Green Thumb

Chapter two

          Lorrence stretched his body and pulled the covers off. His stood up from his bed and glanced at the clock.
          5:30, it read. Lorrence's bare feet slapped on the ground as he trudged down the hall. He shuffled through the doorway and into the kitchen, to be greeted by Saku attempting to make breakfast himself. Lorrence darted forward and grabbed Saku before he could swipe the eggs from the refrigerator.
          "Oh, good morning gramps! I was gonna surprise you and make breakfast," the child explained. Lorrence looked down at him, and smiled.
           "I appreciate the thought, but you could have dropped the eggs. Or burned yourself attempting to turn on the stove," Lorrence spoke. He patted Saku on the head and tried to run his hands through the child's unruly hair. His finger were caught, like a mouse in a trap, for Saku's hair was tangled from sleep.
          "If you go and brush your mop, I'll have breakfast almost ready when you get back," Lorrence said. Saku nodded and padded down the hall, with his usually child like energy. Lorrence grinned and shook his head. He turned and began to cook one of the eggs Saku had successfully retrieved from the fridge. As he continued making breakfast he heard Saku come skipping back into the kitchen. He turned slowly, and saw the young boy with a hairbrush stuck in his hair.
          "Heya gramps, I tried to brush my hair, but I can't get the brush out." Lorrence chuckled and turned to fully face Saku. He stared at the child's hair for a long moment.
          "Well Saku, seems like you are in quite the bind. We may have to shave you bald!" Lorrence finally spoke.
          "No! Not my hair!" Saku squealed. He tugged harder on the brush, making feeble attempts to get it out. Lorrence gently took Saku's hand and put it to his side.
          "First, let's eat, then we can figure out what to do about your hair," Lorrence spoke calmly. Saku happily agreed, for he had cause himself quite a lot of pain from trying to rip the hair brush free.
The two sat down at a small table in the kitchen and began to eat. Lorrence watched as Saku shoveled eggs and toast into his mouth, not stopping to take a breath. He gulped down his juice and let out a loud sigh.
"Whew! Gramps that was really good!" Saku exclaimed. He rubbed his stomach with a wide grin on his face. Lorrence smiled at this and continued to throughly chew his food.
          "So gramps, how do you think we are gonna get this brush out of my hair?" Saku asked. Lorrence put the last of his food in his mouth, as he thought about Saku's question.
          "Maybe if we can get your hair wet, it will cause it to not be as frizzy, and then the brush will be easier to get out." Saku thought about this and nodded.
          "Sounds like a good idea! I'll go start getting my hair wet!" Saku ran down the hall, and Lorrence heard a rush of water from the bathroom. He stood up, put the dishes in the sink and walked down the hall to join Saku.
          Saku had already drenched his head, and was trying to slowly maneuver the brush out of his hair. He pulled lightly at first, then began tugging violently. Lorrence came over to him, and slowly took hold of the brush. Within 20 minutes, Lorrence and Saku had successfully removed the brush from Saku's hair. The child smiled.
          "Thanks Gramps. That was really frustrating." Saku bounced up and down, happy to be rid of the brush. Lorrence only smiled and walked out of the room.
          "Well Saku, as much fun as that was, I have to get dressed and begin my work," Lorrence said. Saku skipped behind him and poked at his back.
          "Can I help you today gramps? Please? I promise I'll be helpful," Saku exclaimed. Lorrence nodded.
          "You always are helpful when I let you come into the forest with me. I suppose today you can help out," Lorrence said. Saku squealed in excitement.
          "Yay! I love going out into the woods!" Saku chirped.
          "You better go get dressed. You can't work in your sleeping attire." Saku nodded and went into his room. Lorrence also went to his room and quickly dressed in his work clothes. He adjusted his flannel sleeves to be rolled up. He grabbed his straw hat and headed to the living room.
          Lorrence found Saku sitting on the couch. Lorrence looked at Saku's overalls and plain shirt to make sure he was appropriately dresses. He nodded and the two headed out the door to begin the days work.