Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 70429 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70429 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
“Mama, please wake up.”
I sat there for a bit. Waiting. Mama just kept on sleeping. I exhaled, and looked at the cover of the coloring book in my hand. This one was all about Dragon Tales. Not as fun as Sesame Street, but it would do. My heart hammered in my chest when I heard a sudden knock on the side door in the kitchen. I got up so fast, I almost tripped over my own feet. I raced to it, then stopped in my tracks. What if it was the man Mama was having a tiff with? Did he come back to put me up high to sleep, too?
I stood there, frozen. Gripping a purple crayon.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
“Cheyenne!!!” I heard a voice scream. “Cheyenne! I know you’re in there! Ya truck is still parked here outside. You know damn well you was ’sposed to cover my shift this morning. You left me high and dry. After all the times I’ve covered for you! Open this door!”
Whoever it was, they were sure angry. They didn’t feel like Madonna towards my mama. They didn’t want to dress ’er up in their love. I inched closer and closer to the door, about to break that crayon in two, I squeezed it so hard.
“Who is it?” I managed to pipe out.
All of a sudden, the banging stopped. After a few moments of quiet, ’cept for Madonna and Sue, a lady’s voice said real nice like, “Oh, hi. You must be Caspian.” She couldn’t see me. I couldn’t see her. So how did she know my name? “You probably don’t ’member me, but I work wit’ your mama at the gas station. My name is Kathy. Cheyenne was supposed to come into work this morning, but she didn’t.”
“…Oh. Mama sleep.”
“Sleep? This time of day? How long she been sleep, honey?”
“A long time.”
There was a long, silent pause.
“Are you in there by yourself, Caspian? I mean, besides your mama?”
“Just me and Mama. Oh, and Sue. Sue is a parrot. She’s sixteen years old and likes bird seeds.”
“That’s nice, honey. Can I talk to your mother please, baby?”
“…Oh. I’m not supposed to open the door without tellin’ Mama first.”
“But I’m a friend, honey.”
I looked back in the direction of Mama’s room. Maybe this Kathy lady could wake her up.
“Baby, open the door and let me in, please. It’s okay. I promise,” she stated before I could say anything else, or think another thought.
I decided I could trust this lady. Even though she’d been yellin’ and bangin’ on the door and was mad at Mama, maybe she could help get her down, so she could take me to school, then go to work? Was school over? I didn’t right know. I’m going to open the door. It was worth a try. Reaching for the doorknob, I turned it like Mama taught me. I leaned against the door as I did it, ’cause it stuck a little sometimes, and opened it wide.
When I did, a lady with bushy blond hair was standing there wearing a shiny green jacket and jeans. She had big, pretty green eyes, big boobies, and a little white purse in her hands.
“Well, hi, handsome!” She reached down and pinched my cheek. “Can I come in, sweetheart?” she asked once again as I blocked her way.
“Mmm hmmm.” I stepped aside, allowing her in, still holding that crayon in case I needed it for protection.
Once in the house, the woman looked around.
“Boy, it’s a little chilly in here, ain’t it? Yo’ mama shoulda lit a fire. Anywho, where’s ya mama, honey?” It seemed awfully quiet right then. Even with Madonna still singing the way she did. “Is she okay?” The woman’s face changed, now appearing disturbed. Curious. Unsure. She studied the room, her forehead wrinkled. Her gaze rested on the sink full of dishes.
“She’s in there.” I pointed toward her bedroom.
“Okay… Cheyenne? You awake, honey? It’s me, Kathy.” The woman left me there and made her way through the kitchen, and into the bedroom. I could hear her footsteps becoming more and more faint.
I stood there. Holding that purple crayon. Holding it tight. It colored pretty pictures in my mind.
“AHHHHHHHH!!!!” A bloodcurdling scream came from Mama’s bedroom. “JESUS!!! OH MY, JESUS!!!”
The woman with the big hair came runnin’ out, her boots hammerin’ the floor, and she snatched me up in her arms, holding me tight to her bosom. Then, she rushed me out of the house, towards a small black car that had puffs of gray smoke comin’ out the back of it. A man was sitting in the driver’s seat, smoking a cigarette, wearin’ a baseball cap.
“Travis! We gotta call the police!!! PLEASE! My God!!! Oh my God!!!” The woman was clutching me so tight to her, I could barely breathe. She snatched the passenger’s side door open, sat down, and hugged me even tighter. Although it was a bit uncomfortable, I returned her embrace with one arm. Maybe she needed the hug more than me. I made sure to keep a hold on my little purple crayon, too.