"Goodness. Isn't your sister up yet?" Lucy asked, glancing at the cuckoo clock high on the wall with a small, motherly frown. Swishing her hips a little, trying to untangle her long skirt from her legs as she walked, she looked over at Sammy, clearly looking to him for answers.
"Hi, Mom…" he said with a sarcastic little grin instead and Lucy laughed a little in response, pausing in her strides. With patience and kindness, she replied, realizing that her breezy entrance was a little bit rude, "sorry. Good morning, sweetie.."
He smiled at her, his eyes playful and his smile genuine, "morning. You went shopping?"
"I sure did. So, is your sister up?"
"Uh, I dunno, Mom" Sammy shrugged, closing his comic book. Lucy clocked a huge, family size packet of potato chips spread open wide before him on the table and grimaced a little, in the way only a mother could, "Mike's been up and out though"
"Did you speak to him?"
"Nah, he was out before I brushed my teeth"
Lucy said nothing more about it, she merely nodded before saying, "but it's not like Elizabeth to sleep in so late…"
"It's only ten, Mom" he said, giving Lucy a passing glance, one of mild disbelief.
"Uh-huh and when school starts, you'll all be out of the house by seven thirty" she glanced at him, noticing the way he looked at her. She placed her overflowing bag of groceries on the counter top, hitching them up and away from her hip.
"Yeah but that's ages away" he dismissively, eyes twitching towards his comic, fingers plucking up a lone chip.
"Mhmm, well, bad habits are hard to break, Sammy. Is she up?"
The younger Emerson sighed and said with a mild evasiveness, "I dunno. She took a shower not that long ago, though..."
"Really? What time?" Lucy challenged, knowing full well that her children had each other's backs no matter what.
They could fight and bicker and sulk but as soon as it was them versus her or even when it was them versus their father, they were a united front. It was good to know, comforting to know that they would be together through thick and thin but it did make life challenging sometimes. They had been known to sign late homework slips for each other, once or twice Michael had intercepted a call from a teacher on Sammy's behalf and when Elizabeth failed math, both Lucy and her husband had been the last to know, even though the school insisted they had been told via phone and mail...three times.
Sammy shrugged again and Lucy couldn't help the roll of her eyes, saying sweetly, "oh-ho, there he is! My sweet and ambivalent teenage boy. So quiet all of a sudden!"
Sam said nothing, merely giving his mother a sweet and somewhat cheeky little smile before reaching for his comic, first wiping his greasy fingertips on a paper napkin scrunched up by his hand.
He was meticulous with his comics.
Laughing, removing a packet of tomatoes from the bag, Lucy tutted, "Sammy could you please go and wake her up?"
"I already said she's up"
"No, you said 'I dunno'..."Lucy grinned, her sullen impression of Sammy a little exaggerated but surprisingly spot on because of it.
"Ha-ha"
"Go and get your sister, Sam" Lucy said once more, beginning to unpack her grocery shop.
"I'm not going up there-" he grimaced, shuddering a little. He knew he couldn't escape his mother's conversation or command but he also couldn't help the plethora of gory images flooding through his mind. Pictures of sanitary pads and tampons and blood and worries of seeing his sister all exposed...very frustrating and very much unwelcome but he couldn't seem to stop considering it, not since his mother had practically ordered him to go up and confront it all over again.
He wanted to forget last night had even happened. He'd cringed and flinched and shuddered his way through sex-ed/biology class and he didn't need to relive it in the comfort and safety of his home.
He shuddered and made a loud, 'yeuck' sound, "-nu-huh, Mom. Count me out"
Plucking a tub of thick potato salad out of the bag, Lucy looked over at her son, giving him a baleful little stare.
"And why not, may I ask?"
Sammy squared his shoulders, he didn't want a repeat of last night and there was absolutely nothing his mother could say that would ever propel him up to his sister's penthouse suite.
No way, no how. He didn't do blood, he didn't do gore and he definitely didn't deal with bloody bodily functions.
Absolutely not.
Nodding at his silence, assuming he was being lazy, she said, "that's what I thought. Get to it, Sammy"
"No way" he pulled a face, seeing that she was serious about sending up him to his sister's room. He was serious, too "I'm not going up there, Mom!" the indignant tilt of desperation left his tone and he whispered, a shade weaker and wearing a grimace once more, "I'm not. She's...you know, she's...it's that time...anyway, she sleeps naked...I'm not getting her"
He looked down at his comic, hoping the case would be closed and genuinely not wanting to relive the decorative, vivid talk of menstruation from last night. He didn't want to think about her lack of clothing, either. She was his sister. It was gross.
Sharing a bathroom with Mike was bad enough but still, he'd managed to avoid seeing his brother's private areas.
He was committed to holding Elizabeth to the same, reasonable standard.
"What?" she said, laughing in disbelief, "she does not, Sammy"
Sammy nodded again, a hardness set on his face and Lucy sighed.
"Would you please unpack this for me then?" she asked, gesturing at the bag as she stepped away from the counter.
"Yeah, gimmie a sec-"
"Now, Sammy" Lucy commanded, her voice firm but smile soft.
He sighed and let go of the comic with finality, pushing his chair away from the table. He studied the bag before peering over the small amount of stuff she'd already unpacked. A giant tub of potato salad, bread rolls, a package of sausages and some marshmallows.
"Is Grandpa having a barbecue again?" he asked, moving to poke inside the bulging paper bag, "I could go for some ribs if he is.."
"No, we're going day camping but we can get ribs, too? If you want them?" there was excitement in her voice.
"Huh?"
"He didn't tell you?"
"No, he's walking Nanook. He's getting kind of fat, I don't know what that widow is feeding him. You're going-"
"-day camping, yeah"
"What?" he let go of the bag and looked over at Lucy, "why would you do that? What's day camping?"
Camping? Camping? With bugs and spiders and dirt and no toilet facilities?
No electricity.
"It's something we do. Well, used to do.." Lucy said with a wide smile and a shrug, "at least twice a month when I was a kid. We called it day camping. We go out and rent a space and we pitch a tent and kind of do all the camping things, but you know. During the day...we pack up after dinner and come home. Well, I'll be going straight to work but-"
"-why?"
"Well, your Grandpa's never been good with sleeping on anything that's not a bed.." she laughed, "but I've seen him sleeping on his feet, so I think he just doesn't enjoy spending the night in the great outdoors.."
"Doing all that camping stuff but only for the day?" Sammy said, his face scrunching up a little, "sounds like hard work.."
"It's a sun tent and three barbecued meals, Sammy, not a gulag. Relax" she laughed, amusement lacing her tone, "you don't want to come with us?"
"Mom, I don't camp"
"Yes, you do" she insisted with a smile, "come on, you don't think it'd be fun? I always had fun!"
"I'm not going camping, Mom"
"Oh, come on Sammy" she laughed, leaning against the wide doorway, "Nanook, your Grandpa and I are in. I'm sure Elizabeth would be happy to come..." she didn't mention Michael, "you don't think it'll be a blast? There's a lake-"
"-Mom-"
"-and a lodge and a cute little natural spring"
"...I mean, the lake sounds kind of cool but...what's the point? We have the sea just over there.." he asked, shaking his head, "it sounds kinda lame. Kinda Brady Bunch, if you ask me"
Lucy sighed and tilted her head in turn, observing her son, "it's the twentieth anniversary of your Grandmother's death, Sammy" she told him, smiling lightly, knowing that he would be chastised by her words, though that wasn't what she wanted. She would never force him to do something he didn't want to, even if she thought fresh air and nature were good things for him.
"..oh…" he said, sounding small.
"She loved nature and the outdoors so I thought it would a nice thing to do. Anyway, I really did have fun with it when I was your age. I thought you'd like it, too. Your Grandpa's really excited for it…" she smiled, "but I know you, I know it's not entirely your thing. I'd like you to be there but no pressure, OK?"
Sammy looked at the ground.
"I found a nice little campsite that has a shower room though, so after we swim we can-"
"-they'll have spiders, Mom, they always have spiders…spiders and wart coated floors" he protested weakly, feeling a little guilty for bashing her 'day-camping' adventure so much when the reason they were going was to honor his grandmother. He'd never met her, but he knew she'd passed away at an unfair age.
"This is kind of an expensive camp ground, sweetie. I promise, no spiders. It has this little thermal hot spring, actually, as well as a natural cool one and the pictures showed a really nice lodge-"
"-really?"
She nodded, "mhmm. You wanna see the brochure?"
"They have a brochure?" he said, voice picking up a little, the intrigue obvious in his tone.
A brochure and a lodge and a hot spring bath sounded kind of fancy.
He liked fancy.
"Mhmm" she told him yet again, nodding with a knowing smile, "I had to fight with your Grandpa over it but did you really think I'd send us out into the wilderness? You think I'd send you out into the wilderness" she laughed, "I thought it would be nice for us all to have some quality time together…I know I've been busy with work...so what do you think? He knows a free pitching area but I found this place, I swear it looks good. Are you in?"
"Let me think about it?"
"Sure thing, sweetie"
"Hey, do you think…if I did go…could I bring my friends?" Sammy asked, perking up a little more, "they'd love camping, even if we didn't sleep out..."
"Um..." Lucy said, a little flustered, "maybe? I-uh, let me think on that, OK? I think...yeah, I don't see why they couldn't, I guess..." she smiled at him and turned, moving to leave the kitchen.
She hadn't been expecting him to want to invite his friends to a family outing but she didn't see what the harm could be, if it made him happy.
He nodded and moved towards his comic. The Frog Brothers were total headcases but he had to admit they were fun to be around. They said some weird things and they had the weirdest obsession with all things supernatural but they knew a thing or two about comics and they were good to hang out with, for the most part.
"Uh, Sammy?"
He froze, looking up at his mother.
"The groceries?"
He gave her a wonderfully bright smile, so brilliant and sarcastic in nature that she laughed, rolling her eyes at his antics before moving towards the stairs, assured that he was going to do the easy task she had set him.
The living room was cool and sometime during the morning somebody had opened all the windows. There was a fresh brightness to the house and Lucy couldn't help but smile as she began to walk up towards the second floor. Sam always brightened her day. All of her children did. She wasn't sure if Elizabeth was in bed or not but it would be strange if she was, she was usually such an 'up and at them' kind of girl. She was worried that perhaps her daughter was sick, maybe she was-
"-oh! Elizabeth-"
"-huh?" Elizabeth paused on the top step, tugging the hem of her lace top down over her hips.
"I was just on my way to hunt you down, sugar. Are you OK?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine? You OK?" there was a thickness in her voice that Lucy noticed right away.
"…I'm good" Lucy replied with a smile, tilting her head and observing her daughter. She looked nice, white and lace suited her, but all the same there was a bleary tiredness on her face. She didn't look bad but there was no denying she was carrying a little darkness under her eyes, "did you just get up?"
"No…"
"OK..." Lucy nodded, not fully trusting her daughter's words, "well, did you eat? Are you coming down for breakfast or...?"
"I didn't eat but I can wait for lunch" Elizabeth promised, obviously stifling a yawn. Truthfully, going to bed with a stomach full of pizza had left her a little bloated.
"Hey, are you sure you're alright, sweetheart?" Lucy asked, stretching out and touching her forehead.
"Just my period" Elizabeth lied easily, giving her mother an assuring smile, "I'm fine. Just crampy, you know? I didn't sleep well..I got all hot and sweaty"
"You did? Are they getting bad?"
"Eh, probably just the stress of the move catching up with me, you know?" the lie fell from her lips without problem.
"I know, sugar. Thanks a lot, Eve..." Lucy said through a grin and Elizabeth couldn't help but snort a little laugh.
She'd started her period fairly young, she was one of the first in her friend group to begin and in those early days, her cramps really had caused her grief. She'd always fought through it but one day, she'd just felt so sick and nauseous and the pain was utterly unrelenting. She had never had to step out of classes before, not even when she had what felt like the flu from hell but just that once, her body had betrayed her and she'd called it quits.
The school nurse was infamously unforgiving about 'womanly troubles' but Elizabeth must have looked as bad as she felt because she'd had permission to excuse herself for the afternoon. It hadn't felt like such a big deal, pain aside, but unfortunately the nurse had phoned her father's work number rather than the house and he had made it into a big deal.
When she'd arrived home, limp and clutching her lower stomach, Elizabeth had to listen to a very long, unsympathetic lecture from her father about how 'Eve's punishment' didn't really affect her, it was all in her head if not an outright excuse to ditch and that if she ever dared to even think about skipping class due to a period again, she'd be grounded for a month. He'd been so angry, so severe and just unkind and while Elizabeth knew it was because he'd been disturbed at work for something he considered to be mundane, it hurt.
She could deal with his lack of sympathy, she could understand that he'd never before had a period, so he had absolutely no idea of her discomfort and pain but the verbal lashing was so unlike him. He was firm and strict but he never usually shouted and very rarely did he shout at her. She'd fled to her room after her scolding with tears stinging her eyes.
Michael had come to her room, sheepishly and with a sympathetic sadness about him but there was nothing he could do to comfort her, though he did try his best. It had taken a long, long cuddle from Lucy, her comforting words and murmurs and whispers working their wonders, as they often did. The two spoke for more than an hour, sitting on her bed and cuddling, Lucy stroking her daughter's hair and cooing that it was OK, Michael sat somewhat awkwardly on the floor at the foot of the bed and throwing out words of comfort when it felt appropriate.
By the end of the night, when Elizabeth's sobs had subsided, both Lucy and Michael had been so angry at their father, they'd refused to come down for dinner. He'd taken Sammy – clueless to the entire situation – out for dinner, tail as far between his legs as it would go for someone so proud and upon his return presented the other three with a large box of pepperoni pizza. His version of an apology. After being met with a stony silence by his wife, he gave Elizabeth an actual apology before somewhat brusquely telling her that millions of women dealt with 'Eve's pain' and so should she. He finished by telling her that he hoped she could understand what he was saying, that he was just trying to help her in the long run.
It had sucked but she'd sniffed and nodded and he'd swiftly moved on. She never really forgot it, though and she never turned to her father for support after that. Lucy certainly never forgot it either and while the two of them weren't malicious, they didn't find it fair that he could move on so freely after being so mean. It had happened kind of naturally but the two of them had managed to turn his many biblical references into their own running joke.
If one of them dropped something, their clumsy fingers were because of Eve. If they ever forgot something, their hazy memory was because of Eve. If they ever made a mistake, it was because of Eve. Michael got in on it, too, and suddenly everything that went wrong with him was because of Adam. Their father caught wind of the jokes, of their sarcasm but he never called them out on it. To do so would mean acknowledging his own ridiculous words and he would never do that.
Eventually, it had died down, as most things tended to but from then on out, Elizabeth and Lucy would always and without fail link their periods to Eve.
Hearing her mother make the joke again filled Elizabeth with joy and, shoulders shaking a little, she found that she was laughing hard.
She loved her mother so, so much. She was such a good woman, so kind and loving and just...she truly was nice. She was the epitome, the very definition of nice. However nice the boys thought she was, Elizabeth knew it paled in comparison to Lucy.
Giggling herself, Lucy cupped her daughter's face, looking fondly and lovingly into her eyes, "I'm so glad we came to Santa Carla, sweetie…"
"Me too, Mom"
"Don't tell your brothers but sometimes I think getting divorced was the best thing I ever did" shaking her head through the last of her giggles, Lucy let her hands slip away from Elizabeth's cheeks, "your Grandpa told me it was but at first, I felt like a total failure but...now I know what I was missing out on all those years.."
"You do?"
Lucy's eyes were glittering and a faint little blush crept up on her cheeks, "...Santa Carla has been good for me"
"I think so too..."
Lucy's husband wasn't cruel. He wasn't a monster. Not to his kids, at least and he had been kind to Lucy early in their marriage. There was no denying it. He snapped a lot and he was often stressed, throwing himself into work and into keeping up appearances but he had an affectionate side, too. He gave Elizabeth and her brothers presents, took them out for nice dinners. He took the boys to sports events and played catch with them in the yard. All three of them had pretty wanted for nothing and he loved his sons, there was no denying it. Elizabeth thought he loved her, too, even if his approach was a little heavy on the tough love side. Lucy was always there for emotion support, so it hadn't felt bad that she couldn't turn to her Dad in the same way. She'd been happy, content despite the occasional tears but she knew he had been less kind to Lucy.
It had been a slow build but when it came, it came fast and over time, he had become been downright mean to her.
He had changed, changed for the worse.
As he became more successful in his career, he became colder to his wife. There were no two ways about it. As the money started to increase, so did his opinion of himself and it was like Lucy was always, always coming up short. Suddenly he was a fly, successful business man, the streaks of grey in his hair were replaced by a bright and vibrant dye, the frumpy glasses he wore had been replaced by sleek aviator frames and his opinion of himself had just sky rocketed...but only of himself.
It was as if he was on the up and his wife, poor Lucy who had only ever loved him, was stuck in the sub-basement.
If she slaved away cooking dinner, there was always something wrong with it. If she had cleaned the house, there was definitely somewhere she had missed. If she wore makeup, it was the wrong color. If she didn't wear makeup, she looked dowdy. Had she put on weight? Why was her hair like that? Why was she wearing that stinky perfume? Couldn't she make more of an effort? All the other women were wearing heels and power suits, why couldn't see keep up with the times? Was she trying to embarrass him?
It had been relentless...and then it had tapered off.
It had tapered off and then his work days became longer. His holidays sporadic. Business dinners turned into business days and then they turned into business weekends and those had turned into long business trips.
Elizabeth knew what was happening. So did Michael, Sammy had an idea, though he was determined to pretend it wasn't happening and Lucy?
Poor Lucy could only watch as the man she had given her life and her youth to discarded her. He poured his love, his affection and his money into whatever young woman was silly enough to fall for it.
Lucy was the sweetest, kindest and most giving woman in the world and she had been thrown out like trash.
It was something Elizabeth would never, ever forgive her father for. It was something she couldn't forgive her father for.
Lucy had deserved so much more. Lucy deserved everything, every happiness in the world...and she was glad she'd found it back in Santa Carla.
Her boss was obviously making her happy because not only was it palpable, it was visible.
Elizabeth thought Lucy looked wonderful. Stunning, even. Her hair was styled with some kind of mousse or product, she was standing tall and there was a hint of subtle makeup on her face, too. She was wearing a slick of peachy lipstick, some creamy blush. It suited her. She had always been pretty, she always would be pretty, makeup or not but she seemed to be taking genuine pride and care in her appearance and it showed. She was standing tall, her shoulders were back and her head held high. She was wearing her usual clothes, long and flowing patterned pastels but there was something new about the way she was carrying herself.
She looked the same but different …elevated, brighter.
Happier.
It was a genuine happiness, too. It wasn't coming from money, it wasn't coming from status...it was coming from within.
"I love it here, Mom. And I think you look amazing...I'm glad you found someone nice"
"He wasn't the best man, your father…not in the end" Lucy said, sounding a little wistful as she linked arms with her daughter, "but Max is...oh Elizabeth, he really is"
In unison they began to walk downstairs, Elizabeth shoulder to shoulder with Lucy, "…he's good to you?"
"Absolutely. He's a very, very good man" Lucy replied, her eyes dancing, love clearly visible in their depths. As they reached the bottom of the stairs, she smiled widely, "you know-"
"-Mom!" there was an oddly loud splatting sound preceding Sammy's panicked yelp and both women froze, their heads snapping towards the kitchen.
"Oh, jeeze" Lucy groaned, brought out of her romantic thoughts. She shook her head, "that sounded like the potato salad..."
Biting her lip, Elizabeth rolled her eyes, "forget Eve. It's Adam. Adam's always the problem..."
Laughing, the two women entered the kitchen.
It turned out that Sammy had, as Lucy correctly guessed, managed to drop the tub of potato salad onto the floor. He said he'd been taking it to the fridge and he didn't know how but somehow it had slipped from his fingers. He blamed it on the tub, then he blamed it on the handle of the fridge - though the mess was nowhere near the fridge itself - then he blamed it on the oil from the potato chips he'd been eating and, then, Elizabeth had asked him if he'd actually been reading his comic and had made a mad and sloppy dash towards the groceries when he heard them at the bottom of the stairs.
If looks could kill...Elizabeth would have been six feet under in a flash and she couldn't help her gleeful giggles.
She'd hit the nail on the head.
"You're the worst liar-"
"-you're a snitch!"
"I guessed! You didn't make it difficult-"
"-such a nark, Lizzie!"
Lucy had just laughed at the two of them, "oh Sammy!"
She couldn't be annoyed, even though the destroyed food hadn't been particularly cheap. Elizabeth's tired face had broken out into brightness at her laughter and Sammy's jeans were covered in a surprisingly high splatter of thick, creamy looking potato salad. He really must have been dashing for the impact to have been that severe. The situation was too silly, too funny to make her angry and she'd directed both of them in the clean up task.
It hadn't taken long for the three of them to clean up the mess and during the activity, Lucy had extended Elizabeth an invite to their day-camping adventure, murmuring sympathetically to see how she felt, that there was no pressure. With a knowing air, Sammy had said nothing, instead asking what their food menu was for the day.
Elizabeth thought he was only asking to move their thoughts away from the mess he'd made.
"Uh, I can make anything for lunch, sweetheart" Lucy told them with a smile, rinsing a dirty rag out over the sink, "but you're on your own for dinner, if that's OK? I um, I have...I'm getting a manicure later, before work..." she looked a little embarrassed to be admitting it.
"Really?" Elizabeth asked, further brightened and intrigued to hear her mother doing something nice for herself. Lucy never, ever took time for herself like that. She always lived for her kids and it was refreshing to see her treating herself for once. She reached for one of Sammy's chips just as he perked up and asked, "what color?"
"Oh, I don't know? It's been so long since I've had a manicure or anything..." she smiled tentatively, "I was thinking maybe a peach? Or a soft pink?"
"Do red, Mom!"
"Red with pastels?"
"Huh..." Sammy nodded at Elizabeth's words. His mother did tend to stick to light, pastel and neutral colors, "OK. Peach could work with your style..."
"Hey? Do you think you could take me to the library?" Elizabeth asked, thinking fast, "if you're heading that way, anyway?"
That could be a good place to hide. It was quiet, not too far from the boardwalk but not that close either. She could slip in and stay there. She thought she could hide out in the basement level with ease, the old librarian would never go down there. Her hip was bad, she remembered that clearly. Besides, who would ever think somebody would want to stay in a library after closing? It would be dark and creepy...truthfully, she didn't particularly want to do it, either, but it felt like a good place to hide because of it.
The boys probably thought she would stay as far away from creepy, scary places as possible...
"The library?"
"Yeah"
Sam snorted and grinned playfully, "nerd"
"Don't throw stones in glass houses..." Elizabeth warned her brother and he laughed again, "such a nerd! What does that even mean, loser?" there was no malice in his tone, just playful teasing.
"Well, Mario" Elizabeth retorted, nudging her brother, "it means that you spend your time with Toads-"
"-Frog Brothers-"
"-and I like reading. We're both our own brand of loser, so let's-"
"-both be quiet?" Lucy interrupted, shaking her head through a laugh, "I can take you, that's fine but are you OK to get home?"
"I won't be here, I'm seeing the F...my friends.." Sam warned her and Elizabeth laughed, "I think I'll survive" she turned to Lucy, "it's not been a problem before. I'm good, thank you.."
"Alright, sweetie, that sounds fine. Can we leave around five?"
Leave at five, arrive five thirty-ish...sneak in as inconspicuously as she could, find a good place to hide out of sight and then wait an hour and a bit until sunset? She would try hard to hide herself, though she wasn't sure how she could even do it but...it sounded like a plan.
They'd probably find her in a heartbeat but at least she was prepared for it.
"Sounds great!"
And it had been great.
Lucy had dropped Elizabeth off right outside the library before heading to her appointment with one of the widest, happiest smiles stuck to her face and she'd managed to make her way in without garnering the attention of the librarian or the few patrons milling about. The lights had been shut off, the doors locked and she'd managed to stay in the lower level without being noticed.
As Elizabeth sat in the dark, empty and incredibly creepy library, she couldn't help but think how perfect everything was. Not only for her, but for her family, too.
Santa Carla was like no other place.
It felt like all of their lives had improved since their move. As she tried to close her mind without even knowing how or what she should be doing, Elizabeth found that, like her mother, she couldn't stop smiling either.
A/N: the next chapter is LONG, more than 10,000 words, so I thought I'd plop a note here instead. I like Lucy very much, I think she seems like such a caring woman. Thank you all so much for the reviews, they absolutely make my day. I can't tell you enough! princessnerra, Luke2Leia - yes, yes and yes on the Children of the Dust front! Such an enjoyable watch and Billy Wirth is very strong in it. I thought it was a good historical backstory, too. Since I'm portraying them as old, I thought it was a perfect fit! MissRuthless and MissJNori, I can't say thank you enough! As always, thank you for the constant support!