, pick up Halloween decorations for the cafe.”
“So soon?”
“Yup. She’s already putting in orders for spider cupcakes from Dot’s.”
They reached the corner, waited out the single car there, and then the four of them crossed. From there it was a straight shot to the Poppyseed, so the twins skipped ahead again.
Deidre slowed some, rearranging her double tank-top so that her shoulder straps were aligned. “You still going to drop off stuff tonight? The Leonards are supposed to be home after eleven, but if they’re early, I can still help.”
Sarah shook her head. “I’ll drop it off tomorrow. I’ll swing by the shed later and pick up the decorations.” She patted her jean cutoff pocket. “Got the keys right here.”
Ahead of them, the twins both grabbed the purple door handle of the Poppyseed Cafe and pulled with all their might. The door swung open slowly and the girls disappeared inside.
“I’m splitting now,” Sarah said, her steps slowing. “Mom will lay into me if she finds out I only half-did my chores.”
Deidre walked backwards, still nodding to her. “You coming back when you’re done?”
“Sure.” Sarah felt for the wad of two keys that were digging into her hip bone at her front pocket. “I’ll be there by gelato time!”
Deidre grinned and turned around and caught the cafe door.
Sarah groaned at the thought of facing her mother. Maybe a quick trip to the storage shed, back home, and then back to the Poppyseed would put her in better graces; she’d hate to miss dessert. Besides, her mom was already battling with Croy over college life.
May as well be the good kid of the two for a while, she thought, turning down the alley running along the back of the buildings.