Family Ties (Rewritten)

The Plan

Cora was happy to have a play date with her best friend.  She couldn't quite place her little finger on what was going on with her parents, but she could tell they were sad.  Her mommy had hardly said a word in the last couple of days.  Her daddy looked like he wanted to punch someone in the face.  She had never seen them act the way they had been.

When she asked them what was wrong, they would put on phony baloney smiles and tell her that everything was okay. She saw right through them.

She may have only been six years old, but she was smart enough to know something was going on.

Being pushed down the slide caused her to forget her troubles. Her friend, a girl named Marley, was holding her stomach and laughing. "You went down faster than a cheetah wearing tennis shoes with rockets attached to them!" She climbed down the jungle gym and helped Cora to her feet.

Cora dusted the dirt from her shorts. "You better watch it, Little Missy!" She said, wagging her finger playfully at her friend. "Or I'm gonna steal all the ice cream sandwiches in your freezer."

"You wouldn't."

"Oh, I would!"

"I'll never surrender my ice cream!" Marley giggled again as she ran away from Cora so swiftly that she was clear across the park. She skidded to a halt and looked around like a lost lamb when she realized that her friend and their adult supervision were completely out of sight. Moreover, this was only her second visit to the park, so she had no clue where she was. "Uh-oh.  This isn't good."

Suddenly, she felt a hand clasp her shoulder.

"Pardon me, are you lost?"

She looked up to see a man smiling down at her.

Her panic ceased.  The man seemed nice.  Maybe he would help her find her way back to her friend.

She nodded her head and began to ramble.  "Yeah.  I was playing with my friend near the jungle gym and I ran away and I got lost and-"

"Don't worry."  The man took her hand.  "I'll help you find your friend."

"Thanks."

The man slowly lead her down the dirt path that lead back to the playground. "What's your name?"

"Marley."

"It's nice to meet you, Marley. I'm Vincent."

"Why are you at the park by yourself?"

Vincent chuckled. "My daughter is here, too."

"Where?"

"Probably at the playground with your friend."

"Oh."

"What's your friend's name?"

"Cora."

Vincent's eyes lit up. "That's a beautiful name."

"Better than Annie, I guess.  That's what her mama was gonna name her at first."

"That would have been dreadful."

"You said it."

Marley noticed his footsteps grew slower.  "Does your friend live nearby?"  He asked, the smile still on his lips.  "Or does she live with her grandparents?"

"How did you know her grandparents live here?"

"Just a lucky guess, I suppose."

She shrugged her shoulders.  She thought it was kind of strange that he seemed interested in her friend, but she didn't say anything.  At least he was nice enough to help her find her way back to Cora, who was close to them now.  She let go of the man's hand and said, "Thanks, mister!" before running off.