This story is for the national novel writing month contest. It will not be proofed until December. Also until then the CHapters are posted when I stop writing for the day, thus there will be no strategy to the chapter breaks until Dec at which point I will redo the entire thing grammar and position wise.
The Summer of the Black Sheep
Tommy was looking through the market as he tried to decide what to get his sister for her birthday. He didn't have much monay and she was his sister so certain things were out, but he did want to get her something. She had gotten him a hat for his birthday. He looked around in the market as he thought about her. He just didn't know. He had tried to get advice from his friends, they had just laughed and said it was his sister so it didn't matter. The house hadn't helped either, being as silent as houses were wont to do.
He looked at the keychains, those were what Jane had recommended. Jane was Lisa's friend. Tommy had finally asked her. After explaining his budget problems and how he didn't want to get something too bizarre, she suggested a keychain or a sticker. Tommy was about to go look at the stickers when a keychain caught his eye. It was perfect.
000
Jen hated lying in her bedroom these days. She had a hard time making it down the stairs when she wanted to go out, but there was no where to go anymore. Her job had stopped years ago, stating she was old and she should retire. She didn't think 68 was too old to work on computers, but she wasn't going to scorn free money. Not that she ever used it. She had eventualaly tired of the game she played and simply gone and grabbed what she wanted and walked home. She almost wished someone would stop her.
She really wished someone would.
000
Tommy wrapped his present in wrapping paper the house provided. He took that to mean it approved of his present. He wasn't sure what to think of the house these days. He didn't consider something he talked to an hour a day necessarily a friend, especially since it rarely answered and never talked back. He called his friends the kids he played soccer and baseball with and the people he swam with. They hung out at the weekly barbecue and their mothers chatted on Saturday. Those were considered friends. But what was the house? He pondered this with the house one day but he got no answer. He was starting to wonder if he would ever hear the houses voice.
"I wondered last night. I looked out the window and I thought, 'What if the house doesn't have a voice?'" No answer. "That's okay. Maybe I can talk for both of us?"
Tommy kept his word and talked more than every after that.
Lisa's birhtday came and went. Tommy's present was fine and everythingn went smoothly. Now when Tommy went to pick Lisa up at night from her job and bright yellow light, charged from the lights in the ice cream parlor, accompanied them home in the form of Tinkerbell.
000
Tommy and Sam took Jones downtown one day. They had decided to look around for his father. They didn't tell him this of course. They told him that they wanted to see where the new building was getting built. They looked everywhere. They asked some of the people that he used to still hang with and the bars that he would frequent. They all hadn't seen him in nearly four weeks. But last time they had seen him, nothing had seemed different. He was still the same old bum. Jones wasn't sure what to think of all this. They swung around town to walk home with his mother. They never did see the building being built.
000
Jen's breathing was coming short, but she couldn't reach the glass of water. She cried slightly in fear before she took a slightly deeper breath and reminded herself that she had known that eventually she would die. Everyone did. It wasn't weird. The only difference with her is most people who die in this day and age were surrounded by doctors. She wasn't. She couldn't be. She had hated it. It had taken her several years to understand it, but she hated it more than she knew.
She hated it as she felt life slip from her lips. She died hating.
000
Tommy sat on his stump thinking. He was very early today because his father and mother had a neighborhood meeting called at this stupid hour. He sighed as he remembered getting dressed and leacing, not willing to hang around as they left in a hurry. He wasn't sure what was going on but when Mrs Shelley had knocked this morning, waking his father. She had said something that got him bustling to get dressed and wake Tommy's mother. Tommy and Lisa had woken from the sounds of Mom making breakfast, it was habit. Lisa had grumbled when she saw the clock and fell asleep on the sofa. Tommy had left as his parents were discussing whether to wake her to bring her or not. They wern't going to bring him so he decided to head out.
He was just deciding to not disturb the house when he looked up to see the figure crouched in the grass. The grass, with the exception of where they had mowed, was well over four feet tall and easily hid the figure who was dressed in a drab greay in the early morning light. he waved and sent a low "good morning" to the figure. it nodded its head and took a step closer. Tommy started to explain why he was here at this stupid hour as the figure settled on the ground, still fidgeting. Tommy was shrugging at his confusion when the figure stood. Tommy looked at it in confusion before it bowed slightly to him then glided into the weeds and completely disappeared. Tommy jumped to follow when he heard his name called.
Sam ran over the hill so fast, he was tripping himself. This was a common enough thing for Sam without his haste to make it could hear him screeching his name. Tommy ran towards him so fast he was surprised he didn't trip himself. Gasping Sam waved for Tommy to follow him as he gasped out his news.
"Jones's..gasp... visited last..night..gasp..food and money..breathe.. back porch...note..gasp Tommy caught some of it as they ran hellbent through town towards Jones's house. He tried to understand. Someone had left food and money on Jones's porch. A note.
"Who?..gasp..The note.." Tommy nearly fell over at the answer.
"Gar Sampson! His father!"
000
As Tommy expected, his parents were there with Sam's and half the nieghborhood. Jones's mother held her daughters and Jones stood off to the side looking very out of place. He didn't seem to know what to do. Sam and Tommy immediately went to him. They stood there panting as Tommy tried to think of what to say. Finally he gasped out his first question, asking Jones if what Sam had said was true. Jones nodded tightly. Tommy thought he looked angry, or close to tears. Tommy himself wasn't sure what to think. Jones's low voice explained that not only had his father left food and money, but it was almost enough for the entire month. Tommy stopped. He looked around and spotted Sara Glider trying to get peoples attention. Her brother was one of the others missing. She was standing uncertainly on the side. Finally she took a step forward and whistled her loudest whistle. That did get everyone's attention, both by volume and by Sara being the quietest person around, for all she was strict in her part of the market.
In a quiet voice she explained that she had gotten a similiar present from Jordan, except it hadn't had anything for a baby in it. She said she recognized his hand writing. Everyone exploded into talk at this. Several people were sent ot check on other family of missing people. Tommy looked for his parents in the mix. They were talking with Jones's mother. He pushed his way out of the center of attention, dragging Sam and Jones with him. The crowd was getting too close.
As they burst out of the crowd, Tommy let go of Sam's wrist and breathed. Jones sat down hard as he released Sam's other hand. He was shaken. Sam stood off to the side, uncertainly. He froze when he noticed another observer. Tapping Tommy's shoulder frantically, he hissed at Jones to look. Tommy looked up to see a dark figure in the shadows off the road. Standing he saw Jones and Sam back away. He watched as the figure resolved itself into a familiar cloak. He smiled and waved. He didn't see Sam and Jones glance at him. He jogged over, followed slower by his friends. He greeted the figure excitedly.
"Hey there." The figure nodded it's head. "Did you come to see what was happening?" It shook its head negatively. "You knew?" Nod. "Does that mean you know where Jones's dad is? Jones-" Tommy turned to his friends to find them several feet behind him, staring almost resentfully at the figure. He gestured for them to come forward. "Come on!" Turning back to the figure. "This is Jones. Do you know where his father is?" The figure looked at Jones and Sam a moment, backing up slightly in the process. Finally it nodded. Tommy looked really excited. "Great! Where?" The figure looked at him. "You can tell us. Jones is his son. And this is Sam he's our friend. Please?" The figure just looked at him before backing away. Tommy frowned. "I'm not scary. Come on!" The figure continued to back away though, until it shook its head and fled through the alley. Jones and Sam stared after it a moment before staring at Tommy.
"Who was that?!?" Tommy shrugged and explained that it was the house. He had told them he visited the house and talked. They looked at him. Jones finally responded.
"Then why won't it tell me where my dad is? Why can't he just come home like a normal father!" He didn't give his friend time to respond as he stomped away. Tommy looked after him then looked at Sam.
"It doesn't talk. I don't know why." Sam shrugged with Tommy. There was little they could do. Jones was very mad. They waded their way through the group until they found their parents talking. Indeed, all the missing persons had left something for their friends or family last night sometime. No one knew what to make of it. Tommy just kept staring at the alley that the figure had disappeared into, he really didn't understand.
000
Jones, for some reason or another, didn't tell his mother, or anyone about the figure. Tommy was kind of glad because he had a sneaking suspicion that if his parents found out about it, he would be in big trouble. They went home well after ten, Tommy was barely awake as his mother guided him into bed.
Jen played with the ball. She had long ago managed to make a basket every shot. Now she was simply looking for something else to do by herself. The high school playground was so boring sometimes, but she felt better going out then just staying inside. She finally put the ball down and went over to the tennis courts. Sighing, she hit the ball at the far wall to have it bounce back. She swung and missed this time. This was her next goal.
Science was interesting enough for the most part. Jen liked the textbook. Her father had many of them. They took up half the bookcase, much to her mother's annoyance. She settled in the back of the room to read as she forced herself to stop thinking like that.
000
A/N this is for Nanowrimo . org and I'm trying for 50,000 words by Nov 29. Wish me luck!