What's Eating Gilbert Grape

Chapter One

Endora was a boring place, filled with the same people all the time, and the place never had anything interesting going on. Well, unless anyone counted what Arnie got up to when Gilbert looked away for one minute. Arnie was a good kid, but he was a bit of a trouble maker, and it wasn't really his fault.

Arnie Grape isn't who the story is about, no, actually, the story is about his older sister Giselle. Giselle Grape was a beautiful girl, who had a lot of things she could've done after high school, but she never actually got that far. She merely graduated, before she put her full-time focus on her family.

At the age of twenty three, Giselle worked from nine in the morning until eight at night, five days a week, every week, to provide for her family. Her twin brother, Gilbert, worked at Lamson's Grocery, which was close to the drugstore Giselle worked at. Giselle worked the counter at the drugstore, and though she didn't have a pharmaceutical license, she was still given the job. A pharmacist that worked in the back handled all the prescriptions, but Giselle was the one to ring them up or had them out.

Giselle had other siblings as well. She had an older sister named Amy, and an older brother, but her older brother had escaped Endora years before. She also had her little brother, Arnie, and her little sister Ellen. Arnie was a close second favorite, just under her twin brother, Gilbert. Momma couldn't watch over Arnie, not since she refused to leave the house, and didn't do much but eat, sleep, and watch TV.

Giselle loved her mother, but she was disappointed in the way the woman was running down her body. Giselle and Gilbert were always so busy, but they made time to be around Arnie and help him with everything. When Arnie wasn't with Gilbert, he was with Giselle, or he was with Amy or Momma. Ellen wasn't too nice to Arnie, but Giselle figured it was because the girl was jealous of how much attention Arnie received because of his disabilities.

Arnie was currently with Gilbert, but Gilbert planned to drop Arnie off with Giselle for a couple of hours so he could get some errands completed without the boy causing trouble. See, Arnie had a thing for trying to climb things he wasn't supposed to. He had a tree at home that he could climb, and he often tried to climb on other things at home as well, but when he wasn't at home, he often tried to run off to climb the water tower in the middle of town.

Everytime he tried to climb it, Gilbert and Giselle would be running from wherever they were to save him. Arnie often caused a crowd, but Giselle and Gilbert never paid attention to them. They were too worried about their little brother. If something happened to him, they wouldn't be able to live with themselves. The doctor had told them that he wouldn't live passed the age of ten, but he did. Every time since, the doctor would continue to tell them "...any day now." Giselle refused to believe it, and Momma always called him her little miracle.

Anyhow, while Giselle was stocking shelves during an empty hour, she heard the bells above the entrance chime. She didn't look up, since she believed it could've possibly been Gilbert early with Arnie. Arnie liked to "sneak" up on Giselle and try to spook her. She always pretended to be scared, even though she could hear him running up on her like it was the only noise in the building.

"Excuse me...?" She heard, causing her to quickly look up.

"Hi, sorry," She murmured, placing the box on the ground near the shelves,"How can I help you?" She asked, giving a smile to the man.

The man was close to her age, maybe a couple of years older. He had beautiful green eyes, and short dark hair. He was tall, and he had perfect white teeth. The thing that caught her attention most was the cuts on his face. He still looked handsome, but his cuts were noticeable.

"You work here?" He asked, making her chuckle.

"You're new here," She commented, causing him to smile,"I've been working here for almost four years. I can do pretty much anything, so is there something specific you're looking for?" She asked, and he nodded.

"Just some medical supplies to clean this up." He replied, motioning to his face.

"Over here," She replied, leading him to the right aisle,"grab what you need, and I can clean you up real quick at the front if you want." She commented, and he nodded with a boyish smile.

Giselle walked to the front, and the stranger soon followed with an arm full of things. Giselle grabbed her basic first aid kit and cleaned the man's cuts, before placing gauze on them to keep them clean.

"You always have a first aid kit sitting around?" The man asked, and Giselle shrugged.

"When you have a little brother like mine, you'd know it's best to always have one." She replied, causing the man to nod.

"Thank you..." He trailed off, not knowing her name.

"Giselle, Giselle Grape." She said, and he chuckled.

"Grape? That's a peculiar name, but it fits you well," He murmured,"I'm Mason Glover." He added, and she smiled.

"Nice to meet you, Mason." She replied, putting the prices of the things he grabbed into the register.

"So, Ms. Grape, could you possibly point me in the direction of a grocery store?" He asked,"I need to pick some stuff up before I finally settle into my new house." He said, and she nodded.

"Just a couple of blocks down is Lamson's Grovery, that's where my family shops. There's a bigger store right outside of town, but I've never been." She informed him, causing the man to nod.

"I'll check out Lamson's." He replied, grabbing the bag from her hands.

"Tell Mr. Lamson I sent you, and he'll give you a free chocolate bar. Tell him don't forget to give one to Arnie as well." She said, and he grinned.

"I will, don't worry," He answered,"Hope to see you again soon, Giselle." He added, before he disappeared from the drugstore.

Giselle sighed quietly, a small smile coming to her face. The new man, Mason, was so attractive. She doubted she would see him again, and even if she did, she didn't have time for a relationship, but damn did she want to have him...