by Rani Clark
Jaska stared at a zebra as Margo continued to talk. When she was finished, he was aware that he was now expected to talk.
“I’m on the honor roll at school. That’s about it,” he told his father quietly.
“What about friends? Do you have a girlfriend yet?”
“No and I don’t want one.” He was walking further away from his father than Margo was. “I have one friend. He’s coming to Germany with us.”
“How come you don’t want a girlfriend?”
“I just don’t.” Jaska wanted this to end. He knew what to say to his father to get him to stop questioning him, but he knew it would start a fight between his parents.
Lilly Ann smiled softly at her son as they walked. Jaska returned the smile, but he wanted to run as far away as he could. As the hour passed he only spoke to answer the questions his father asked. When they were finally allowed to go and he slid into the backseat of the car they sat in silence for a moment.
“You wanted to tell him about Ty, didn’t you?” Lilly Ann said.
“Of course, so he would stop asking me questions. Stupid questions.” Jaska swallowed hard, “Mom, I can’t do that anymore. Every time I see him I want to throw up. Why do I have to keep going? He’s the one who-”
“I know what he did,” she interrupted.
“I don’t want to do this anymore.”
She looked back at him, “We’ll talk about it later.”
He knew she was trying to make him feel better about being with his father. The fact was, Evan Powers scared the living daylights out of him. It was a deep fear in the pit of his stomach that only crawled up once a month or when his father was brought up. “If he knows Ty kissed me, he’ll try to hit me.”
“Later, Jas. Now isn’t the time.”
Ty was watching television when they walked in the door. He greeted them with a smile and a friendly hello. Jaska sat beside him and stared at the television, Lilly Ann went to help Margo finish packing. “Are you ok?” he asked his friend.
Jaska stared at his knees, “Not even a little.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I don’t like seeing my father. It makes me sick.”
“You don’t like him?”
“He hit me and demeaned me all of the time. I wasn’t ever not scared when I lived with him. Margo didn’t have to go through that, he never hit her.” Jaska leaned back, “Excited for Germany?”
“Yes, but you look awful. Your dad hit you?”
“I don’t want to talk about it. How are you feeling about everything by the way?”
“Fine, I guess. I’m still feeling really weird about it.”
“You mean when your father kept calling me derogatory names?”
“Yeah that. I’m really sorry.”
“It’s not that big of a deal. I still have those bruises and my mom doesn’t know about it so please don’t say anything.”
“No problem.” Ty lapsed into silence.
Jaska knew how uncomfortable people were when he mentioned how his father had treated him. Ty didn’t seem that uncomfortable about anything, most likely due to the fact that he was in a similar situation. When Margo was packed, his mother brought all of their suitcases out and prepared them to leave. Ty helped load everything into the small car; Jaska was grateful for that. He let Margo have the front while he and Ty sat in the back.
“Oh, I’m going to miss you guys so much,” Lilly Ann said as they drove. “What am I going to do with the apartment all to myself?”
“I’m sure it won’t be too awful,” Margo remarked. “You might actually have some peace and quiet without Jaska’s weirdness.”
Jaska was barely listening. He closed his eyes until they arrived at the airport and it was time for them to leave their mother behind. She hugged her kids tightly, kissing them and squeezing them, until Margo made a face and begged to be let go. She handed them their boarding passes and told them all to be careful. Ty had a backpack and a wheeled suitcase, just as his companions did. They stayed together as they walked through security and towards the gate. Their plane was scheduled to take off in an hour so they grabbed a hot pretzel before settling down until their plane began to board. Hopefully, this was a quick flight. Jaska hated planes. He hated the feeling of flying through the air in a steel tube with nothing to protect him if they fell out of the sky.
He felt fear settle into his chest as the plane began to board and they stood to get in line. He took a deep breath as he walked down the hallway and towards the plane, nodding to the flight crew who greeted them. Ty shoved his things into the overhead compartment of their row, they were sitting together. Ty took the middle seat and buckled himself in. He leaned back and put his hands on his flat stomach. “Your grandparents were nice to let me come with you.”
“They’re great!” Margo told him as she took a book from her bag, “I can’t wait to see them. It’s been forever.”
Jaska dug his nails into the armrest as the cabin door closed. He closed his eyes and tried to calm the beating of his heart as the flight attendant went over her safety checks. Blood pounded loudly in his ears and his breath began to quicken. Ty glanced at him as the plane began to ready for take-off.
“Are you ok?”
“No.” He shook his head violently, “I hate flying.”
“I can see that.” Ty glanced at Margo. She was only paying attention to her book. “This is safe. Safer than a car ride. Safer than a train ride.”
“I know that. The statistics are . . . I just don’t like it!” he snapped, slamming his eyes shut again as the plane rumbled down the runway, picking up speed.
Ty reached over and took his hand, “Count to ten.”
“What?”
“Count to ten.”
Jaska did as he asked in a fevered quick moment. He didn’t understand why he was doing it.
“Ok, count to twenty.”
“From one or ten?”
“One.”
He did what was asked of him yet again. “Ty, I-”
“Forty.”
“From one?”
“Yeah.”
“This is dumb!”
“Just do it, trust me.”
He did as he was asked until suddenly the plane evened out and they reached less turbulent air. Jaska looked around. Ty had a large grin plastered on his face. He stared at his friend, “How did you do that?”
“Dunno, it just came to my mind.” Ty yawned and looked out at the darkening sky. “So, it worked?”
“Mostly.” Jaska leaned back and took a deep breath, “My grandparents are going to love you.”
They didn’t talk much for the rest of the flight. Ty watched movies and Jaska fell asleep. Soon they would be in Germany and he could forget about his father and his life for a week.
4
The train they were taking would leave them at a small station near the Black Forest. Jaska’s grandparents lived in a small hamlet near Baden-Baden and Calw. He had forgotten what it was called and didn’t much care to remember. He supposed he should if he was going to be here for a week. Margo was the only one of the three of them who spoke any German so she took the reins on everything that was going on. She picked the carriage, ordered their treats from the sweets cart going around, and laughed with a few local kids she had run into. Jaska and Ty sat back, feeling dumb as bricks.
The train ride was only an hour from the airport in Berlin. They had transferred once and were now steadily approaching their destination. Jaska looked at his phone as the train slowed as it neared the station. He stood and took his bags down, getting ready to meet their grandparents outside.
“You feel so smug, don’t you?” Jaska asked as they got off the train.
“Of course I do. You’re the idiot who didn’t want to learn German. No, you wanted to become fluent in Italian.”
“Italian comes in handy.”
“Not now it doesn’t,” she remarked with a smile as she skipped off the train.
“You’re re
ally fluent in Italian?” Ty asked him.
“Yes. My mom wanted me to learn another language and I picked that one. German probably would have been smarter to learn, now that I’m thinking about it.”
Spotting their grandparents was easy. Mina Byrne was a woman who resembled his mother in every way. Her hair was slightly graying and she had wrinkles around her eyes. Mina was wearing jeans and a t-shirt, her jacket perfectly fitting her trim body. Byron Byrne was a tall man with muscles to spare and a slightly protruding belly. The tattoos on his arms were of cuckoo clocks and cars with Grimm Fairy Tales plotted out in between. He was dressed in his jeans, suspenders and red flannel shirt. His beard had gotten longer since Jaska had seen him last.
“Kids!” Byron leapt forward and swept them both up in a tight hug. “Oh, it’s good to see you!”
“Hello, Grandpa.” Jaska greeted him, startled by the hug.
Mina kissed him on the cheek and gave him a far gentler hug, “We have been so excited!” she said in a thick, German accent. Byron was American, his wife was from Berlin originally. “You’ve grown so much.”
Margo spoke perfect German to her grandmother, causing Jaska to roll his eyes. Byron clapped him on the back and turned to his friend. “And who is this?”
“This is my friend Ty Montgomery. He’s the one mom told you about. Ty, this is my grandfather Byron Byrne and my grandmother Mina.”
Ty held out his hand, “Pleasure to meet you.”
“Good to meet you too, son. Come on, the cars waiting.”
The car they were driving was a large, red pick-up truck. Ty climbed into the back with them as Mina hopped into the driver’s seat. Jaska looked out the window as his grandmother started the engine. A man was stepping off the train that he couldn’t help but notice. He was dressed in a suit with a cloak and a bowler hat. He set his black briefcase on the ground as he took out his pocket watch. The man had the darkest eyes Jaska had ever seen and a frown he shivered at. They drove away before he saw anything else. Jaska leaned back and focused on what his grandparents were saying.
“How was the flight?” Mina asked as she drove down a small road.
“Uneventful,” Jaska answered.
“Good. This is going to be such a fun trip. We have a few things planned we think you’ll like. You can look around the place tonight and then tomorrow we thought we could all go on a trek through the Black Forest. There is a lovely hiking trail I know and we can have a picnic.”
“Sounds fun, Nana,” Margo said with a smile. “Did you make your famous cake?”
“Of course I did!”
“She spent all day baking it,” Byron told them with a chuckle. “So, Ty, my daughter said you go to school with Jaska.”
“I do. We’re not in many of the same classes, he’s ten times smarter than I am, but he tutors me after school. If it weren’t for him I would be failing right out of that place,” he said with a smile.
Jaska very much doubted that. Ty was smart, he just needed to concentrate more. “I don’t think I’m that big of a help,” he muttered.
The trees were large and dark the closer they got to the small town his grandparents called home. It wasn’t a very touristy place, despite the fact that it looked like one. Mina informed them it was mostly people who wanted to get away from big city life and make their lives about their craft. The tourists that came to the town were looking to buy handmade products. Younger people had been moving in lately. The aging population was glad of it, the town had needed a boost.
“They make cuckoo clocks here?” Jaska asked.
“Yes, the best,” Byron replied. “The . . . person who makes some of the clocks is a weird fellow. I would stay away from him if I were you.”
“Is he dangerous?” Ty asked.
“I’m not sure. Just don’t press your luck. I’d hate to call your mother and tell her you were eaten by a wolf,” he said with a chuckle.
That was his grandfather’s term for being around a dangerous person. Jaska guessed it was probably from Little Red Riding Hood judging by the tattoos. He let thoughts of the dangerous clock-maker leave his mind as he concentrated on the passing scenery. The cottage was at the end of a secluded lane surrounded by close-knit trees. Mina parked the truck under a large tree. The cottage was red and gray with a wild garden and an open backyard. There was a small dog running around the front yard. Byron picked him up. “This yappy little rat is Gus. Grab your bags kids.”
The inside of the cottage matched the outside. Just inside the door was a small entryway and a large living room with an old television and a comfortable couch. There were three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Jaska and Ty would be sharing a bedroom, Margo would get her own. Jaska liked the small house with its family photographs and antiques. There was a homey feel to it made complete with the smell of warm cookies and he found himself content.
“Unpack and you can go explore the town. Your grandmother and I have to go and pick up a few things in town for the shop, stained glass whatnots, so you’ll be on your own until seven. Is that alright?”
“Yes, we’ll be alright,” Jaska told him.
“Great!” He handed him a pair of keys, “There you go, keys for the house. If you get lost just give us a jingle on the cell phone. Alright?”
“We won’t get lost. Or at least, we’ll try not to.”
Ty unpacked as Jaska and Margo said goodbye to their grandparents. “Your grandparents are nice.”
“I know. They’re very welcoming. What do you want to do first?”
“I want to go find that clock maker and see what that’s all about,” he remarked with a smirk.
Jaska chuckled, “Of course you do.”
Margo was already leaving, saying she was going to meet some of the local kids for a walk around town. The kids on the train must have lived here. Jaska told her to be careful and stay in touch as they all left together. Ty put his hands in his pockets as they walked, looking up at the sky. Jaska knew he had something on his mind by the way he was moving his eyebrows.
“What’s wrong?”
Ty shrugged, “If you and I were going out, this would be a great couple’s thing,” he joked. “I was thinking about maybe trying to meet someone while I was here. Maybe . . .”
Jaska raised an eyebrow, “You want to find a boyfriend?”
“I don’t know. This is still really new to me. Like a lot.”
“Ok. Well, take it slow. I really can’t offer you that much advice. I’m not attracted to anyone.”
“No one?”
“Not even a little. When I said I didn’t like that you kissed me . . . you could do it and it wouldn’t make a difference to me. I mean, as your friend I don’t really want you to become attached to me that way.”
Ty stopped, “You don’t care?”
“It isn’t that I don’t care. I don’t like it when you kiss me, but it doesn’t make me feel a particular emotion.” Jaska didn’t know how to explain it, “It isn’t . . . I don’t know how to explain this.”
Ty continued walking. “You’re not attracted to me.”
“No.”
The small town was just what they both had expected. They fumbled their way into getting ice cream and walked through the shops. Finally, they came to the clock shop. The two exchanged a look before stepping into the small shop. Cuckoo clocks covered all of the walls and the front window. A short, pudgy man was behind the counter focusing on papers in front of him. Jaska was about to open his mouth until a man he recognized stepped from the back. It was the man from the train station. He was wearing his cloak, but his hat was sitting on the counter.
“Sir, did you get your clock fixed?” the pudgy man with the wispy mustache asked. Oddly enough, he asked it in English.
“It’s on the mend,” he said in a thick, Hungarian accent. His long fingers took hold of his hat, “Give me a call when it’s finished, would you? I’ll be staying for a duration.”
“The usual place?”
“Yes.”
He bowed his head and turned, his cloak swirling around him. Jaska tried not to pay any attention to him as he brushed passed them and left. Ty was busy looking at a host of antique Danish cuckoo clocks. Jaska shook the feeling from his body and began to look around the shop. The man asked if they wanted help, he replied he was just looking for now.