Heredity

Chapter 7

She searched the kitchen for something to take in a lunch. It was weird. In this house she rarely ever came in the kitchen except on Wednesday's when Alyssa came at Two. The kitchen was Alyssa's domain. Snacking, according to her mother meant you didn't eat enough at meals. At their old house snacking was practically a commandment.

Dairy Queen runs, late night pizza and popcorn during movies lounged all over the living room were things they took for granted. Sophie remembered hanging out at Chris's after school and dumping the ends of all the chip bags in a bowl like a giant horse trough. They'd lay with legs entwined on the couch while his brothers and sisters caused all kinds of havoc. It was loud and chaotic and it always made her feel like a part of something bigger.

She opened the cupboards scrounging for any scrap of food that was portable. When she closed it Alyssa was there causing her to scream.

"Holy shit Alyssa. You scared the crap out of me. Try clearing your throat or something when you come in."

Alyssa looked as afraid as she felt.

"Sorry, Ms. Sophia. I meant no harm."

She studied her trying to figure out her age, maybe early 20's. Too old to be in a shitty job like this. Cooking and serving meals to a stuffy dysfunctional family.

"No, it's my fault. I just didn't hear you. Sorry about that. And, it's just Sophie. Or Soph. Okay?"

Alyssa gripped her hands and her eyes grew round. She looked...scared.

"At least when it's just us. I'm not trying to get you into trouble. I'm still getting used to all this title crap. Do we have anything I can take to work? The Strogolian's have like no food. And I'm not talking about snack food. I'm talking zero food."

Alyssa nodded and moved toward the cupboards. Her hands quickly grabbing things and dumping them on the cupboard.

"I don't mind getting it myself Alyssa. You aren't my servant. Speaking of which, why are you here. Wouldn't flipping burgers or selling clothes be a hell of a lot easier? And less creepy?"

Alyssa's expression darkened and her lips pinched together. She focused on what she was preparing and Sophie focused the girl. Her uniform looked straight out of an old movie. Her hands seemed aged, much older than her face.

"It's not a job Ms. Sophie. It's an honor. It's my heritage. My family has served your family for hundreds of years. It's how we've survived."

Her words were proud, and even though they came across kindly Sophie felt embarrassed and the prick of guilt.

"No disrespect Alyssa. Believe me, I get the family debt thing. Coming here wasn't even voted on. My dad changed when grandpa passed. It was like the whole world was going to end if we didn't get here to fill the space. But... it's the 20th century. Things like servitude and heredity don't matter as much. The world is an open book now, you can be whatever you want. And I think you'd be great at anything you wanted to do."

Alyssa handed Sophia a bag of food and looked at her with such intense sadness Sophia felt her pain.

"Sometimes our past makes our choices for us. But thank you. It's nice to speak with you when you aren't angry, or craving a cheeseburger."

The crinkles around her eyes and the half smile made Sophie feel warm.

"Thank you for the food. Staying up all night was tough, but not as tough as starving."

Alyssa laughed and Sophie laughed with her. It felt like having someone from back home to talk to. Someone who dressed weird, but at least someone close to her age.