August is half sitting half standing in her bouncer while I made faces and played with her. Nat is grinning from the counter.
"My legs are falling asleep sitting here." I tell him. "Your turn." we switch spots, he migrates to the floor and I take his seat at the counter.
"Great, I don't know what I'm going to do!" my mom exclaims to no one in particular. I turn to her, taking in the scent of her many Christmas candles and the food she's got in the oven. Casserole I think. It no longer smelt good to me, instead it was unappealing. A lot of food was lately.
"What's wrong?" I ask her, leaning on the counter.
"I forgot to go to the grocery store, I was busy buying presents and putting up decorations. It just flew by me, and I have stuff in the oven and can't leave."
"It's okay, here just write down a list and we'll go get what you need." I was in a particularly happy mood considering Christmas Eve was tommorow. Everyone gathers at mom's house on Christmas Eve and we open presents and eat and usually people don't leave until after midnight. Mom starts jotting down everything she needs and double checks it before handing it to me.
"Make sure you get non-alcoholic egg nog, well you wouldn't be able to buy it anyway, just make sure that it doesn't have alcohol in it so you don't get in trouble and also so your grandmother doesn't break my tree again this year." Grandma-my dad's mom-loved to embarrass my mom, last year she drank so much eggnog and ate almost all of the rum cake, that when handing out presents she fell and broke a good thirty ornaments and the tree had to be un-decorated and thrown out Christmas night.
"Nat can you go get August's car seat and her a jacket?" I pause "Oh and a hat!" he nods and heads out the door to the barn.
"I've been meaning to ask," mom says, looking up from the bowl shes stirring. "how has it been back at the store? Your dad says your wonderful at the front desk." I laugh.
"That's because I barely do anything! I talk to old people and guide them in the direction that they need, bed frames to your left all the way back, and in any case they can't find it with my simple directions I walk them over to it. " I give a small laugh. "It's not much but I get paid to do it!"
"I think your dad put you there because he hates doing it himself, you know him always having to be moving around. He says he's been helping with repairs recently, and he seems to like being up and helping around his own store again. He says the cousins can't use a staple gun without hurting someone." I grin.
"Sounds about right, he's always complaining about those two." mom covers the bowl in plastic wrap and washes her hands. August tugs at my hair and I take my hair from her tiny slobbery fist.
"Tell mamaw, say I've been rolling around all the time lately and scaring mama." mom looks over at me.
"Oh really?" she holds out her hands to take her. She places August on her hip.
"Say, yep. " I shake her little fist that's holding on to my finger.
"She's getting so big, so fast. Have you seen Ledger? My god he's huge! He's crawling around everywhere!" I turn as I hear the door open and Nat walks back in. I hold out my hands and take August. I pick up the list of items we need to get and tell mom bye as we walk out the door.
As we walk into the store, I can feel the heat thaw me from the cold weather outside. I had August in her car seat covered in a blanket and also wrapped in one. I lift the blanket covering her to see her face, her cheeks are pink and her eyes wide.
YOU ARE READING
Skinny Love
Teen Fiction'A teenage girl comes face to face with her past and must deal with its consequences.' Ella got pregnant at seventeen, by her best friend but he doesn't know about it. Instead of telling him she changed schools and took on a new life where no one kn...
