Stay...Calm

Chapter 13

I dedicated the following chapter in loving memory of my Grandmother

That next day, the clouds turned an odd shade of light gray and released loads of snowflakes. Buckley almost shouted when he saw it. Most of the kids had their faces pressed against the window for a minute until they were shooed away from it. No one got as excited about it as Victorine. She sat by the window in the bathroom; the quietest place in the house. She curled up on the closed toilet, with her legs under her butt, and she gazed out at the beta winter wonderland before her.

The hoards of tiny white particles rained down from the sky, flowing and glistening on their way to the gray ground. The sunlight allowed her to see the details in the way that snowflakes gently swayed in the air, all in groups. Even though each seemed to fall on their own terms. They were a bit too tiny to be seen in detail, but she could see how each was almost clear when you looked at it close enough. She knew that each one is different, but from this perspective, it was difficult to see it.

She was in awe as she focused on the snow. But when her attention shifted to the outside, the falling snow seemed to almost fade away; she was pretty much looking through it. The snow wasn't the sticking kind, that compacts and sticks. It was mostly the kind that leaves enough of a dusting to cover the ground but still allowed the grass to peek out. It stuck to the top end of the tree branches, weighing them down an inch. Nearly every branch was laced with the bright white. It would take a moment, but eventually, a bit of snow would fall off.

How long, Victorine wondered. Until all the snow falls away?

Her thought was interrupted by an abrupt knock on the door.

"Some of us hafta pee!" Lee shouted. Victorine's head whipped to the side. She let out half an eye roll.

"Take no frickin' more than a minute, you-"

Victorine hopped off and opened the door to see Lee's finger about four inches from her face. Lee paused upon realizing who she was pointing at and took a step back.

"Sorry, bud," Lee mumbled. Victorine skirted away, staying on the balls of her feet. She went straight for the staircase and sat on the railing. Her hands gripped the railing, and let go for a few seconds at a time. Each time she would slide down about a foot and then suddenly stop when it got too fast for comfort. Once she was far down enough to slide right off, she made her way to the kitchen. She pressed her back against the wall and looked over her shoulder into the living room.

The view offered a glimpse at the layout of the room, with Pauline and Buckley sitting on separate couches, Yolanda leaning up against the wall, and Horace sitting on the biggest couch with his feet up. Yolanda has raised an eyebrow at him as if she just finished processing something he just said to her. And from the looks of it, it wasn't anything good.

"You seriously think I can't five-star you?" she questioned, her arms folded across her chest. Horace shrugged smugly. Victorine tiptoed into the living room and leaned against the arm of the couch.

"I didn't say you couldn't," Horace clarified. "It just wouldn't hurt."

"Really?"

Horace shrugged again, choking down a laugh.

"Do you even know what those are?" Yolanda questioned.

"Yeah, I do," Horace scuffed. "A slap that leaves the red hand mark 'n such."

"Oh! This kid at my school gave me one of those!" Buckley chimed in. "I was staring into space for a bit too long, I guess. And then he asked me if something was wrong with my brain. And then I asked him the same thing, and then-"