Part 7
Daphne's POV
Soda was just about to tell me why he and my mom hadn't stayed together. He popped a fry into his mouth and took a sip of milkshake. "Well, then—" just as I was about to find out the reasons for my mother leaving him, we heard the tinkle of a bell as the door opened, a gasp and a woman's voice saying, "Daphne!"
I instantly turned at the sound of my name. "Grandma?" I exclaimed, shocked. "What are you doing here?"
"More like what are you doing here, young lady? And who is that you're with? You should never talk to strangers, Daphne S. Anderson!" my grandmother, Lydia Anderson, perpetual disciplinarian. Whenever she and Papa visited Miami it reminded me why I was glad to live several states away from them. It also made me feel sorry for my mom.
"Uh, Grandma, this is Sodapop. Sodapop Curtis?" I added, just to make sure she remembered him. Judging by her narrowed eyes and sharp intake of breath, she definitely remembered.
"Nice to see you again, ma'am," Soda said in a friendly tone. But I noticed that he wasn't tapping his foot anymore, the way he had been on and off since we sat down. Obviously she still made him nervous. Hey, she was my grandmother and she still made me nervous!
Grandma looked more disapproving than I'd ever seen her—even more than the time I'd "borrowed" one of her necklaces and brought it home from school hopelessly tangled. That lecture had included "that was a present to me from your grandfather so-many years ago" and "it was a family heirloom!". To beat that day, you knew this situation was tense.
"I remember you," Grandma replied shortly. "Now, Daphne, come along with me. Your grandfather is in the car outside. We'll get this all sorted out at home."
I winced as I rose to obey. I shrugged my shoulders helplessly at Soda, and he just winked at me. I mouthed, "Sorry!" and he grinned. "I'll be in contact" he whispered back. Luckily, Grandma didn't hear him.
The bells jingled behind us as we left Mickey's. Papa was in the car, but when he saw me he got out and gave me a big bear hug. Unlike his wife, Papa was one of the nicest people I knew. He was so much more like Mom than her mother was. He was always glad to see me and not barking orders at me all the time like Grandma did on visits.
"How's my little girl?" Papa asked, giving my blonde hair a tug. He'd always been the closest thing I had to a father. But still, not much. They just had never been able to visit that often.
"Fine. I'm in Tulsa to, uh, visit," I said, thinking up the easiest lie. Grandma turned her suspicious gaze on me, but eventually we were on the road to their house. I don't know what I'd been expecting, but their house was small and cozy-looking. The lawn was freshly cut and although the paint was a bit chipped, it looked well-kept for the most part. Once inside, Papa showed me to a spare bedroom.
"Thanks," I said, hopping onto the bed, my small suitcase beside me.
Papa looked around the room with a sad smile on his face. "You know, I haven't been in here in ages. It was your mother's room, Daf."
I glanced at the bare walls and shipshape clean surroundings. "Must've been redecorated," I guessed. He nodded.
"But some of her things are still in the dresser drawers. Or as Sandy liked to call it, the bureau. She thought it sounded more grown-up," Papa said, fondly recalling the days when my mother was his "little girl." I smiled and stifled a yawn. Suddenly I was tired from all the excitement of late.
Papa patted my arm affectionately. "I'll let you rest," he told me, and quietly shut the door behind him as he left.
But I wasn't ready to take a nap yet. I was more curious about the things left in the dresser drawers. And what I found was gold.
Oh, not real gold, of course. I meant really, really interesting stuff. The best of which were some high school yearbooks and even an old notebook. Which of course I opened immediately, right in the middle.
Dear Diary,
Jackpot! How cool was this, coming to Tulsa by myself and finding my mother's old diary? As Soda would tell me, it was way tuff!
Sodapop and I went on a date tonight with Steve and Evie. We went dancing, and Sodapop proved himself to be as graceful on the dance floor as everywhere else he goes. In other words, he was awful. I've never seen such a guy for having two left feet! But it was fun anyway. He just laughed and went right on having a good time, no matter how many times he caught Steve rolling his eyes in our direction. Evie was just giggling like crazy all night. Of course, Mama had a fit when I came in not five minutes late. She always does. Dad wasn't exactly happy either, but at least he didn't spend the next half hour telling me why I shouldn't be allowed to have a boyfriend!
Anyway, the kiss Sodapop gave me at the end of the night was worth the lecture. How lucky am I, to have a boyfriend like that?
Oh dear. Mama is starting to yell at me again. Till next time, Sandy
Wow. By all accounts, my mom had definitely had it bad for Sodapop Curtis. So what had gone wrong?
A/N: Hey, an update! Trust me, I'm as shocked as you. 8)
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