Disclaimer: I do not own any of the TP characters…Disney does!!
Notes: This takes place on Earth!
*
Sarah hummed a happy tune as she packed up her suitcase. Even though she was a homebody, the idea of spending a little time in a cabin seemed exciting. She glanced at her watch. It was 3:15; they were running a little late.
"Jim! Hurry up!" she called. All she got was a groan in response. A little annoyed, she briskly walked towards her son's room, which, as usual, was cluttered with junk. Sprawled across the messy bed was Jim, whose face resembled a ghost's.
"I will NEVER eat fish again!" he moaned, squeezing his eyes shut.
"Really? I thought you 'really' liked fish," replied Sarah, automatically looking through Jim's "packed" bag. Jim grimaced and hid his face under a plump pillow.
"Where's your toothbrush?" demanded Sarah, pawing through the suitcase, which held more Cds than clothes.
"I thought we were supposed to be roughing it, so I decided to dump the stupid toothbrush."
"Tough. Pack your toothbrush and please hurry up," she pleaded. With a huff, she left the room. Jim sighed, reluctantly got up, and grabbed his toothbrush.
*
"Are we there yet?" mumbled Jim, listlessly staring out of the mini van's window.
"Jim. You know that we are going to the Doppler's first."
"Oh, yeah," the teenager said. He turned on the radio. A raspy-voiced man on NPR was rattling on about cow manure.
"Mom, I can't believe that you listen to this weird station!" stated Jim, turning the dial. The Beatle's song "I Want To Hold Your Hand" blared on.
"Cool!" cried Jim, his blue eyes brightening.
"Oh, no!" insisted Sarah, switching the dial back.
---"Cow manure has a scratchy feel to it---
---"Oh please/ Say to me/You'll let me be your man!"---
----"Some people in isolated areas consider manure to be a delicacy"---
Because she was so engrossed in fighting over the radio station, Sarah did not pay attention to the road. The white mini van drifted over. BOOM! It collided with a mailbox. As the mailbox flew off the windshield, Jim saw Doppler written on the side of it.
"Next time bring your CD player, young man!" reprimanded Sarah, turning off the radio.
"Uh, mom, it's in my suitcase."
"Oh."
*
"Sarah! Jim! Nice to see you!" greeted Delbert from the doorway.
"It's a pleasure, Delbert," returned Sarah. With a grunt, she jammed the dented mailbox back into it's original position.
"We're almost ready, Sarah," the doctor called. Jim leaned against the minivan. His stomach was killing him. After buying the salmon, Sarah had made sure that Jim had eaten the whole thing. He groaned and miserably sat down on the tarmac.
"Are you going to come in?" asked Sarah.
"No," he croaked. His mother shook her head and walked up towards Delbert. The two withdrew into the house.
"How is Jim?" asked Delbert, grabbing his stuffed suitcase.
"Oh, the usual," replied Sarah tiredly, brushing back a loose strand of hair. Amelia descended from the stairs, armed with her suitcase.
"Perhaps we should keep him under close observation," the captain declared, noticing that Sarah looked a little stressed out.
"What's in your mind, dear?" asked Delbert, as they trouped out of the house with their supplies.
"I was thinking that Mrs. Hawkins needs a break from the young hooligan; in other words, one of us should keep him under our charge." Sarah looked happily at Delbert and Amelia.
"That would be great. After all, we rented two cabins. Who will watch over him?"
*
***Hmm…who will Jim get stuck with…Amelia OR Delbert? ***