Rosalind
This story and all themes and ideas contained in said story are the sole
ownership of J.L. Scott. Any copyright infringements can be prosecuted in a
court of law.
To borrow a phrase: NYPD Blue no mine......no money, no sue, please? AN: This is more like a collection of scenes from various "episodes" that make up the part of the story that's important to me. So imagine them stuck in various places in various episodes that are "really" about other things. It might make more sense that way. Hope you enjoy!
"And this, and this, and this, and this" John walked along behind her, pulling everything she put in the cart out and putting it back on the shelf. He was too tired to argue with her about just picking any old thing up off the shelf so he just let her do it. Every once in a while she put something in that he would have grabbed himslef and then he just told her to grab a couple more.
"And orange noodles, and more orange noodles, and more orange noodles" she chanted, dumping four boxes of mac and cheese into the cart.
"I think someone's an 'orange noodle' addict" a pleasant voice said from behind him. John stopped and turned around.
"Oh. Hey, Grace right?" He remembered her name like he remembered his own, but he wasn't going to let her know that. She smiled at him like she knew exactly what he was thinking.
"Yep. And you are Rosalind, right?" she asked the little girl who had since dumped another four boxes of macaroni and cheese into their cart.
"Okay, Ros, that's enough" John said to stop her.
"You're the lady who likes Veggie Tales" Rosalind ignored his order, but stopped with just one more box.
"That's me, Veggie Tale Lady" Grace laughed. She looked at John and shrugged.
"It's better than 'Creepy Stranger Lady Who Tells Strange Men What to Buy for Their Daughters" John laughed.
"Nah, I appreciated it. I hate you, now, but I find Larryboy is a very stimulating conversation starter" he joked. She laughed. He liked her laugh. A lot. Rosalind started off down the aisle again and they followed her.
"So, you live around here?" he asked, glad he could find his tounge at all. Wal-Mart, the grocery, she had to live somewhere nearby.
"Yeah, actually, I just live down the street" she answered, "My brothers decided my last apartment was not to their liking, so they fronted the money for me to move" She rolled her eyes.
"Older brothers?"
"Yes" she sounded annoyed but the smile on her lips betrayed the fact that she really didn't mind them all that much.
"Ah. I know the feeling. I had an imaginary friend once" he told her, "He was always pushing me around, getting me into trouble, telling my Dad I was the one that had thrown the ball through the window, when, of course, it had actually been him" John was rewarded with another one of her great laughs.
"Only child?" she asked. Rosalind was still skipping ahead of them, plopping things they probably didn't need in the cart. John was too distracted to care much at the moment, though.
"Yeah" he replied.
"You know, statistically, only children make better parents and tend to have really big familys" she smiled and nudged him with her elbow. He smiled back at her. They walked through the rest of the store, talking, while Rosalind skipped ahead of them and put whatever was brightly colored into their cart. When they finally got to the register he found himself pulling more stuff out than he put on the counter. A package of gumballs, a box of dry milk, a bucket of sidewalk chalk? What was she going to do with sidewalk chalk, they didn't even have a sidewalk!
"Here" Grace held her hand out for the bucket, "I'll take that" John gave her the chalk.
"No, that's my chalk!" Rosalind objected, reaching up for the bucket Grace had put in her little basket.
"Ros, we don't have a sidewalk" he told her as the man rang up the rest of the groceries.
"Ah, but I do" Grace said, "Tell you what, Rosalind, I'll buy the chalk, and maybe sometime you can come over and play with it, okay?" Rosalind pouted but nodded. Finally they all got through the line and made it outside. The sun had sunk and a chilly breeze made John stop and zip Ros's jacket up. They had walked the block and a half to the store. Apparently, so had Grace, for she walked along beside them as they headed for home. She stopped in front of a tall, somewhat elegant building that John recognized.
"This is me" she said, looking up and then back at him.
"You're kidding!" he said. She shook her head.
"That's us" He nodded his head across the street to their own apartment building.
"Small world" she smiled again. John could get lost in that smile. "Goodnight!" she called as she turned and climbed the steps.
"Night!" John called back just before she disappeared through the door. He looked down at Rosalind, staggering under the weight of the half gallon of milk she carried.
"C'mon, Ros" he said, "Let's go home"
To borrow a phrase: NYPD Blue no mine......no money, no sue, please? AN: This is more like a collection of scenes from various "episodes" that make up the part of the story that's important to me. So imagine them stuck in various places in various episodes that are "really" about other things. It might make more sense that way. Hope you enjoy!
"And this, and this, and this, and this" John walked along behind her, pulling everything she put in the cart out and putting it back on the shelf. He was too tired to argue with her about just picking any old thing up off the shelf so he just let her do it. Every once in a while she put something in that he would have grabbed himslef and then he just told her to grab a couple more.
"And orange noodles, and more orange noodles, and more orange noodles" she chanted, dumping four boxes of mac and cheese into the cart.
"I think someone's an 'orange noodle' addict" a pleasant voice said from behind him. John stopped and turned around.
"Oh. Hey, Grace right?" He remembered her name like he remembered his own, but he wasn't going to let her know that. She smiled at him like she knew exactly what he was thinking.
"Yep. And you are Rosalind, right?" she asked the little girl who had since dumped another four boxes of macaroni and cheese into their cart.
"Okay, Ros, that's enough" John said to stop her.
"You're the lady who likes Veggie Tales" Rosalind ignored his order, but stopped with just one more box.
"That's me, Veggie Tale Lady" Grace laughed. She looked at John and shrugged.
"It's better than 'Creepy Stranger Lady Who Tells Strange Men What to Buy for Their Daughters" John laughed.
"Nah, I appreciated it. I hate you, now, but I find Larryboy is a very stimulating conversation starter" he joked. She laughed. He liked her laugh. A lot. Rosalind started off down the aisle again and they followed her.
"So, you live around here?" he asked, glad he could find his tounge at all. Wal-Mart, the grocery, she had to live somewhere nearby.
"Yeah, actually, I just live down the street" she answered, "My brothers decided my last apartment was not to their liking, so they fronted the money for me to move" She rolled her eyes.
"Older brothers?"
"Yes" she sounded annoyed but the smile on her lips betrayed the fact that she really didn't mind them all that much.
"Ah. I know the feeling. I had an imaginary friend once" he told her, "He was always pushing me around, getting me into trouble, telling my Dad I was the one that had thrown the ball through the window, when, of course, it had actually been him" John was rewarded with another one of her great laughs.
"Only child?" she asked. Rosalind was still skipping ahead of them, plopping things they probably didn't need in the cart. John was too distracted to care much at the moment, though.
"Yeah" he replied.
"You know, statistically, only children make better parents and tend to have really big familys" she smiled and nudged him with her elbow. He smiled back at her. They walked through the rest of the store, talking, while Rosalind skipped ahead of them and put whatever was brightly colored into their cart. When they finally got to the register he found himself pulling more stuff out than he put on the counter. A package of gumballs, a box of dry milk, a bucket of sidewalk chalk? What was she going to do with sidewalk chalk, they didn't even have a sidewalk!
"Here" Grace held her hand out for the bucket, "I'll take that" John gave her the chalk.
"No, that's my chalk!" Rosalind objected, reaching up for the bucket Grace had put in her little basket.
"Ros, we don't have a sidewalk" he told her as the man rang up the rest of the groceries.
"Ah, but I do" Grace said, "Tell you what, Rosalind, I'll buy the chalk, and maybe sometime you can come over and play with it, okay?" Rosalind pouted but nodded. Finally they all got through the line and made it outside. The sun had sunk and a chilly breeze made John stop and zip Ros's jacket up. They had walked the block and a half to the store. Apparently, so had Grace, for she walked along beside them as they headed for home. She stopped in front of a tall, somewhat elegant building that John recognized.
"This is me" she said, looking up and then back at him.
"You're kidding!" he said. She shook her head.
"That's us" He nodded his head across the street to their own apartment building.
"Small world" she smiled again. John could get lost in that smile. "Goodnight!" she called as she turned and climbed the steps.
"Night!" John called back just before she disappeared through the door. He looked down at Rosalind, staggering under the weight of the half gallon of milk she carried.
"C'mon, Ros" he said, "Let's go home"