The Way We Were

The Way We End Summer

Mercedes rubbed the back of her neck tiredly. It was twilight and she was super tired. She exited the garden on the side of the house from picking foods for dinner and went inside.

She met Marcy going inside. "Hi."

"Hey." Marcy had Mickey on her back in a baby sling while Mally was on her chest.

"Where have you been? Ms. Judy radioed everyone for dinner fifteen minutes ago." Mercedes held open the door.

"I was drawing the twins." Marcy held up the drawing pad she held in her hands.

"Out in the fields? In the hot sun? They could have a heatstroke!"

"I had them in the shade, relax." Marcy frowned.

Mercedes shook her head. "They are going to end up pitch black with you keeping them out."

"They're mixed. They're going to get only so dark." Marcy rolled her eyes.

"Daddy's mixed and look at him."

"And we look just like him so worry about your skin."

"We look like Momma, too. Only Marc's light as she is."

Marcy giggled. "I think Marc's even lighter than Momma."

"Not this summer."

Marcy covered her mouth with her hand. "He's dark gold now, huh?"

Mercedes laughed as they made it to the kitchen. "He still thinks he's God's gift to women."

"He's also crazy so it's not like we take what he says all that serious in the first place."

"Marcy!" Laura chided as she turned around from stirring a pot on the stove. "Don't say that!"

"She's someone else we don't listen to." Marcy left the room.

"She's completely not politically correct!" Laura stomped a foot.

Mercedes set her basket of produce on the table. "You know she likes to mess with you."

Laura sniffed. "I know. It doesn't get any easier though."

Judy smiled. "Are you girls ready to go home?"

"I am." Laura turned back to the stove. "College is going to be so amazing."

"I'm glad you're going to State so you won't be so far away from us. I know we never said it but we were going to miss you." Mercedes began washing off the veggies she'd brought in.

Laura reached over and pinched her still childishly chubby cheek. "I would have missed you, too."

Mercedes beamed. "Ms. Judy, I saw a model in a magazine we got at the market yesterday and she had such pretty hair. Can you take me to the salon to get my hair cut like hers?"

"Cut?!" Olga, who'd been listening with half an ear as she cooked, looked over. "What is this nonsense of cutting your hair?"

"It's a really cute cut, Grandmama. It's a bob. I was thinking of dyeing my hair fully black, too. So it'll match hers? I'll get the magazine and show you!" Mercedes ran out of the kitchen before anyone could say anything.

She ran upstairs to her room and looked through her things until she found the Swedish rag then came back downstairs. Marcy was back with Quinn.

Mercedes flipped through the magazine until she found the right page. "Here. See? Isn't it nice?"

Olga took the page and looked over the bored looking model. "It is nice but not for you. Your hair is long after your haircut. No. No, you will not cut it."