12
Straw Hat
1. Moving
"Pass the ham, will you, Kelly?" my Aunt Betty asked. Her heavy, country, accent seemed to try and make an indention on me but it just passed right by my like it didn't even matter. I picked up the huge plate and passed it to my mom's sister. See, my mom remarried and my dad thought that it'd be a great idea if I spent some time out on her farm with her new husband, Jeff.
"Kelly, eat something," my mom, Janice, said. Ah, my mother. She was such a young woman sometimes. Sometimes, she didn't care whether I ate and sometimes, she wanted me to eat so much, I'd end up fat like Aunt Betty. No offense to her but she was awfully overweight. My dad lived out in the middle of the city, Dallas, to be exact and he wanted me to go spend a couple months or years with my mom on her farm. She decided that after she divorced my dad, she'd move onto a farm with her fiancé, Jeff. At the time, they were a young couple. Now, they were married.
"I'm not that hungry," I mumbled. Aunt Betty and her husband, Uncle Jerry, looked at me and then resumed eating. Uncle Jerry was quite obese, too. His straw hat covered his bald head and his overalls were a seam away from busting open.
"Kelly, you're going to go on a hunger strike someday, I swear," Mom answered. Jeff laughed his booming laugh, and their cat's eyes opened from her nap. I sighed. Jeff wasn't the nicest person but, he made my mom happy and that's all that mattered. It was New Year's Day and that meant that I had to start at a new school in Farmersville, Texas. It's a small town, northeast of Dallas. It's very rural out here but I'd have to get used to it.
"I just want to go to bed," I lied. It was only seven but I just really didn't want to be around my mom's family anymore. Jeff's sister's kids, Haley and Liam, were here, too, but Haylie was nineteen, two years older than me, and Liam was four. I picked up the cell phone that Dad made me bring with me and dialed his number.
"Hello?" Dad's raspy voice instantly soothed me.
"Dad, thank goodness you answered," I breathed. My dad always calmed me and I really missed him. He was so much more different than my mom.
"Kelly? What's wrong?" Dad's raspy voice instantly became worried.
"Nothing, it's just…I don't like it here," I answered. Farms were not my friends. Cities, yes, they were. Dad laughed.
"You've been there three days. Of course you don't like it yet," Dad teased. He'd never been on a farm. He'd lived in big cities all his life. He grew up in Detroit. Mom grew up in Dallas.
"It's not the same. I don't like it," I argued. A light knock on my door made me jump. Please don't let that be my mom.
"Mom?" I asked.
"Um, no, it's Haley." Haley's soft voice nearly comforted me but I tensed up again. There had been no progress with Haley. I'd seen her twice now and she'd never even bothered to strike a conversation.
"Uh, Dad, I have to go." I clicked the End button on my phone. "Come in," I called to Haley. She opened the door and her curls were bouncing. Haley wasn't really that pretty but I mean, there was some beauty hidden under all of her makeup.
"Your mom wanted me to come check on you," Haley said as she made her way over to my bed. She sat down on my bed and the old frame creaked.
"Oh, well, um, thanks," I mumbled. I tucked a loose strand of hair from my ponytail behind my ear.
"I'm sorry you don't like it here," Haley apologized.
"H-h-how do you know that?" I stuttered. She laughed.
"If you liked it here, you wouldn't have left Janice's table." Haley had quick eyes. I bit my lip and then pulled my pillow onto my lap. We had three more days until school started up and I was hoping that we had a little longer.
"Yeah, I'm not your typical farm girl," I joked. I was trying to be in a joking mood but I really just wanted to go home. Homesickness was not something I usually felt because usually, I wasn't ever homesick.
"Yeah, um, I know you're not our typical farm girl. Anyway, Farmersville is a really good town. You should really give it a shot," Haley tried to convince.
"I just want to go back to Dallas," I snapped.
"Well, I tried," she muttered to herself. And with that, she left.
The next morning, I was shocked to wake up to no rooster cawing to wake everyone up. Did anyone get used to this? I was not about to. I threw my legs over the side of the bed and stood up. A quick gasp escaped my lips about how cold the hardwood flooring was. I scurried over to my small closet and found my slippers. I walked across my room to the door and turned the brass handle. A shower was running and that meant that if I used the bathroom now, whoever was showering would get a little surprise of cold water. I walked down the creaky stairwell and found Jeff sitting at the table, reading the town's newspaper.
"'Morning, Kelly," he greeted. I nodded once and went to the pantry. In Mom's household, you normally had to fend for yourself.
"Um, is Mom making breakfast or is it Fend for Yourself Day?" I asked nervously. Jeff had anger issues so, one little slip and he'd be yelling his head off at you.
"Janice made biscuits. They're in the oven right now, though. Oh, can you drive up to Tractor Supply today and get us some horse feed? We're running low," Jeff asked. I wanted to throw my head back and groan. Jeff knew how weak I was and I didn't have a truck. Neither did they. They had a Corolla, an Expedition, and a tractor. The Expedition wouldn't be a problem but that was Jeff's car. I knew he wouldn't want me driving it.
"Um, I don't really have a truck," I answered. Jeff dug in his pocket until he found something and tossed some car keys to me. They didn't have 'Ford' or 'Toyota' marked on them. Instead, it was Chevy.
"We got you a truck. Hope you like it," Jeff said without looking at me. I knew he wasn't intrigued by the paper but he just wasn't very comfortable around me.
"What year is it?" I asked excitedly. I wasn't planning on a car.
"It's a 1978 Chevy pickup truck. Best kind of truck you can get. It runs great and it's got great mileage," Jeff replied. He flipped the page. "It's in the garage." I wasn't hungry enough to eat right now so I went out to the garage. I pulled open the door and there sat my new truck. It was a light teal color with a white strip underneath it. I unlocked it and sat in the car. I couldn't believe this was my car. I was about to go drive it around town but my stomach had other plans.
"Thanks for the truck, Mom," I thanked whenever Mom was done with her shower. Mom grinned and then drenched her biscuit with honey.
"I knew you'd like it!" she exclaimed as she ruffled my hair. Her sticky fingers would not ruin this perfect day.
"Yeah, I was gonna go drive it but my stomach got a little hungry," I mumbled. I was a lot more comfortable around Mom than Jeff. Mom laughed and then handed me another wrapped present.
"Um, what is this?" I asked as I turned it over. It was kind of thick and it was rectangular.
"Oh, just open it," she teased. I shrugged and then tore open the silver paper. It was a book and I turned it over. The cover read Twilight. Oh no, I was not going to obsess over this book. I made a face.
"I told you she wouldn't like it, Janice," Jeff muttered. He shoved is biscuit in his mouth and then wiped the back of his hand across it.
"You don't like it, Kelly?" Mom asked. Her face was torn and I felt instantly horrible. I couldn't lie to her but I didn't want to tell her straight out no.
"I just don't want to be one of those girls who obsess over the book," I answered slowly.
"Kelly, you can just read it. That doesn't necessarily mean you'll obsess over it," Mom answered, her tone not so sad anymore.
Yes it does! I wanted to scream. I was not going to read this. I gently sat the book down and popped part of my biscuit into my mouth.
"So, are you gonna read it?" Mom asked excitedly. I shrugged.
"I guess," I said. It would give me something to do, other than feed the farm animals. I finished up my breakfast and put my plate in the sink.
"Don't forget to go pick up that horse feed, Kelly," Jeff called as I walked up the stairs.
My room wasn't really big but it wasn't small. It was…average. It was painted a pale yellow and my bed was green. It kind of had a floral theme going on. There were blades of grass painted at the bottom of my walls. It had that 'homey' feeling but I still wanted to go back to Dallas. I opened my closet door and pulled out some jeans and my University North Texas t-shirt out. I found my bag of soap on shampoo and stuff of that nature and walked into the old bathroom. The tub was one of my favorite things of this house. It had those legs that made the tub seem to 'stand up'. I turned on the water and got it really hot, so hot it steamed up the mirror. I undressed and stepped into the tub. The hot water un-tensed my muscles and it seemed to just erase time. Eventually, I decided that Jeff or Mom might need to take a leak. So, I turned off the water and dried myself off. I opened the door and saw Mom dancing around the hallway.
"Thank goodness," she said as she rushed past me, into the bathroom. Whoops. I walked back into my room and blow-dried my hair. I walked downstairs and grabbed my car keys off the table.
"You do know where Tractor Supply is, right?" Jeff asked. I nodded. Whenever Dad was driving me over, we passed it. It wasn't hard to miss in a small town. He grabbed the next plate and I opened the door to the backyard. I opened my truck door and started the engine. It revved and then I pulled out.
I felt so free whenever I was driving. It only took about ten minutes to get from the house to the store. I parked and then walked inside. There was a young girl wiping down the counters with a dry rag and there were a few customers inside. A little boy was playing with the toy tractors.
"Hey," someone called. I turned around and I saw the girl motioning for me to come over.
"Were you calling me?" I asked. She nodded and then swiped the rag across the counter once more.
"Are you new here? Farmersville isn't that big so I know a lot of the people here," she asked.
"Um, yeah, I'm living with my mom," I replied.
"Cool. I'm Kaylie, by the way," she introduced. I smiled. I couldn't believe I wasn't being shy.
"I'm Kelly," I answered. She smiled.
"Do you need any help with finding what you're looking for?" she asked.
"No, I'm fine. Thanks anyway," I said as I walked away from the counter. She seemed like she was my age so I might see her around school. I hoped I would. It would help to know someone. At least, kind of know someone. I found my way towards the food section and found the horse feed. I bought it and then dumped it into the back of my truck. It was around eleven-thirty when I left the store so I thought a little ice cream from Dairy Queen would be a nice little treat. I sat down at one of the booths and licked away. A few boys with Farmersville High School lettermen jackets walked in and they were yelling and talking about the basketball tournament.
"Dude, we're so gonna win!" one of them shouted.
"You can't be so sure," another one denied.
"Prosper isn't that bad of a team," someone agreed. Oh, I'm never going to fit into this school. I finished my ice cream and I was on my way back to Mom's house. I parked my truck in front of the house and carried the horse feed out to the backyard. Jeff was there, feeding the horses on what was left of the food. I handed him the package and he dumped it into the trough.
"Thanks," he said. I went back inside and found Mom cooking lunch. It seemed like grilled cheeses and chips.
"How was Tractor Supply?" Mom asked without turning around.
"It was good. Hey, what's Farmersville High School's mascot?" I asked.
"Uh, the Fightin' Farmers I think," she replied. "Why?" She turned around to face me.
"I was at Dairy Queen and a bunch of them were coming in, talking about the basketball game against Prosper High or something," I answered.
"Oh yeah! You'll love their games, hun," Mom exclaimed suddenly. I smiled and then sat my car keys on the kitchen counter.
"I wasn't really planning on going to any of them," I admitted.
"Oh, come on, Kelly! Their games are fun! You're just nervous about going to that school, aren't you?" Mom asked.
"Well, yeah. It's my first day at a new school and I don't know anybody. I'm not going to the basketball games for awhile. Or any games, truly." Mom sighed and flipped over a grilled cheese.
"Just give Farmersville a try, Kelly," Mom said. I walked up the stairs and found Twilight sitting on my bed. Mom was really desperate for me to get to reading that wasn't she? I opened the cover and started skimming through the pages. It actually didn't look that bad. I flopped down on my bed and started on the first page. I got to page thirteen when Mom called, "Come eat, Kelly!" I closed the book reluctantly and then ran down the stairs. Jeff was already there, devouring his sandwich.
"Sorry, I was reading," I apologized. Mom grinned and sat the bag of potato chips on the small table. I sat down in the chair across from Mom and poured some chips onto my plate.
"Were you enjoying the book?" Mom asked.
"It's actually really good," I replied. I munched on my sandwich and then ate a chip.
"See? Don't judge a book by its cover," Mom quoted. I laughed. Jeff left the table to go back outside so it was just me and Mom.
"So, um, what is Farmersville High like?" I asked.
"Hun, I didn't go to Farmersville High. I went to school in Dallas," Mom answered gently. Great. Now I had no idea what school was like.
"So, I'm kind of "sight-reading"?" I asked.
"Well, kind of but you'll be fine. It's surely not that big. I mean, there are only four-hundred-sixty kids that go there," Mom assured me. Jeez! In Dallas, there were like two to three-thousand kids!
"That's nothing compared to Dallas," I muttered.
"See? There's absolutely nothing to be worried about," Mom promised. I nodded and took my plate over to the sink. Jeff didn't do a very good job of washing the dishes. There were still crumbs scattered in random places on the plate.
"Jeff's not that good of a cleaner," I pointed out. Mom laughed and came over to me. She grabbed a dish towel and started scrubbing the remains of food off.
"Yeah, I've been trying to teach him how to properly wash a plate," she agreed. She elbowed me and then we started laughing. Mom and I washed the rest of the dishes and then I went back upstairs to read. I was really getting into the book. It was getting better and better.
The next time I checked the clock, it was five. I'd been reading for four hours. Who knew time could fly so fast? I closed the book up and then decided I needed to find something to do. I pulled out my Apple laptop that Dad had bought me for Christmas and went to Google to find some good department stores. The closest Target that I found was in Blue Ridge. I had no idea where that was. I got up and went downstairs. Mom wasn't in the living room or kitchen so I went outside. She was sitting on the porch swing, reading a James Patterson book. I sat down on the swing and she put her book down on her stomach.
"What's up?" she asked.
"It feels so good outside," I noted. Mom smiled and closed her eyes.
"That's why I came outside," she replied. I suddenly heard a car start and then I saw Jeff pull out of the driveway.
"I'll be back in about an hour," he called.
"Where are you going?" Mom asked.
"The church needs me!" he yelled. Mom nodded and then he left the house.
"We go to the First United Methodist Church of Farmersville," Mom explained. I nodded every now and then as she explained how they started going there and stuff. I eventually went back inside and found some stuff to make dinner. Mom had complained about how she was tired so I thought I'd be nice and make dinner for them. I found the ingredients for lasagna so I made that.
"That smells delicious," Mom breathed as she came inside an hour later. I grinned. Dad's second wife, Diana, always made dinner back at home so I never got a chance to show off my skills.
"Yeah, Diana always cooks back in Dallas," I replied. I thought it'd be kind of rude if I said, "Back at home".
"Who's Diana?" Mom asked, suddenly confused.
"Dad's second wife," I answered casually. I turned around to see she was walking towards the TV. She turned on the news and she was suddenly engrossed in it. I knew she was just stalling. I thought she'd known about Diana. I guess not.
Jeff had come back around ten and Mom wasn't that mad. She'd wrapped up his dinner in foil and stuck it in the refrigerator. I'd gone to bed before he'd come back because I was so exhausted and I'd woken up the next morning to the rooster cawing. I wish he'd been silent like yesterday. He was extremely annoying. I got dressed into a flannel shirt and jeans and then went downstairs. No one was down there so I looked outside. Mom was riding a horse and Jeff was driving the tractor out in the field.
"Young love," I mumbled. I made myself breakfast, cereal, and then went outside to my truck. It was kind of dirty so I decided I'd go to the carwash later today and get it sparkling clean. Mom got off the horse and led it back to the stable and then came over to me.
"You're riding this horse later today," she said. Did she not know my fear of horses? Once in second grade, I got on a horse, chickened out, and then sat down with Mom while everyone else went riding.
"Uh, no I'm not," I replied. Mom smiled and then handed me a riding helmet. I immediately took it off.
"Do you not remember second grade?" I asked. Mom frowned.
"I thought you got over that," she answered. I shook my head.
"Horses are not my friends," I muttered. I walked back inside the house and grabbed my car keys. Maybe now would be a good time to go and wash my truck. I walked back outside, got in my car, and then drove off toward Main Street. I found a carwash and it made my car look a lot better. I saw a few kids with lettermen jackets on but ignored them. It was like, trying to remind me that school was starting in two days. I mean, how many people had these jackets if there were only four-hundred-sixty students going there? I drove around town and decided to get a Blizzard at Dairy Queen. Maybe this would soothe me.
The morning of the starting of school, I was a mad woman, trying on every outfit possible, trying every hair style possible, and finding every way to ease my nerves. I decided on jeans and a plaid shirt with a white shirt underneath. It looked okay but my hair in pigtails really helped. It kind of gave me that "country girl" look, which is exactly what I needed. I knew that everyone would be staring at me already but I assumed this would help me fit in. I ate a small breakfast, simply oatmeal, and grabbed the keys to my truck. My hand was shaking as I put them in the ignition. I knew I'd cause a wreck today. It was so easy to figure out. I drove down to Farmersville High School and I saw that there weren't a lot of cars. A few started pulling up as I got out of my truck to go to the front office. It was rounded at the end and my hand was shaking as I opened the front doors. People were staring at me when I walked up to the doors but I carefully ignored them. I walked in and I saw a lady at a computer. She was typing and every now and then, the phone would ring. I took a deep breath and walked up to her.
"One minute, dear," she said. She held up one finger as the phone shrilled. She answered it and talked for about two minutes.
"How can I help you?" she asked.
"Uh, I'm Kelly Davis. I'm new here," I answered steadily. The lady smiled.
"Welcome to Farmersville High! I'm Mrs. Mendez. Here's your schedule," she replied as she dug through a file cabinet. She finally came out with a crisp piece of paper. She handed it to me and then highlighted the parts where finding it might be a little tricky. Mrs. Mendez smiled as I walked back outside. Kids were still staring at me so I hurried to my truck. I waited there until the bell rang. My first class was English with Mr. Bryce. He made me introduce myself to the class but other than that, everything on my first day was okay. I sat at the end of a table by myself at lunch but I mean, who would want to sit with the new girl? I remember that I never did whenever I was in Dallas.
"How was your first day at school?" Mom asked whenever I got back to the house. I shrugged.
"It was okay," I mumbled. It was truly horrible. I hadn't made a single friend and I didn't think I would.
"Why do you sound so upset?" Mom asked. She came over and smoothed my hair back.
"Because I'm tired," I lied. Mom smiled without humor and then Jeff came in with a shovel.
"Jeffery! Get that muddy thing out of here!" Mom yelled. I sighed and then took my bag upstairs. I didn't have any homework but I didn't want to be downstairs with them. I didn't really want to read anything, either. I sat down at my computer and decided to e-mail Dad about my first day at school.
Dad,
School was okay, I guess. I haven't made any friends, though. I hope that you're doing okay back home. Love you,
Kelly.
I pressed Send and I hoped that he'd e-mail me back. I didn't feel like talking to anyone so I didn't bother calling him.
I went to bed early that night, not bothering to eat. I knew that Mom was going to throw a fit but honestly, I just wanted to die.