Dedicating Every Day to You

5k Bonus Chapter!

(A/N: Since you guys are the greatest readers ever, you get a bonus chapter! It's all about our favorite red-sneakered foil, the only one who can actually sing in this whole story, Harriet Hemings! Enjoy!)

Harriet is the daughter of Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson, but you knew that already. What you didn't know is their story, and much of hers. That all ends today- it's Harriet's turn, and she's got a lot to say. She's kindly shared with me some flashbacks, and I'm going to relay them to you.

I sit on the floor in front of the couch, one fist rubbing my eyes. It's late and I'm tired, but there's no way I'm going to bed before Nina. She's sitting on the couch, her long hair immaculate and her pajamas clean. Even now, at seven, I want to be like her. Nina's special- that's what everyone says. She skipped seventh grade, and now she's cruising through eighth with the best grades ever. My mom and dad say I don't have to be like Nina, but I want to be.

"Tell me the story again, of how you met." Nina bounces up and down. She smiles at me, revealing her purple braces.

My mom, Sally, laughs. "Again? Nina, we told you last night."

Nina reaches down and pulls me up next to her. "Harriet hasn't heard it!"

Thomas hugs Sally and kisses the top of her head. "I suppose it could bear telling one more time."

I clap my hands and rest my head on Nina's shoulder. She's my stepsister, but the two of us get along really well. It's nice to not be the only kid in the house, nice to talk to Nina when our parents are fighting (again).

"Once upon a time," Sally begins. Thomas cuts her off.

"That's not how you start a true story! My way is better."

"No, it's not! We're talking to kids, Tommy." Sally clears her throat. "As I was saying, Once upon a time, there was a man named Thomas Jefferson. He was very sad-"

Thomas cuts her off again. "If this part is about me, I get to tell it! Anyway, he was very sad, because his wife had died, leaving him with a tiny baby girl." He reaches over and pats Nina on the head, and she laughs. "He wasn't quite sure what to do, and spent a few months living in depression and squalor."

"What's squalor?" My seven-year-old self has no idea what most of these words mean.

"Think of your messy room. The whole house was like that." Sally taps me on the head. "Speaking of, you need to clean that."

"Tomorrow," I whine.

"Anyway, after a few months, I got bored with depression and squalor. Besides, when you have a two year old, you need to do things like grocery shop and go outside. So, I called a housekeeping service." Thomas hugs Nina.

"They sent a young woman named Sally Hemings to come and clean the house." Sally hugs me. "She took one look at the mess, put on some music, and got down to business."

"Thomas walked in early," Thomas continues. "He saw this beautiful young lady, singing into a feather duster to an old Journey song. He was holding his baby girl in his arms, and he nearly dropped her when he saw this lady."

"Explains how Nina turned out the way she did," I crack. Nina shoves me, and I land on my butt on the living room carpet.

"Sally came to clean the house every week, and every week, Thomas came home a little earlier. He wouldn't always be as surprised to find her jumping around, dancing, and singing. He liked to watch her- she made him feel happy."