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When she got home Carol did her homework, finished “The Dark Half” and, grabbing her sac, flew outside silently and gracefully as if she were a leaf in the wind. Sitting underneath the Weeping Willow that sat closest to the lake, Carol rotated between drawing and writing. She heard laughter and 4 sets of foot steps coming up the road. Instantly Carol snatched up her sac and hid in the trees. It wasn’t normal for her grandfather to bring friends home. Especially since she was there.
Tossing her sac into a bush, Carol climbed the nearest tree and peered down at the four figures coming up the hidden path. It was her grandfather and the 3 new boys from class. Toney, Kyle and Fred. Toney stopped and looked up right at her. The others stopped too and all looked up in her direction. She sank deeper into the safety of the cover of the thick leafs.
“Carol? Sweeties are you up there? How many times must I tell you that you will fall if you spend all day in a tree?” The twins, as hard as they gazed into the tree, couldn’t see her. But Carl Sr. and Toney looked fearlessly into her eyes as she glared down into there’s. “Carol please come down. I’m sorry we were so rude in class today.” Toney said loud and firmly. “Sweetie, how about you come down and we can all have a nice cup of tea when we get inside and talk. Doesn’t that sound nice?” Carl Sr. pleaded with his stubborn granddaughter. Kyle and Fred both looked, but failed to see her in the dark shadows of the trees. Perfectly crouched and balanced as if she was a cat instead of a girl, Carol put forward one hand, then the opposite leg and sprang from her perch to the ground. She landed on all fours right in front of Fred, who stared at her as if she was an alien. She glared up at him threw her hair which fell in front of her face covering all but her eyes. A hissing sound escaped her as she blew strained air threw her teeth. “Now Carol.” Carl Sr. said soothingly. “That is not how you treat a guest.”
Once inside, Carl Sr. put a pot of water on a stove that looked even older then he did, to boil while Carol and the boys sat in the living room. The twins were on the brown love seat, Toney was on a matching recliner across from Carol who was seated in an identical chair. In the middle was a beautify crafted coffee table that came to knee level when standing. Exactly in the center of the table was a green crystal vase that looked as if it had vines crawling up the sides, with a bundle of freshly picked wild flowers displayed neatly inside. In fact, there were plants and vases every where. All were perfectly
designed as if a professional florist had arranged them. The walls were a light forest green that complimented the earthy brown carpet perfectly.
“You have an amazing house.” Toney said trying to make light conversation. A look of pride came over Carol and she gave him a look that said ‘Thank you.’ “Carol designed the entire house. She picks flowers and rearranges the plants every day.” Carl Sr. said coming into the room with a tray of tea and chocolate chip cookies. “She also made these yesterday.” He placed the tray on the coffee table. A black streak flew in the path of the tray and swiped the vase off the table. Carol then glided over to a small end table next to Toney and placed the vase directly in the middle. A couple turns to show the best flowers towards the room and she returned to her seat. “I’ll get out of your hair if that’s all you’ll need then.” And with that Carl Sr. slipped out of the room before anyone could protest. Kyle and Fred grabbed two cookies each and inhaled them. “These are amazing!” they exclaimed at the same time and instantly dove for more. “Did you draw all of these? There incredibly good.” Toney said gesturing at the framed drawings scattered around on the walls. Some were of scenery that could be found around the yard, but most were of demented murders and haunting faces wrapped in smoke or mist. Carol dipped her head in a quick nod and grabbed a mug of tea in one swift movement. “Why don’t you talk at all? The kids at school say that you’ve never talked or smiled in your life.” Kyle asked threw a cookie. Carols face grew somber and she looked down. “Maybe we shouldn’t talk about stuff like that.” suggested Toney, “How ‘bout we tell you about ourselves instead.” Carol’s eyes smiled as she silently agreed.