The Book of Leah

Tale as Old as Time - Chapter 32

June 17, 1992,  Stanton House, Milwaukee Suburbs, WI 

Jake picked up the phone, dialed, and waited.

"Hello," came Bonnie's slightly groggy voice.

"Good morning." said Jake

"Do you know what time it is?" asked Bonnie

"It's 9 am," said Jake.

"Exactly," said Bonnie. "I was sleeping."

"Really? I've been up," said Jake.

"Oh, I'm sure you've been up since 5:30 with your grandmother. "interrupted Bonnie. "I worked for 12 hours yesterday at the diner while you and Sleeping Beauty were out cavorting on the jumbotron."

"Woah there," said Jake. "Wait, did Leah say that?"

"No, you moron. Lucy called my grandma last night. You're front-page news."

"Great," thought Jake. "But now that I'm awake, what's up?" asked Bonnie.

"Well, LT and I are taking the boys to a movie today and were wondering if you ladies would want to go," asked Jake.

"Who all's going, and what movie?" asked Bonnie.

"Well, it will probably be all the kids, so either FernGully, Sister Act, or Beauty and the Beast," said Jake.

"Ooh, I'd see Beauty and the Beast again, and Sister Act looks amazing. I've heard it's got some violence in it though. How old is Nicky?" asked Bonnie.

"Just turned 6," said Jake. "I know Lana had talked about Sister Act as well. The boys might like it too. So I'm not sure about Nick. Maybe we'll do FernGully. I'll find out."

"What time are you going?" asked Bonnie.

"Probably around 1 to 1:30," said Jake.

"Well, when the princess awakens, l'll ask her," said Bonnie.

"Sounds good," said Jake. "I'll call back before we head out."

Around 11, the Stanton house was bustling with Lucy talking with Lana as the three boys were running around the backyard.

"Okay, so what time do you think you'll be back?" Lucy asked.

"Well, if we get to the pizza place by noon and leave by 1, we should catch a 1:30 movie most likely, so 4:30 to 5," said Lana.

"Well, let's see, let me get my purse. How much do you think you'll need?" asked Lucy.

"Five matinées and two buckets of popcorn and soda will probably be like $30, and lunch will be probably $25," said Jake.

"Here's $60. If there's extra, can you cover?" asked Lucy.

"Sure, Grandma," said Jake.

"Thank you. Just let me know later," said Lucy. "I'll be out with the women's rotary for the afternoon."

"Okay," said Jake as he turned. "Hey Lana, I'll be right back."

Jake slipped upstairs and called Bonnie.

"Hello," came a southern voice.

"Hey, Leah" said Jake. "Did you recuperate from yesterday?"

"Pretty much," Leah answered. "I think I got a little too much sun. How about you?"

"Yeah, me too. Did Bonnie tell you what we're up to?" asked Jake.

"She mentioned you were taking the boys to a movie," Leah said.

"Yeah, I'm about to load up the Buick with Lana and the boys and be at Mayfair around 1-ish after we do lunch."

"Okay, hang on," said Leah. "He's catching the 1:30," she yelled out toward the hall.