July 20th, 1963
Ford was rereading a book while his twin threw a football and caught it when gravity sent it back to him as the boy laid on the floor of their messy room. Though the nine-year-olds had just finished supper, the sun still shone brightly, a good two hours before it would set. About halfway through the summer and other than finding the New Jersey Devil, the twins hadn't done a single thing except be prison-mates, for they were grounded all summer long. At first, it was pretty boring, but the two young brothers quickly learned that solitary confinement isn't so bad with the right prison mate.
A soft knock came at their window and Ford jumped off the top bunk to reach it. He saw Hephzie wave at him, her fuzzy black hair sticking everywhere and her face dirty. Ford opened the window and she crept quietly as to not be discovered by Ma or Pa.
"Hephzie!" Ford hissed and hugged her.
Stan got up from the floor and punched her shoulder lightly. "Hey, Hephzie!"
"Hey guys!" Hephzie whispered back and dug through the pocket of her overalls. "I brought ya somethang…"
Hephzie had made it a personal goal of hers to bring "treasure" for her best friends every day. If anyone got the bitter end of the whole grounded-all-summer fiasco it was Hephzie, because her best friends were grounded and weren't allowed to see her. She had tried to visit, but Pa only slammed the door in her face. It didn't take long for Hephzie to find out that she was a great climber, and so every night she would climb into their bedroom through the window and bring them a "treasure", since they couldn't go out and find their own. Today, she pulled out a tiny shell that swirled. It was the color of butter and when Ford gently grazed it with his fingertips as it laid in the palm of Hephzie's hand, it felt soft to the touch. It was perfect and not a single chip could be found, a rare treat to find on a beach full of glass shards.
"Wow." Ford breathed. "Thank you."
"Thanks, Hephzie!" Stan said and reached to grab it, but Hephzie held the shell back.
"Wait, wait, watch!" She said and held the shell up to her lips and gently blew on it. To see what the commotion was all about, a small snail poked its head out, its antenna-eyes growing longer and its slimy body leaving its home, making Hephzie's spine shiver as the slimy substance touched her skin.
Stan and Ford's eyes grew huge at the sight of the snail. It slowly inched towards her fingers, so Hephzie put her hands towards Stan's and he held it by his friend's hand to let the snail crawl onto his palm. "Wow," Stan awed. "A new pet!"
"Shh!" Ford hissed, afraid of their father overhearing, but no footsteps could be heard, and Ford was too delighted by the snail to worry too much about being caught. "It's amazing."
"Thanks, Hephzie!" Stan repeated as he grinned at the snail.
"Now he can keep y'all company!" Hephzie said excitedly, getting the idea when she saw the little fellow itching on the concrete. "What'll ya call him?"
"Sebastian." The twins said at the same time, without hesitation.
"Okay, Stan, it's my turn." Ford said and his brother held out the little snail. It crawled up into Ford's six-fingered hand, making him giggle, but then the intelligent child thought of something. "Where will he live?"
Hephzie grinned, having already thought of this, and dug into her second pocket, just barely big enough to hold a small mason jar, with a twig and leaf inside, and holes poked into the lib to give Sebastian air. It was clear that she had worked on this project for awhile and was proud to show her work. "Surprise!" Hephzie whispered.
Ford grinned and gently pinched Sebastian by his shell to place him in his home while Hephzie unscrewed the lid. Sebastian was placed on the leaf and then retreated back into his shell, dome with social interaction for the time being. Ford put the jar on the nightstand by the window and then turned back to Hephzie. "We have a surprise for you, too."
Hephzie grinned and bit her lip so she wouldn't squeal. Stan took her hand and gently pulled her towards their clubhouse; it used to be only a single blanket pinned up by a rope in the corner, but with all the extra free-time the twins had, Fort Stan had expanded by three blankets and was cushioned by a mess of pillows. The boys let the girl in first and she sat on a pillow, hugging her knees as they bounced in her hold, excited to see what the twins had been working on. Stan sat next to her while Ford crawled to the back where Hephzie was facing. He placed a flashlight on top of a stack of books and turned it on, casting a bright light on the wall of a blanket. Using his extra fingers to his advantage, he created a really good bunny and made the fluffy guy clean his face with twitchy ears. The details made Hephzie's eyes widen with wonder and Stan laughed at her expression. Encouraged by her love for the bunny, Ford used his arm to make a grassy hillside for the little bunny to hop up on, and then the bunny wiggled a teeny tiny tail, making Hephzie cover her mouth with both hands to keep her "aw" quiet.
Stan crawled so he was on the other side of the makeshift stage and started to create his own shadows. He made a dog crawl on its belly, hunting its prey. Hephzie gasped behind her hands and then bit a knuckle to keep from yelling at the bunny to run away. The bunny ran away and the dog ran after it, but soon a shepherd with a cane appeared instead of the bunny and the dog backed up. Amazed by the shadows, Hephzie quietly applauded the twins, who bowed on their knees. It was clear that they had worked on this project for awhile and was proud to show their work.
"Thank you, ladies and gentlemen," Stan said as if proclaiming to a large audience. "Now, be amazed, as we host the The Abbiforth Sisters and have them sing our best friend's favorite song."
Hephzie gasped and clapped as Ford crept out of the fort from behind the blanket and turned on a record they had borrowed from their mother. He came back just as Boogie Woogie Music Man began to play, the trumpet playing as Ford used his birth-defect to create a shadow of a trumpet and he had it move along with the music. Then the boys used their hands to create silhouettes of girls singing along to the song. Hephzie quietly sang along with the trio of girls from the record.
"He was a famous trumpet man from out Chicago way, he had a boogie style that no one else could play. He was the top man at his craft, but then his number came up and he was gone with the draft. He's in the army now, a-blowin' reveille, he's the boogie woogie music man of Company B!"
Ford and Stan grinned as Hephzie grinned at the puppet show, admiring the shadows and how accurate the women sang along with the show. Once or twice, Ford would create a suited man playing a trumpet. At the end, once again Hephzie applauded them as quietly as she could while the twins smiled and bowed.
March 13th, 1966
Hephzie was finally alone, which meant she was free to cry. She had bit her lip when she ran to Mrs. Pines for help, she had hugged Stan back when he offered one, she had held her arms when Mr. Pines had taken her and the twins to the hospital, and she had smiled when her grandmother remembered her name and asked her how her day was casually, as if she had no idea that she was in a hospital bed. The twelve-year-old had never ever allowed anyone to see her cry and she wasn't going to today, but now that she had managed to put on a brave face, get home, walk calmly to her bedroom, and close the door, she ran to her bed, collapsed face-first into it, and wailed into her pillow.
Hephzie's arms wrapped around the pillow as she poured her heart and soul out onto it. The doctor sugar-coated it when she talked to Hephzie, and Grandpa had tried to reassure her that Grandma would be okay, but Hephzie wasn't stupid. She may be a kid, but she understood how close Grandma came to death today.
Hephzie had been doing laundry when she heard her grandmother collapse and glass break as she had been trying to do the dishes, and the girl ran to find her only mother-figure in a horrifying state. With no idea what to do since Grandpa was at the store, she ran and screamed for help, banging on the Pines' door and begging for help until Mrs. Pines, Ford and Stan ran back with Hephzie to the piano store to treat Grandma. Mrs. Pines had taken care of the trembling old woman while Ford called 911 and Stan hugged his best friend as she watched her grandma suffer helplessly.
Now that the danger was gone and that Hephzie was alone, she was free to dwell on the fear she had, to cry over the near-loss of Grandma, to come to terms that she was not out of the danger zone and could die at any moment. She was alone, until she heard a soft knock at the window.
Hephzie lifted her head and wiped her face dry. She even flipped her pillow over to hide the tears, just in case. She opened the curtains and found the top of Stan's head and a friendly five-fingered hand waving in greeting. Hephzie opened the window and leaned over the frame to find Ford standing on the fire-escape and holding Stan by his shoulders.
"Hey, Hephzie." Stan said gravely in a slightly squeaky-puberty-voice.
"Hey." Hephzie said dryly.
Stan looked at her gloomily, feeling sorry for her. He wasn't close to either of his own grandmothers, but he couldn't imagine how hard it'd be if Ma got hurt. "Are you okay?" He asked, not looking for a pathetic answer, but the truth.
Hephzie knew this and shook her head. "No."
Stan touched one of her hands that rested on the window-pane and said slowly, "Ya know… me and Ford, we're… we're always here if…"
"Stanley, hurry up!" Ford croaked as he started to crumble under his brother's weight.
"Shut up, Sixer!" Stan growled. "I'm trying to help my best friend up here!"
"By crushing me?!" Ford retaliated, his face turning red.
"You're the one who said that I should talk to her!"
"Well, you're better with people! And I thought you'd be quicker about it!"
"Just shut it and let me do my job!"
The twins quit their arguing as Hephzie laughed weakly into her hand. Her laugh sounded rusty, like it had been too long since her last laugh to remember how to do it properly, but nonetheless, she was laughing and her smile was genuine. Ford and Stan smiled at this and exchanged a high-six in victory.
"Y'all gonna come in or not?" Hephzie asked, jabbing a thumb to the metal-ladder installed for a fire-escape.
Ford let his brother down forcefully, unable to take the torture for much longer, and crawled up the ladder to the window's left side to climb into Hephzie's bedroom. Stan followed, and the night was spent talking of nothing but positive things and comforting Hephzie in her time of need.
February 11th, 1972
Free periods were, ideally, to be used to get homework done. Most students didn't have time in their schedules for a free period, but some seniors did, and the idea was that it was to help with the workload. Hephzie and Ford had tried to use their free period after lunch wisely, but their relationship got in the way and their free period was usually used to have an eighty minute date in the library. They had to be careful on these dates and be quiet, or risk getting caught by the librarian, but that was okay, because that meant they'd just have to sit close and whisper softly, which didn't bother either of the teenagers.
Ford cleared his throat and rubbed his neck as he sat with Hephzie by his side on the floor by one of the shelves. "So… Valentine's Day is approaching…"
"Mm, hm."
"Did you… erm... wish to celebrate it?" Ford whispered.
Hephzie shrugged. "Isn't Valentine's Day nothing more than a day blown out of proportion by marketers in a bloated capitalist country?" She asked, indirectly quoting the usual "Single Guy's" speech, as Stan called it, Ford made every February.
Ford blinked at her in amazement. "Hephzibah Cece, you never cease to amaze me." He said in a low voice before kissing her forehead.
Hephzie held Ford closer and rested her cheek on his chest, nuzzling on his soft shirt. "So I'm guessing ya don't wanna celebrate it, either."
"Please," Ford said with a roll of his eyes. "I don't require a holiday to take you out on a date, my dear. Besides, don't you have work that day?"
"I do." Hephzie said with a low groan. "We'll be so busy…"
"It's a diner." Ford chuckled. "How many people would rather go to a nicer restaurant?"
"How many people can only afford n' settle for a diner?" Hephzie pointed out.
Ford opened his mouth, gave it some more thought, and then nodded slowly in agreement. "True." He checked his watch and saw that they had ten minutes to get to Physics. "Time's up."
"Damn it." Hephzie sighed as she sat up and popped her back.
February 14th, 1972
Hephzie wondered if this made her a hypocrite or not, decided she didn't give a crap, and then continued to climb up the building. She had climbed up to the same window so many times that it was just as natural as a fish swimming or a bird flying. It was late at night, but when she peered into the bedroom, she found that it was empty. The boys were probably watching TV in the living room. It was always unlocked for her, so she opened the window and crept in. Hephzie was still in her waitress' uniform for The Juke Joint, but she had her brown purse over her shoulder and she snuck her hand in it to bring out a box of chocolates. No, it wasn't heart-shaped, and no, it wasn't red or pink, just a sweet treat to surprise her boyfriend. Before she could be caught, Hephzie slipped the box under Ford's pillow and crept out the window, down the wall, and across the street for home.
Hephzie was at once greeted by the soft snoring of her grandfather and knew that both of her grandparents were asleep. She checked the time and sighed when she saw that it was almost midnight. And it was a Monday, so she had school the next day. Hephzie went to the fridge and pulled out an apple. A quick snack, a shower, and then bed. As she munched on the fruit and walked into her bedroom, she was greeted by a small bouquet of flowers on her pillow. Hephzie awed at them as she closed her door and approached the flowers. They were Hephzie's favorite: purple, red, and white tulips.
The teenager with dreadlocks dropped her purse and apple at the foot of her bed, then picked up the bouquet. She saw that there was no note, but she knew who they were from. Ford must have snuck in while she was at work; she always left her window unlocked, too. She smiled and admired the scent the tulips made. No one had ever given her flowers before, so to have some come from someone she cared about, it meant a lot to her. Hephzie went into the kitchen to fetch a vase and fill it with water to keep the tulips fresh. Once the paper had been removed from the bouquet and the flowers were in a pretty, clear vase, she sat them on her window pane proudly and made a mental note to give Ford a deep kiss in thanks the next day.