The Chronicles of the Spectaculars

Dad?

Chicago was a great place to live, Oscar thought happily as he went back and forth, up and down. The swingset in the apartment complex's green area was old and creaked as you swung, but Oscar loved it anyway. His father would be out any minute now to see him swing all on his own. Oscar's little legs swung harder, propelling him higher through the air. He would be so proud. The sliding door that connected their apartment to the green area slid open, but it wasn't his dad who came out. Instead, his older brother Lester came out, holding the hand of Oscar's twin sister Sierra with his older sister Genevieve following.

The five-year old was tugging the reluctant twelve-year-old along, and Oscar bit his lip in confusion. "Sierra, where's Dad?" He said in a voice that carried the faintest hint of a whine. Genevieve looked at him with an almost pitying expression. "He's trying to call Mom. She's late getting back."

Oscar shrugged, and continued to swing. That made sense. Mom had taken two-year-old Brody to the doctor for a check-up. And maybe, if she got back soon, she could watch him swing too! Sierra wriggled onto the swing next to him, and Lester reluctantly started to push her on the swing. They went on swinging and pushing for a few minutes, long enough for Sierra to tell Brody all about the mean girl a school. Oscar had heard the story twice already, but he was always happy to hear it again. Right when she got to the part where Vidia hit her doll against the wall, the back door slid open again. Oscar perked up and smiled brightly, excited to show Dad his new trick.

But Dad didn't come over.

He just sat there with his head in his hands. Lester stopped pushing Sierra, sensing danger. Genevieve looked up from her book. Oscar cocked his head. "Daddy? Are you okay? Where's Mommy?"

His father looked up with a tear-filled eyes and a grief-stricken face. "Yes, Oscar. I'm just fine. But Mommy... Mommy isn't coming home."

Oscar's child heart skipped a beat. Mommy wasn't coming home? What was wrong? Genevieve caught eyes with her father and her own eyes filled with tears. "Why are you crying, Daddy?"

"Is Mom okay?" Lester asked with a trembling voice. Their father just put his head back in his hands and shook with quiet sobs. Oscar was suddenly afraid. Mommy?

"Dad?" Lester whispered. "Dad, did she die? Is Brody okay?"

"Dad?"

(420 words)

(hehehehheh)