by T. M. Haught
Penny made a face, clearly miffed. Beneath her breath, she muttered, “Pervert.”
“Heard that,” said Speaker Guy.
Penny cringed. “Sorry!” Her tone changed. “We’ll be good now.”
They both expected more scolding, or another snappy comeback, but there were no more words from Speaker Guy. With a slight crackle of static, the ride music and narrative came back on in their car again. It had never stopped in the doombuggy ahead of them or the one immediately behind them, although the sounds coming from those cars had been much fainter to their ears.
Jonah and Penny kept their hands tightly gripping the safety bar for the remainder of the ride, which seemed to take longer now than the few minutes it actually did. As they passed through the attic and graveyard sections and reached the ghost gallery, with the cars turning to face the mirrored wall, a ghost seemed to materialize in the space between them. Was it only coincidence that the particular ghost that lined up with them had a face set in what looked like a naughty grin?
They both made a quick check to be sure their clothing was not grossly out of kilter or anything, then as the car straightened and the safety bar raised, they carefully got out and walked quickly and nonchalantly along the platform with the other riders toward the exit, hoping no one would be looking at them strangely. No one was, so if anyone had heard anything they must have been uncertain just who it was that got the warning.
Once they had cleared the exit and emerged into the daylight outside the ride building, Penny stopped to one side, out of the walking traffic, and pulled a map of the Magic Kingdom from her purse. She unfolded it quickly and studied it.
Curious, Jonah said, “What are you checking? Shouldn’t we go back and meet up with the ‘parental units’ as you like to call them?”
“Yes,” said Penny. “But just to be on the safe side, before we do, I think I’d better ‘repantify’ myself. There are restrooms just around the corner here. It will only take me a minute.” She glanced his way. “Maybe you should hit the men’s room and make sure your shirt tail is all properly tucked in and in place.”
“Yeah,” agreed Jonah, looking down. “Among other things.”
A few minutes later they were walking back to the part of the plaza when they had last seen Robert and Rebecca. They were not walking hand in hand, and their eyes were fixed on the crowd ahead. None of the faces were familiar.
“I don’t see them, do you?” said Penny.
“No,” replied Jonah. “Maybe their line was longer, or that show runs a bit longer.”
“Yeah,” Penny said, searching harder. “No, wait---I think I see them now.”
Jonah looked and spotted them as well. Robert and Rebecca were walking slowly toward them from the general direction of the exit doors of the Hall of Presidents. Their faces brightened as they saw Penny and Jonah approaching them. In a few more moments they were all face to face once again.
“So, how was it?” asked Rebecca. “Still spooky as always?”
Penny nodded meaningfully. “Oh, it was definitely creepy.”
“It scared me,” said Jonah.
Penny briefly studied her father, then her curious gaze took in Jonah’s mother as well. “So... how was the Hall of Presidents?”
“Nice,” said Robert.
“Very nice,” said Rebecca. She briefly shifted her eyes away, thinking reflectively. “I always love that part at the end when the sky changes colors and looks like a flag.”
“Yeah, that is cool,” said Jonah. After an awkward pause he added, “What do we do now?”
Rebecca checked her watch. “It’s pretty close to dinner time. Maybe we should get something to eat. Is everybody hungry?”
Jonah couldn’t resist saying, “I could really go for a cheeseburger about now.” He was expecting a poke in the ribs from Penny, but she merely twisted the corner of her mouth a bit in a carefully wry smile.
“Yeah, me too,” she said.
Rebecca tilted her head slightly in a thoughtful look. “Well, we had junk food for lunch. I was thinking maybe we could get something a bit nicer for dinner, maybe at the Crystal Palace...?”
Robert nodded. “That sounds good to me.”
“Okay,” said Penny. “That’s a pretty place.”
“It gets my vote, too, then,” said Jonah.
“Great,” Rebecca said happily. “Let’s head on over there before the crowd hits and the lines get too long. It’s a short walk from here, relatively speaking.”
They all started in that direction, with Robert and Rebecca slightly in the lead and Jonah and Penny not too far behind as they made their way through the moderate crowd of vacationers in the plaza and walkways. When Penny was sure it seemed safe, she leaned closer to Jonah with a whispered observation.
“You know, that Hall of Presidents theater is pretty dark inside, too, during the show,” she said. “Especially in the back.”
Jonah raised an eyebrow and looked at her. “I know where you’re going,” he told her softly. “Don’t want to think about that right now. Really don’t.”
“Just sayin’...” said Penny. “But I agree. Let’s not.” She slyly reached her hand over to give his hand a quick squeeze, then went back into “safe” mode and they continued walking....”
* * * * * * * * * *
It was getting dark by the time they left the restaurant. Since they were already at the end of Main Street it was a simple matter to find a good vantage point to watch the Electrical Parade. Once that was done and the crowds thinned out, they slowly worked their way back through the shops on that side of the street, the ones that they had missed seeing in the morning.
After that, they went through the exit turnstiles and went up the steps to the monorail platform, working their way through the line before boarding a train and riding it around the entire loop, just for the fun of it and seeing the resorts along the way. When they had returned to their starting point they disembarked and caught the next tram back to the parking lot to head for Robert’s SUV.
Unlocking the doors, Robert paused to look at the others. “Well, did everyone have fun? Was it worth the trip?”
Rebecca smiled. “I can only speak for myself, but I would say ‘yes’ to both questions. How about you, kids?”
“Definitely,” said Penny. “It was nice to get away for a few days. Thank you!”
“Well, we head back home tomorrow,” said Robert.
“That will be nice, too,” said Jonah. “And since this is Saturday, there won’t be any new homework assignments waiting in our emails when we get back to the motel tonight.”
Rebecca opened the front door on the passenger side, then hesitated. “Penny, would you rather ride up here in the front with your dad? I don’t mind.”
Penny considered it briefly. Only briefly. “That’s okay Mrs. Nash. You can ride shotgun. It might be better to have two experienced drivers with their eyes on the road, especially at night.”
“Well... okay then,” said Rebecca. She watched as Jonah and Penny piled into the back seat of the SUV and closed their doors, then she got into the front seat, closed her door and locked it, and fastened her seat belt.
Robert started the engine and backed the big SUV out of the parking space, then headed toward the outer perimeter and the way back to the gate, following other cars that were leaving as well. In the back seat, Penny and Jonah, buckled into their own seat belts, exchanged glances and secret smiles, and this time, it was Jonah who let his hand creep over to take hold of Penny’s hand and give it a squeeze, safely out of view.
* * * * * * * * * *
Later that night, back at the motel in their own room, Rebecca had already turned in and was sound asleep in her bed in the back of the small “suite”. Jonah was still awake in his sofa bed up front, with the lights out. He had read a few chapters of his book rather than keep the TV on, but he had tired of that even though he was having trouble sleeping. Impulsively, he grabbed his cell phone and keyed in Penny’s number t
o send a text message. He hoped she had her phone on silent mode as he did now. He typed and sent:
TODAY WAS FUN, IN SPITE
OF U KNOW WHAT.
MISSING U ALREADY!!
A few minutes went by and the delay made him nervous. But then his phone vibrated two quick bursts to let him know of an incoming message. It was from Penny:
MISS YOU 2!!!
YES, IT WAS FUN. ☺
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
TONIGHT WILL BE
ANOTHER LONG NIGHT.
Jonah typed in a reply and sent it back to her:
TOMORROW NIGHT WILL
BE BETTER. LOTS!!!
Back came her reply after a few moments:
YES!!! TOMORROW!!!
CAN’T WAIT!!!
Jonah texted back a simple “goodnight” and figured that would be the end of it until morning. He was wrong. Back came Penny’s reply:
GOODNIGHT...
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
AND HEY, SQUIRT--
MY PHONE IS ON VIBRATE
AND I’M HOLDING IT
U KNOW WHERE!!!
REALLY!!! SEND ME
A MESSAGE!!!
Jonah had to clamp a hand over his mouth as he started to chuckle. Then he pictured what she said in his mind and started to get a little hot just thinking about it. He realized that was probably just the reaction she was hoping for. Then again, maybe she wasn’t kidding. He typed and sent:
LOL!!! OKAY.
HOW’S THAT?
He waited for her reply. It didn’t take long. She texted back:
OOOO!!!
THAT FELT GOOD!!!
MORE!!! MORE!!!
He texted back a simple, “Okay!!! Okay!!!” The choice of words probably didn’t matter that much.
Jonah was definitely feeling hot now. What the heck, he thought as he waited for her reply. He reached down under the covers and held his own phone against the underside of his manhood, which was mostly erect now. After a few seconds, his phone vibrated in two quick intense bursts again and this time it wasn’t the nerves in his hand that felt the tingle. He found himself wishing it would ring longer. He took it away to read her message:
OH!!! OH!!! OH!!!
AGAIN???
He quickly sent back this reply:
I’M DOING THAT 2!!!
WOW!!!
They continued sending messages back and forth for a few minutes longer, then finally, with some reluctance, Jonah sent this message:
LOVE THIS, PENNY!
LOVE YOU, TOO!
BUT REMEMBER---
CELL PHONES THAT
GET WET STOP WORKING.
There was a brief pause before her reply came back:
BUZZ KILLER...
U R RIGHT, THO!!! LOL!
NIGHTIE-NIGHT.
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
He texted back a string of hearts to her, then switched off the text mode and reached for the charger that was sitting on the small table near the sofa bed. His phone would definitely need charging now!
CHAPTER TWELVE
There’s no place like home
They had gotten up at the usual time but didn’t hurry quite so fast to get ready as they had the day before. Breakfast was a return visit to the motel restaurant, with pastries, coffee and fresh orange juice as the choice this time. Back to their respective rooms for packing, last minute pit stops and a final check to be sure they had missed nothing, and then it was into the SUV with a stop by the motel office to check out.
It was well past lunchtime when they finally reached the outskirts of Palmvista, so they stopped at the Denny’s restaurant on the main highway to get something to eat. Then it was on to the residential side of town and Elm Street where the old Victorian house that was their home was located. The SUV slowed as it approached their block, and all eyes were looking in the same direction, with Penny especially leaning forward over the back of the front seat for a better view.
“Sure hope there’s no camera crew waiting for us,” she said.
Robert frowned. “There better not be.”
The street was clear though of anything but ordinary traffic and the usual cars parked in neighbor’s driveways. No camera vans. Nothing worrisome. Just a quiet Sunday neighborhood atmosphere that was familiar and welcoming.
Penny sighed wistfully. “There’s no place like home,” she said, with a quick glance to Jonah.
“Yeah,” Jonah said with a nod.
Robert pulled the SUV into the driveway behind Rebecca’s car and turned the engine off, releasing the door locks and opening his own door. As everyone got out he went to the back to open the hatch so they could remove the luggage. Rebecca went to the front door to unlock it, and Robert and Jonah carried in the suitcases. The air inside the living room was pleasant and cool and smelled like home.
“Good,” said Rebecca. “The air conditioner is still running okay, so I guess there were no power outages while we were gone. That’s a help.” She glanced around. “Jonah, after the suitcases are all upstairs, would you be a dear and run next door to the Peterson’s house and pick up our mail and newspapers? There shouldn’t be much.”
“Sure,” said Jonah. He moved to pick up his suitcase.
“I’ll take my bag,” said Penny, and followed him to the stairs.
When they got to the third floor Penny carried her small suitcase into her room while Jonah went into his room to sit his bag down, then both re-emerged in the hall. They stood there for a moment, and Penny looked quickly around to be sure the coast was clear. It was! She threw her arms around Jonah and kissed him long and hard, then backed away reluctantly.
“More later,” she said meaningfully. “We’ve got to make up for lost time.”
“Can’t wait,” said Jonah. “But for now we’ll have to.”
Penny’s brow furrowed in thought. “After today, there are two more days of suspension before we go back to school on Wednesday. My dad goes back to work tomorrow. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m kinda hoping your mom gets a temp assignment tomorrow and Tuesday.”
“We’ll have to play that by ear,” he said. “And I’d better go to the Peterson’s to get the mail now. Won’t take long, unless they want to hear about the trip.”
Penny nodded. “And I should get back downstairs.” She gave him another quick kiss, then followed him to the staircase.
* * * * * * * * * *
Rebecca insisted on fixing dinner that night instead of going out again, but she kept it simple with chili and rice, fixing an avocado and sweet onion salad with Italian dressing. As they took their usual seats at the dining room table, Robert suddenly frowned and he looked at Jonah.
“I just realized something,” Robert said. “Your science fair project—I had promised you some data you could use for the cell phone booster idea. I downloaded the files to a flash drive, but then I left it sitting on my desk at the office when the police called that day. And then that commotion with the TV news crew the next day made me forget about it again.”
Jonah frowned as well. “I completely forgot about the science fair!”
“Not surprising,” said Rebecca. “There were more important things on our minds.”
“I can get the flash drive tomorrow when I go back to work,” said Robert. “Will that be okay?”
“Sure,” said Jonah. “I still have a week before I have to tell my science teacher what project I’m going to do, and a few weeks after that to turn in the project itself.”
“Speaking of work,” said Rebecca as the rest of them started to eat, “I’ll have to let the temp agency know I’m back. They may not have anything for me, but just in case.”
Penny took another few bites of food before she said, “Just wondering about something. On Wednesday when Jonah and I go back to school, should we just take the bus as usual?”
Robert made a bit of a face. “Maybe not the first day. I can take you both there before I head for the office, just until we find out what th
e atmosphere is.”
Rebecca nodded in agreement. “And you could call the principal the day before to see what she says. I’m sure she’s been monitoring the situation day by day.”
“Good idea,” said Robert.
“Oh, and Mr. Mathews---” said Jonah.
“Yes?”
“Please be sure and thank your CEO for us, for his help with that TV station,” said Jonah.
“I already have,” said Robert. “But I definitely will again.”
They continued to eat, occasionally commenting on something at the theme park that they especially liked, but mostly just relaxing after the trip. After dinner was done and the dishes were washed, all four of them sat in the living room for a few hours watching a movie on TV before finally deciding to turn in a bit early after a long day. Jonah and Penny told their respective parents good night, then they used the front staircase to climb to the third floor.
As the two of them ascended, Penny idly noticed how the inner banister railing was continuous from one floor’s landing to the next as the stairs spiraled up through the old house. She looked at Jonah with a curious and playful expression.
“Hey—did you ever think about sliding down the railing, just for fun?”
Jonah raised an eyebrow. “Yeah. Thought about it. Decided against it.” He gestured toward the first floor landing they had left behind. “See that big wooden knob at the bottom end of the railing? If I didn’t stop before I reached that, you’d need to find yourself a new boyfriend, if you know what I mean.”