State of Grace (Complete)

Garbage Grace

 On Halloween Daddy has to work, so Mommy pays Maggie to take me out with the twins. As much as I'm sad that Daddy can't come, I am thrilled that I am going with Ian and Chris. We plan our costumes together, and Maggie even follows suit. Ian is Mario, Chris is Luigi, I am Princess Peach, and Maggie decides to be King Boo. We've been playing Mario a whole bunch at the Reed's house lately, even though Mommy and Daddy think video games rot your brains. Maggie is going to a party after trick or treating, so we drag our bags from house to house running, so that Maggie doesn't lose her patience and we can cover as much ground in the time she gives us before taking us home.

At eight o'clock Maggie walks us back, but Mrs. Reed is waiting for us on the front porch. My house is suspiciously dark.

"Grace, Honey, you're staying at our house tonight. Your Mommy isn't feeling well, so your Daddy took her to the hospital. Are you okay with sleeping here?" She asks, sympathy tinges her voice.

"Is Mommy okay?" I ask.

"I'm sure she'll be fine, Honey."

"Is the baby okay?" Maggie asks. "Grace knows, Mom." Mrs. Reed's face betrays the answer without even speaking.

"Come inside, now children."

Maggie lets me stay in her room while she changes into her real costume, a flapper, she says, which as far as I can tell just means a short dress and some beads.

"Why are you changing?"

"Because a ghost is a great costume if you don't want to get noticed, but a short dress is a good costume if you do," Maggie patiently explains.

"Why would you want to get noticed?" This is interesting stuff.

"To get a boyfriend."

"Oh, I don't need one of those."

"Nope, besides if you had one, my brothers would kill him." Maggie finishes her make-up while I watch, then slips on a pair of fancy shoes.

"You look so pretty, Maggie," and she does. Her whole outfit makes her look a bunch older. "You look at least in high school."

"I do?" She's pleased with the compliment. "Now get out of my room and go hang out with the twins."

I get to stay at the Reeds house for three whole nights and it is the most fun I've ever had. I miss Daddy and I'm concerned that Mommy is sick, but sleeping over at the Reed's is like lifting a giant weight off my shoulder. Making noise in their house is allowed. I can put my feet on the sofa and if I run in the halls, it's not a big deal. We eat our Halloween candy for breakfast, and it's okay. I'm supposed to sleep in the twin's room on an air mattress that they had in the garage and we tell scary stories before bed. In the middle of the first night, I'm woken up by Chris who is having a bad dream. When I sit up and look across the room, Ian has climbed down from the top bunk and is sitting on Chris' bed, rubbing his back.

"It's okay, Gracie, go back to sleep," Ian sleepily explains, "he does this sometimes."

Ian isn't just my protector, he's Chris's too. It's a big job for an almost seven year old, so I get up and join him. Together we sit with Chris between us and whisper silly secrets until we fall back asleep. And that's how Maggie finds us in the morning when she wakes us for breakfast.

"Like three peas in a pod," she says, shaking her head.

The next two nights, the air mattress is forgotten, and I just climb into bed with Chris, happy to help him sleep better. Ian must feel left out, though, because he climbs in with us sometime in the night, too.