When Secret Places Collide

Tara

Martie's hand over my mouth is the only thing that prevents me from screaming. "Shh," he pleads.

I take his hand from my lips. "What good is him not know I'm here now, if he's just going to cut down this tree and both of us are going to fall to our deaths." I hiss at him.

"Tara, first of all, he won't cut it down. Second, if we did fall it's twelve feet at the most, you might break your ankle." I can tell that he is trying to lighten the mood, but I'm not amused. I roll my eyes and start to pace along the walls of the tree house as the rev of the chainsaw becomes just another noise.

Then, there is something different, another sound. It is the sound of a woman shouting. I look out the window and see none other than my own mother storming through the trees with rollers in her hair and a long, bath robe tied around her waist. She waves her arms frantically. "Sir! Mister!" She yells. I collapses to the ground.

"What is it?" Martie asks.

"That's my mother, if she finds out that I lied to her them I'm going to be in almost as much trouble as you."

The noise of the chainsaw dies down and the sound of my mothers screaming fills the space. "You, who the hell are you and what do you think you're doing? It's almost 11:00. It's dark out and since I can hear that terrible noise from my house, I have the right to file a noise complaint! What are you doing out here so late that couldn't wait until morning?"

"I'm cutting down this tree and bringing THIS TREE HOUSE DOWN!" My father shouts up at me.

I yell back at him, "Are you seriously going to cut it down with your only son inside?"

My mother screeches, "Is there a child in there?!"

"Yes, but not for long. He'll have to come down eventually."

"I'm calling the police you lunatic."

I peak out the window as my mother pulls her cell phone.

"Don't," Martie's father says. He puts the chainsaw back on the ATV. He grabs his ladder. "You won this one lady." With that he drives off.

I duck down again when my mother turns towards the tree house.

"Be safe," she says to Martie, who is standing in the window, and waves down at her.