Summer Dreams

Old Friends

"Linda?" A familiar British voice wondered.
"Remington!" She smiled widely and hugged the young man.
Danny, by no means learned in the fashion world, guessed Remington was wearing Gucci or Prada. The clothes looked to rich to be from a Sears catalog.
"Hi! I haven't seen you in weeks! How're you doing?"
"Very good. The mansion is being remodeled, so we've had to reside in Daniel's friend's house."
"Oh, you like it there? At Daniel's friend's, I mean."
"It's not as big as Chalmers' mansion, but it's comfortable."
"Speaking of comfortable, where's your partner in crime?"
"Laura? Oh, she's, uh.... she went to get some grape candy or something like that."
"Ah. Well, we should have dinner sometime. Your family and mine. After all, it could be a great business merge for Daddy."
Danny frowned. She said 'Daddy' much too airily for his liking; it was almost as if she was mocking him. He cleared his throat, feeling like an idiot just standing still.
"Oh! Remington, this is Danny. He's out new pool guy, Gardner, window washer. Stuff like that."
"Hello," Remington gave Danny a small nod and a smile, while fiddling with his watch.
"Hey," Danny raised an eyebrow. He had a sudden feeling that he wouldn't like working for the rich people.
"Linda? Oh my gosh, hi!" A girl with long, light-brown hair smiled widely, holding her arms open for a hug.
"Laura!" Linda hugged her friend, then pulled back. "It's good to see you! Both of you."
"Who's the cute guy?" Laura nodded in Danny's direction. She was never one for beating around the bush.
"Oh, that's Danny. He's the yard guy. Y'know, washing windows, watering the plants, feeding the fish."
"You don't have any fish."
"True. Anyways, I was just telling Remington that our families should get together-" Linda gasped, "we could hold a lawn party! Invite all the rich people in the neighborhood. We'd see our friends, and our dads can discuss business abnauosium."
"That's a great idea!" Laura smiled widely. "Whaddaya think, Remington?"
"Sounds like an excellent plan."
Danny observed the friends. Remington looked to be the oldest, at twenty two, twenty three. Linda looked a bit older than Laura, but he chalked that up to the way the blonde dressed and acted. So far, it seemed as though Laura was the one getting in trouble, the hyperactive one.
"Uh, Linda? I hate to interrupt this reunion, but you're gonna be dead if we're not back by four." Danny warned .
"Oh, you're right!" Linda turned to her friends, "I'll see you two tomorrow. For lunch by my pool."
"It's a date," Laura smiled as she linked arms with Remington. They waved to their friend and walked away.
"Let's hurry, I don't want to be late!"
************
"How long have you known Laura and Remington?" Danny asked as they drove home.
"Oh, uh.... ten years, maybe."
"And Laura... She's the trouble maker?"
"Oh no! She was just excited to see me! She's usually very down to earth. Remington's the trouble maker."
"And who's Daniel?"
"Oh, he's a rich oil tycoon. See, Remi and Laura's parents died in a plane crash when Remi was ten or eleven. Laura would've been seven or so. Daniel, being friends of both the families, took them in. Without a second thought."
"Oh. That's too bad. I know how that must feel."
Linda raised an eyebrow.
"Well, not the moving in with a friend part. The loved one dying part. See, there used to be this guy in the neighborhood. George was his name, and he was like a grandpa to everyone. I'd known him all my life. Then, one day, he just.... died. With no warning or anything. Just... gone."
"Oh," Linda frowned, "I'm sorry. How old were you?"
"I was eleven."
"Oh. Gee, that's- that must suck."
"The widow is still around, and she makes sure every underprivileged kid is privileged. She always calls Jim or Pete to make sure the kid gets proper care."
"Uh, Jim and Pete?"
"Cops. They're friends of the family. They don't work out neighborhood, though. Actually, I'm pretty sure they work your neighborhood."
"Oh. Well, I'll have to say hi sometime."
He pulled up to the curb (in the back of the house, of course), and turned off the engine.
"Thanks for helping me," Linda smiled at him from across the truck bed.
"No problem." He shrugged, "besides, I kinda have to do what they tell me."
Linda giggled and grabbed the grocery bags. "That's true."