Disaster started in the living room. There were three hot dogs, two sisters, and one tall grandfather clock on the wall, its pendulum swinging back and forth, back and forth.
Nevada looked at the hotdogs on the table. Normally, she would have devoured hers and picked at her sisters for theirs, but today the squiggles of ketchup and mustard looked sickening.
Reno’s eyes glimmered in the evening sun. “Vegas…Vegas really isn’t coming back?” She turned to her older sister.
Nevada shook her head. “No. She's not. She had to leave, Reno. Dad would have never let her go if he knew.” Nevada rubbed her younger sister’s back.
Reno stared across the room at the clock, her knee vibrating like a motor. “I hope she doesn’t get hooked on drugs or somethin’. What are we going to say when Daddy gets ho-”
Three hard knocks slammed against the front door, making Nevada jump and Reno scream.
Nevada sighed, then got up to open the door. Her fathers’ dark eyes lined up with hers. “Where is she? Where’s Vegas?”
“I don’t kno-”
“Sure you don’t.” Her father pushed past her and looked around the living room. Now there were only three hotdogs and a swinging grandfather clock in the living room.
“Reno!” he yelled through the house.
Tick. tok. Tick. tok.
A sharp horn was heard, followed by the sound of a young voice singing over a steady beat.
Her father tramped up the wooden steps and down the hall to the girls room. His knocks aligned with the sharp horn toots in the song.
The door slowly creaked open and Reno peaked her head out.
“RENO! I’m gon’ yank that afro off yo’ head if you don’t tell me where your sister is!”
Reno’s lip trembled.
Her father’s face twitched. “You know where she is… don’t you?”
The girl sniffled.
“TELL ME RIGHT THIS INSTANCE!”
Reno collapsed on the floor as a mess of tears. “I don’t know where she is Daddy, I don’t know!”
Her father’s angered face faded into concern. He bent down to Reno’s level and put a hand to her cheek. “Woah now. Wait, don’t start cryin’. I need to find your sister. Now if you don’t know, you don’t know. But if you do know where she is, you need to tell me. She doesn’t know what she’s doing, and we can still stop her from getting into a whole lot of trouble.”
Reno gasped and wiped her tears, looking at her father once again. “Daddy…I really don’t know where she is.”
“She doesn’t.” The two turned to see Nevda standing over them. I do.”
Her father stared up at her for a moment. “Get in the Volkswagen.”
Jenny Williamson liked to think of herself as a good person, and a fair mother. But judging on how she couldn’t find her only son anywhere, even she was beginning to question herself. She had recently heard he had dropped out of college, and for what?
She had to find out the truth, which is how she found herself on the southern side of town, clutching her purse and glancing in every direction.
She went into a little brick restaurant and cringed at the loud jingle that announced her arrival.
A slow song with smooth voices was playing. The walls were checkered with green and yellow tiles. A couple sat at a table to the left and a teenager manned the front counter.
To the right was a table of kids the cashier’s age, but they were dressed in all black from their shadowy eye-liner to their thick boots.
A boy with spiky blond hair and a face full of piercings saw Jenny Anne and waved. “Hey Ms. Jenny!”
“SHH!” Jenny hissed as she glanced at everyone else. She rushed over to the table. “Hello, Murphy. Have you seen Luke?”
“Luke?” Murphy looked to the ceiling with a glare. “Uuuuuuhh no.”
Jenny huffed and straightened her posture. “Com’on, you’re his best friend. You know where Luke is. Why is he keeping it a secret?”
Murphy’s blank stare crumbled slightly, and he looked amongst the table.
The girl with two layers of black lipstick spoke up. “He doesn’t want you to worry, Ms. Jenny. He wasn’t even gonna tell me. But he said he’s gotta leave. This place just isn’t for him.”
Jenny’s aze was focused on the walls beyond the table now. “Oh.”
“Man, I’m gonna miss our lead guitarist. The man rocked!” Said the third guy at the table.
Jenny’s eyes grew glassy, and she clutched her purse even tighter. “Please, I have to find Luke! I know he probably told you all not to tell me where he is but I’d be willing to pay you! I have to see my son!”
The three looked amongst each other.
Finally, after a huge groan, Murphy spoke up. “Luke’s probably gonna kill me, but…”
A big orange Volkswagen screeched to a stop in front of the restaurant. A man with a little afro around his head leaned his head towards the passengers side. “Jenny! I know where those kids are headed. If you want to find your son, hop in, and do it quickly!
Jenny found that now all eyes were on her. She could have died right there. Instead she swallowed and put an arm on Murphy’s shoulder. “Thank you, but you won’t need to rat out your best friend after all.” she turned to the van and said, “Hold on!”
Luke glared as he watched the sun tap the horizon, shadowy palm trees on either side of the road. He leaned against the side of the gas station, flipping a soda can he’d gotten from inside. People gave him looks as they walked by, heading inside the store. Who could blame them? Luke would probably stare at himself too if he wasn’t the one with ripped jeans, a black leather jacket and liberty spikes lining the middle of his head.
Somebody grabbed his shoulders from behind. He jumped before he smiled and turned. “Vey, you’ve got to stop doing tha-” He stopped and stared at the woman, who looked like a rainbow had kissed her. Her fuzzy dreads fell past her shoulders and shinned with hair rings. Her wrists flexed about 30 bracelets made from anything from wood to beads to silver. She had on a flowy green dress with swirls going every which way.
Vegas giggled at him. “Are you okay, Luke?”
He nodded and pulled out chips and chocolate bars from his pockets. “Just stopped here to get snacks for the road. Ready to go?”
Vegas nodded, shaking her bookbag and lifting her long black case. “I couldn’t leave my guitar,” she said, yet her eyes were looking in every direction. “There’s space for it in the van right?”
Luke nodded. “Next to mine.” he opened the back of his van and laid Vegas’ wooden guitar next to his electric one.
He turned to see Vegas' smile had disappeared again.
“Vey, what’s up?”
“I…I just wish we didn’t have to leave in secret. I wish I could’ve at least tried to explain why this concert means so much to me. But it’s like, once Dad’s made his mind up, he just won’t listen to anything else.”
Luke nodded. “My Mom’s the same way. I wish things could be done differently too.” He looked around as the streetlights popped on and the sirens and chatter of the night began. He came closer to her and put a hand on her shoulder. “Listen, if you really don’t want to go-”
“No, I didn’t say that!” Vegas shook her head quickly. Then she stood up straight and her face flattened out. “Let’s go.”
With a firm nod from Luke the two climbed into the van and drove off, just as an orange Volkswagen stopped at the gas station
Hey there! I’m Shila! I’ve loved books since I could read, and decided I would write books I wanted to see written for others! Check my children’s book Imagination on Amazon!
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It's like they're stuck between following their dreams and dealing with their parents' expectations.
Thanks for reading!
A very beautiful narrative that immerses you in the story. I really liked how you describe each situation and character while the events of the parents' search unfold. A very interesting story to read.
Thanks for sharing your story with us.
Excellent Tuesday.
I enjoyed fleshing out the characters quite a bit. Thanks for reading and I hope you have a great Tuesday as well.