Louise dropped the broom she was pushing and kicked it across the room. She was fuming, beyond furious. She couldn't believe Tina and Gene had done this to her. It was supposed to be her turn to have a Friday off. She had worked every Friday for the entire summer. After she had saved the restaurant and the entire town! She deserved a vacation and a raise. Instead, she got stuck working all summer. Between news spreading of the family's heroic actions and the fact that Jimmy Pesto had "Done a very, very bad thing" and may be going to prison. The restaurant had been unusually busy the last few months. The thing was all summer, Bob had promised Louise a weekend off to congratulate her. Well first Gene had his show on the wharf. OK Louise was in that, but it was Gene's thing. Then Tina had gone on a date with Jimmy Junior. The next week the family got a call that Grandma Gloria was in the hospital. Linda ended up having to spend an entire month down in Florida getting her mom back on her feet. Then Gene was at wizard nerd camp with Alex, all through July. OK Louise was happy her brother got a last-minute scholarship to camp. Even though it was all PR on account of the writer's horrible comments about trans youth and Gene being gender fluid. August rolled around and Louise was sure it was her time. Nope! Tina signed up for a special club for incoming Freshman and Huxley High and guess what? They met on Friday nights! Bob had promised her every Friday off all through September. Well, that lasted a whole week. Where even more fun Louise had a cold that week and couldn't enjoy her day off! What a rip off! She had so many plans for today and guess what? Tina and Gene announced last minute. Last minute! That they both needed to attend the Huxley High Football game! Why? Because Tina was working the concession stand and Gene had signed up to audition to be the new Wagstaff Whaler and guess what? The audition was at Huxley's opening game. Well once again Louise was duped out of her day off and naturally, she was fuming.
It didn't help that Sunday would have been her Grandma Tina's birthday and Bob was always extra irritable around his mom's birthday and the anniversary of her death Louise understood how traumatic it was for Bob to lose his mom. She just wished he would be more reasonable.
"LOUISE! PICK THAT BROOM UP! FINISH SWEEPING AND APOLOGIZE TO TINA AND GENE!" Bob bellowed.
"For what?!" Louise demanded.
For being so unreasonable!" Bob spat.
"They are the unreasonable ones! They knew it was my turn for time off! They got it all summer! This my reward! When will I get it?!" Louise demanded,
"Football season is only a few months." Bob sighed.
"HA!" Louise snorted.
"Louise" Bob warned.
"Whatever" Louise snarked.
"OK missy! What is so important?! What plans are so important you can't give your siblings their dreams?!" Linda demanded.
"First of all, Gene only wants to be the Whaler because it counts as a PE credit, and he gets to skip last period on Pep Rally days. Secondly it is not Tina's dream to work at the concession stand. She just wants to be close to Jimmy Junior who is towel boy for the football team. Thirdly, I told you! I want to meet Rudy at the park!" Louise cried.
"OK well you play with Rudy all the time. Why can't it wait for tomorrow?" Bob asked.
"Because!" Louise snapped again kicking the broom.
"Because isn't good enough. I am sorry Louise you have to stay." Linda apologized.
"Don't be sorry!" Bob hissed.
"Asshole" Louise mumbled.
"What was that?" Bob demanded.
"Nothing" Louise scoffed.
Louise begrudgingly did all the restaurant chores while Tina and Gene goofed around. Gene did ridiculous dances he was sure would get him the mascot gig. While Tina actively pretended to serve people drinks and snacks. She was literally faking restaurant work, while Louise did the actual work. She had to admit she admired the effort, but it was still unfair.
"Oh, come on, Louise! I cover for you all the time, and this is actually important. This is how all the great love stories start. A on the field on Friday nights, under those lights. It's as American as American pie!" Tina cried.
"Tina! Jimmy Junior is a towel boy, and you are selling popcorn! Plus, football is only big in the south. I guess you could date Zeke though. Especially since he is actually playing football. Plus, it's as American as apple pie. American Pie is that movie Gene isn't allowed to know about." Louise moaned.
"Love is Love! Love is Love!" Gene cried jumping off one of the booths.
"So important!" Louise laughed. "Well, I mean love is love but what you guys are doing is dumb." She sighed.
"Do you ever think of anybody, but yourself?!" Tina cried.
"Yes! But I am sick of it!" Louise cried.
"Louise! Kitchen now!" Bob demand.
Louise had really done it this time. Bob and Linda spent the next fifteen minutes, just tearing into her. She knew she had been pretty mean to her siblings, but they were being mean to her. Ever since Tina started high school, she was acting like she was so much better than Gene and Louise. Gene was still OK for the most part but ever since they realized they were gender fluid. They had been going through a bit of a crisis. Trying to find their place in the world. Then again Louise kind of felt that way. She guessed it was part of growing up, but because Tina was now officially a real teenager and Gene had a fancy name for their identity. Their needs had to come first. Louise wished she could tell the truth. She wanted to meet Rudy at the park because she wanted him to pick her for the wedding project. The big math project for the first semester of fifth grade was the wedding project. Kids would break off into couples and plan a wedding. Rudy was debating between Louise and Chloe freaking Barbash. Louise needed to go to the park because she wanted Rudy to choose her. After an eternity Louise was saved by the bell. The phone rang and Bob stepped out to answer it.
"Hello?" Bob greeted.
"Joel? Are you OK? My buns were supposed to be delivered today." Bob asked.
"Your truck blew a head gasket? How are you going to make deliveries?"
Louise was sulking in the kitchen when Bob returned an annoyed expression on his face.
"That was Joel. His truck broke down. The part won't be in for two weeks, and he can't get a temporary truck until tomorrow! I need the buns. He said that we could pick them up, but your mom is about to use the car to pick Gayle up at the airport." Bob ranted.
"I'll get them." Louise offered, desperate for any excuse to get out of the restaurant.
"Yeah right! Like I can trust you going alone. Tina and Gene will go with you." Bob scoffed.
"What?! Why does everybody act like I am a baby!" Louise demanded.
"Because you are being one! You are a selfish baby! And times like this I wish I had remembered to wear a fucking condom that night!" Bob snapped.
Louise felt as if she had been punched in the gut. Did her daddy really say he wished she were never born? She knew she was handful, but did they really hate her? At least the restaurant wasn't busy, but the few customers seemed horrified. Bob realized what he said pretty quickly, and his face changed to a look of extreme guilt. Normally Louise would use that to her advantage, but right now she was trying not to cry. Linda was yelling at Bob now and Bob was screaming in the kitchen. Louise wasn't sure what it was about this year, but this particular September. This particular birthday of her deceased grandmother. It was impacting Bob more than usual. He had been unusually cruel to everybody the last couple of weeks.
"Louise are you OK?" Tina asked.
"Yeah. You don't have to go." Gene offered.
"No, I need to get out of here." Louise sniffed.
At least the bun picks up went well. Tina, Gene, and Louise each walked out of Joel's shop with two bags of buns. Bob's words were still heavy on Louise's mind. Would the world really be better off without her? Well, she soon got her answer. They were crossing "Thaddeus Fishodor Drive" a far busier street than "Ocean Avenue" about three blocks from home. Tina and Gene were so caught up in their preps for the game. Tina with her fake popcorn selling and Gene with his latest dance. Neither noticed the Mercedes speeding down the street, until it was almost too late.
"NOOOOO!" Louise cried shoving her siblings out of the cars path.
One second Tina was walking down the street pretending to sell popcorn to hungry fans. The next she was tumbling across the street, her body colliding with Gene's and crashing into the curb across the street. Had Louise just pushed them? Tina knew she was angry but… wait Louise had pushed them but now Louise was flying through the air, a car Tina had never seen was speeding away as if nothing happened. Gene pulled themself up on the sidewalk whimpering. Other cars had stopped. An older lady had helped Tina up, a car full of woman in scrubs had rushed to Louise's aid. A group of teenagers, Tina recognized as juniors from school had chased after the car on foot. A crowd was now gathered around Louise. Tina shoved through the crowd trying to get to her sister. Not understanding why, the middle-aged son of the woman who had helped her and was now talking to Gene tried to hold her back. Tina soon had her answer. Louise lay on the ground. Mangled seemed almost tame when describing her tiny body. Her hat was either gone or so blood soaked it had faded in with her hair. Blood was tricking from her eyes, nose, and mouth. Her arms were red with blood. Her left leg was twisted two or three different ways. Her right leg. Oh God, her right leg. It was lying beside her. Her foot was gone. The entire foot was gone from her amputated leg.
"NOOOOO!" Tina screamed her heart racing bile rising in her throat. She heard somebody tell a dispatcher to send two ambulances before she collapsed into the worst panic attack she had ever had.
Bob was curled up on the floor of the employee bathroom. He could not believe he had said such horrible things to his baby girl. He hated September. He thought getting married the month of his mom's birthday would heal him. He thought he would honor her. Well, it did make the month easier, but he still turned into a monster the month or her birthday and the month of her death. Even he had no idea why he was particularly awful this year. He had a gnawing feeling in his gut that something horrible was going to happen, but dreadful things happened to him all the time. He was used to it. His phone rang and nothing could ever prepare him for the horrors he was about to face.
"Bob Belcher?" A voice greeted.
"This is him" Bob replied.
"Mr. Belcher, this is Veronica Jones from Seymour's Bay Hospital. I am afraid your children have been involved in a hit and run."
