Fledgling (2 page)

Startled, Ana turned to face her sister, who had a twig snagged in her hair. With a snicker, she reached out and removed it from Eva’s head. The both laughed and got back into the car.

“Did you go sightseeing, Eva? I wasn’t sure if you were walking to the house,” Melissa said as she started the engine and slowly pulled back out onto the road.

“I didn’t want anyone to see me.”

“From space?” Ana teased. She turned to her sister who was combing her fingers through her ratty hair, growing agitated with every knot she found. Grumbling to herself Eva said, “I can’t wait for a shower.”

Ana nodded in agreement and touched Eva’s arm. “I’ll let you take the first one-promise.”

Her sister grinned at her, and then Ana returned her attention out the window. After a couple of minutes a ditch in the road jolted the car, alerting her as they passed a dust covered road sign. They were close now.

Then as if on cue, her mother announced, “Alright, here we are. Home sweet home.” Melissa gave both girls a meaningful smile.

They passed a field of tall grasses and turned down a gravel driveway. Before them was Grandma Jo’s home. It had been over five years since they had visited. And the last time wasn’t the happiest of memories. Melissa was reluctant to come home for the funeral, worried about traveling with Ana, but in the end she went to support her sister, Tera.

Sparkling windows peeked out from behind low hanging branches in a grove of fir trees. A modest size to begin with, it was dwarfed by the tall evergreens surrounding it. The cheery pastel blue paint was calming and the bare flower beds lining the walk begged for attention. The lush surroundings were a little overgrown and needed a trim from some pruning sheers. Ana’s thoughts soured. It was familiar, but it wasn’t home. Not hers. Depressed and bitter, she considered the last person that lived there had died.

The silent vacuum in the car was broken when Eva leapt outside, not even waiting for the engine to turn off and sprinted across the shaded lawn. She ran around the house and disappeared from sight. At least Eva was out of her mind excited.

She watched her mom get out of the car to stretch and felt her leaden body sink into the leather seat. Her eyes dropped shut for a moment until Melissa’s voice reached her ears, “Hey Ana, you coming? Don’t you want to come in and say hi to your aunt and uncle?”

Ana’s eyes flicked open and it was then she noticed the maroon sedan parked beside them in the driveway. Slowly reaching for the door she took one last breath before pushing herself out of the car. She sauntered up to the front stoop where her mother was and waited for the onslaught of emotion.

Before Melissa could reach for the door, it swung open and Aunt Tera burst out embracing her sister. The sound of laughter and voices brought Eva from around the house and she joined her family on the stoop.

“Oh my, you girls are gorgeous!” Their aunt gushed.

“Why-you are simply
stunning
, Ana. Just
look
at your beautiful figure.” Aunt Tera lifted Ana’s arms to point out her curves, winking at her. Ana extracted herself from her aunt’s grip to wrap her arms around her waist, trying to conceal herself.

“And you! Eva! My…you’re so graceful. Like a ballerina!”

Eva twirled for her adoring aunt, enjoying the attention.

After fussing over her nieces she gave her sister a warm hug and the two of them began chatting about the road trip. As the women spoke, they sauntered inside. While Ana watched her aunt’s tight curls bounce around her cheery face, she heard her say in an undertone, “I am so happy you are here and not a minute too soon. Jace is getting back into fishing, and you know how much I can’t stand the smell of his gear, and not to mention eatin’ fish. Thank goodness I have someone else on my side when it comes to picking dinner…”

Ana shook her head. Things hadn’t changed much. Her aunt was still the same boisterous woman she remembered. Ana had always tried to spot the similarities between her mother and aunt, it was like a game. She studied Melissa’s short brown hair and thin features and compared them to Tera’s curly red hair and round face.
Nope, nothing
. But as Ana watched them snickering together she noted something: the laugh lines that framed their lips were like parenthesis.

“You all must be so tired and hungry! Don’t worry, I made you spaghetti. And we’ll be out of your hair after dinner. We don’t want to tire you all out.” Aunt Tera’s gaze lingered on Ana and she squeezed her shoulder.

As they sauntered into the house, a booming voice greeted them, “Welcome home!”

Thick as a trunk, Uncle Jace’s towering form was before them, waiting with open arms. He got to Melissa first, then Eva and Ana got caught in a huge bear hug last, taking the breath out of her. She freed herself from his grip and rubbed her sore shoulders.

From the sweat stained band on Uncle Jace’s fishing hat, it appeared it hadn’t left his head for a very long time; Ana wondered if he would be able to remove it if he tried. Then she figured it was probably better it stayed where it was. She guessed he still had blond hair underneath, noticing pale locks trying to free themselves, like saplings searching for light. His blue eyes always sought an open audience, eager to tell a new story or joke that was bubbling below the surface, ready to come out.

“Jace, you’re just a big kid!” Melissa said shaking her head.

“And that’s why we never had any… he keeps me busy enough keeping an eye on ‘im.” Aunt Tera winked at Eva.

The smell of spaghetti hit them, and their stomachs started growling like wild animals.

Aunt Tera heard their bellies, “For heaven’s sake, let these ladies eat! They don’t want to stand around while there’s perfectly good food in the other room!”

As they were shepherded to the kitchen, the smell of the old menthol cigarettes grandma used to smoke hit her. How was that possible? She always hated that smell. Just one more thing to make her feel at home.

In front of their tired, hungry bodies was the old kitchen table set for five, with a huge yellow bowl of spaghetti, a basket of breadsticks, and fresh Parmesan cheese.

“You’re the best, Aunt Tera,” Eva groaned.

Uncle Jace laughed and boomed, “She made enough to feed an army!”

Ana heard Aunt Tera mutter under her breath that spaghetti leftovers were better than eating fish for the next week, and snickered as she sat down next to Eva.

“Now, I wasn’t sure what you were bringing here with you, so I went ahead and brought some extra towels and kitchen utensils. I’ve never really bothered going through anything of Mom’s, so you should have just about anything you need here-you know how she couldn’t get rid of anything.” Tera paused to grasp her sister’s hand and Ana watched as her aunt pinched her tears back.

Regaining her composure, she continued, “So, Mel-Danny over at the bank is expecting you on Monday. He’s got everything set and he seemed a touch eager to see you again too.”

Melissa shook her head and shut her eyes. “I hope you weren’t encouraging him, Tera. You know how he used to annoy me. That man just doesn’t know when to stop talking.”

As Ana removed her napkin from her lap, her aunt turned with a serious expression and asked, “So Ana, when’s your doctors appointment? Where was it…Spokane?”

Before responding Ana exhaled, disappointed she wasn’t able to avoid the question. “Yeah. It’s in a couple weeks in Spokane-somewhere. It’s not too far a drive, right?”

“Yeah. Although it depends on how fast you drive. If you go slow like Jace over here, then it’ll take longer.”

“Hey, now,” Uncle Jace defended himself.

Aunt Tera exchanged a troubled glance with her sister, and then asked, “So, you feeling any better since you got here? I know it’s only been, well, less than an hour, now, but Mel says we’re at a lower altitude than up in Denver. That’s supposed to help you… right?”

“Yeah, that’s what the doctors tell us. I haven’t noticed anything yet. Still kinda soon. It’s been a long day though. Hopefully I’ll start feeling better.”

“If you come out fishing with me, I bet you’ll feel great! Some fresh air and sweet silence-nothing like it,” Uncle Jace smirked as he tore through a breadstick, and mopped up the extra sauce on his plate.

“Well, there should be some real nice kids in town for you to make friends with. I bet they won’t care a thing about your heart condition,” Aunt Tera said, patting Ana’s arm.

“I wasn’t planning on telling anyone,” Ana said and stood up so fast her cup threatened to tip over. Hoping to end the conversation, she collected the empty plates and set them in the sink. She reached her delicate fingers under the faucet as a stream of warm water glimmered over her skin like a translucent glove and began washing the dishes until Aunt Tera stood up and stopped her, “Oh Sweetie, you don’t need to do that, and after the day you’ve had! Don’t you want to see your new car? Well, I guess it isn’t
new
. We can’t have you hitchhiking to school with Eva.” Tera shooed her with her hands. “Go on, now. Jace, honey-go on and show it to her.”

Ana reluctantly lowered the dish back into the soapy water, and glanced at her mother who returned an encouraging nod.

She strode out the front door and was on the driveway as Uncle Jace pulled up beside her in a yellow VW camper that had been concealed behind the shed.

The shock held her for a moment. She kept telling herself it seemed to be in pretty good condition and it didn’t make
too
much noise when the engine was running-at least compared to a jet turbine.

But the color. Banana yellow was a good name for it, although it would look better on a banana. Well, who could complain about a free camper?

Uncle Jace opened the door with a loud creak and presented the keys with a wide smile, as though he were presenting her keys to a Porsche.

Ana put on the most appreciative grin possible while avoiding any thoughts about arriving at school on Monday. She didn’t care what people thought about her, but it wouldn’t help her slip in unnoticed driving
this
on the first day. Grappling with thankfulness, she pushed her worries away over her new
groovy
camper.

“Thanks, Uncle Jace. It’s…great…I really appreciate it.” She cleared her throat, “Anything I should know about it? Any…problems?” Ana inquired casually. She wanted to know if it was capable of throwing her like a bronco or exploding into a million tiny pieces from over heating.

He answered while caressing the side of the car, “Totally sound. I gave it an oil change, replaced a couple of belts, and gave it a new battery.” Then he added under his breath, “I also took it into the shop and had my mechanic take a thorough look through… Tera insisted.”

Ana made a mental note to thank Aunt Tera.

The van seemed unashamed of its appearance-come as you are. She smiled.
Well, it’s unique-just like me
, she thought.

“It’s…colorful,” she said, unsure what else to say.

“The paint job’s fifteen years old. Wouldn’t know it looking at it,” he said patting the top.

Ana’s eyebrow arched.
She
wouldn’t say that. Odd patches of matte paint dotted the glossy finish. And along the edges of the metal was an orange rusty tinge.

Uncle Jace added, “Got an excellent deal from a buddy. He was learning auto painting at the time and did it for free. I lucked out-they had a surplus of yellow paint, don’t know why. Classic.” He reached out and patted the car, with a loving touch.

Yeah, classic.

As her aunt and uncle drove down the gravel driveway waving as they went, Ana sighed. She felt like a tornado survivor. And it wasn’t even over yet. She still had to unpack. Then there was school on Monday. How was this better than staying in Colorado?

“Alright, the movers will be here any time now. Are we still agreed on who gets which room?”

Ana and Eva nodded. Every summer when they visited in the past, Ana had stayed in her mom’s old room, a small dark space with slanted, low ceilings. Eva naturally gravitated towards the large airy room that once housed Aunt Tera’s belongings. There was no need for discussion.

Eva climbed onto the living room couch and plugged her nose as she reached for the large retro TV remote. “Pew, this couch stinks. I wish we hadn’t sold
our
couch. Mom, did you bring the disinfectant, or some odor-eating spray?”

While Eva and their mom discussed their cleaning plans, Ana’s anxiety level peeked. She needed to get out of the house and see the sky. It was getting dusky out, but she thought she remembered how to find her way out to her special place.

Ana went in search of her jacket, and as she slipped it on she announced, “I’m going outside. Let me know when my stuff gets here.”

Melissa’s frown returned and she looked out the living room window at the sun sinking behind the trees. “I don’t know Baby, it’s getting cold out and you’ve had such a long day already. Can’t it wait until tomorrow night?”

All it took was one look, and Ana turned around, heading into the kitchen. She wrenched open the cupboards searching for a flashlight. When she finally found one, it was tossed onto the white tiled countertop in dismay. Of course after so many years the batteries would be useless. Ana shrugged, she didn’t really need a light anyway. She was at home outdoors and always managed to find her way through the dark. Nothing frightened her when she was in the wilderness, especially when she was star gazing. Under the infinite sky all of her problems seemed so insignificant.