Short and Simple

The Small Girl~ A Dickensian Style Story

I bounce the basketball on the broken and cracked road. I hang an old woven basket, with a hole cut from the bottom, off a nail projecting off the roof. I bounce the basketball on the broken and cracked road again. I toss the ball in the basket and hope I don't have to reach in and grab it out. As the ball rolls out, my older brother walks out of our rundown house and picks up the already-tearing brown ball. Though he's 20 and in college, two years older than me, I still tower over him by almost five inches.

"Let's play some ball Geneva Louise," my 5'7" brother Esteban says.

"Alright," I reply with a huge smile on my face.

Twenty minutes into our small pickup game, I'm in the lead, 46-23.

"Ok, I need some help," Esteban wheezes after I make another shot and score.

As I laugh, he rings the doorbell of the twin boys, John and Fabio, and his classmate, Lance, to play basketball with.

"So what are the teams?" Fabio asks as he steps out on our fake court.

"Me, Lance, and Fabio versus Geneva Louise and John," my brother divides the uneven group.

"Ew! A girl? On my team? Are you serious Esteban? She won't do," John complains.

"What are you ta—" Esteban starts.

"Naw man. It's alright Esteban. Besides, I have some homework to do and I'm really tired. You guys play," I interrupt him and back out from the game.

The pain must be showing on my face, because as soon as I walk inside the kitchen, my mom asks, "What's the matter?"

I explain the situation to her, without sounding over dramatic about it.

"Geneva Louise, how many times have I told you? You should stop playing basketball. I don't get why you don't quit the school's team. Sports are a guy's thing. You're not a guy, right? Here, take this spoon and finish cooking the gravy for me please," Mother wipes her hands on her apron and walks out.

Dinner time approaches quickly and Father comes home, late and cranky as usual. I place the bowl of steaming gravy in front of his plate of lightly salted mashed potatoes and take my seat next to Esteban.

"So how was everyone's day?" Mother starts off the usual dinner conversation.

My dad continues, "My pay got pulled back,"

"Why?" Mother asks with great concern.

"The company shipped over some more workers. The damn company needs a lot of employees but can't pay for half of them. So what do they do? Cut everyone's pay so that people don't have an excuse and leave," Father's frustration flows out.

"Oh honey, I'm sure we'll be able to work something out. Esteban, what if you took on another job?" Mother reassures the family.

"You mean work at Albertson's and another place too?" he asks.

"Yeah. I mean, it's absolutely necessary that you complete your college education.

You can use part of your wages to pay for tuition. Whatever's left over can help the family! Sounds like a great idea, right?" Mother suggests.

"I guess that can potentially work out," Esteban agrees.

"I can take up a job too, Mother," I pitch in.

"No," my mom and dad unanimously decline.

"Why?"

"Geneva Louise, you are to grow up to become a proper lady, not some workaholic insane stressed out maniac. Besides, there isn't a need for you to work," Mother states.