Cathy and Annie part 2
This is the first half of the story.
I saw Danny R. from Mrs. Garry’s class. He was in my class last year and he and I used to play basketball at recess. His dad liked sports and taught him a whole bunch of games, like HORSE and stuff, games I don’t even remember. But me and him and these other two guys, Danny D and Ben, were best friends except for me and Annie. And Danny D and I used to play basketball against Ben and Danny R but they usually won because Ben was tall and Danny R was super good. Annie spent recess sewing stupid clothes for animals with the other girls which was dumb.
“Danny!” I screamed and started chasing him. He was dressed like a ninja turtle except he didn’t have a head band on so I didn’t know which was he was.
“Hi-ya!” he yelled, jumping into some pose.
I stopped. “Which turtle are you supposed to be?”
He stopped too. “I was Michelangelo but Henry took my band. He said that it made me look like a girl.”
“You look like a girl anyway, stupid.”
“Hi-ya! Cowabunga!” Danny R. jumped at me, waving his nun chucks at me. I swung at him with my candy bag.
“Daniel! Cathy! You stop that right-“ And then my bag split open, spilling my candy everywhere. Hersheys and Kit Kats and Twizzlers went everywhere, spilling all over the McKutcheon’s yard. I burst into tears.
“You jerk-face! My fucking candy!” I screamed, lunging at him. I pushed him to the ground and started pounding on him when Annie’s mom grabbed my by the arm and slapped me across the face.
“Catherine Jansen! What did you just say?” She screamed, pointing her finger in my face. For a second I was completely stunned, and then I started to cry. Danny R. just stood there, quiet. Annie was standing a few feet away, holding her shoes and staring at us.
“Catherine Michel Jansen! You will answer me when I’m speaking to you!” Annie’s mom said again.
“Mom…” Annie said.
“Shut up, you disrespectful little woman!” Annie’s mom yelled at Annie. Danny R. started to whimper. I’d never seen Annie’s mom like this before. Lights started to turn on in the Devon’s house.
“Don’t talk to Annie like that!” I yelled.
“Show respect to your elders!” And then I kicked her in the shins and ran off.
“You’re in big trouble, young lady!” I heard her yell before I turned the corner. Halloween was absolutely ruined.
The worst part about sleeping in the basement is that I’m absolutely sure that around every corner there’s some crazy murderer that snuck in the back door and is waiting to chop me up to bits. It actually happened a few years ago, that some boy scout was walking to the grocery store in the middle of the night and got chopped up by some crazy guy. Everyone was so sad because the kid was a really nice kid I guess and the crazy guy was from New Jersey. But I hate waking up and having to go to the bathroom because I’m sure that as soon as I open my door some guy in a mask is going to attack me with a knife.
Tonight it was worse because my parents had already screamed at me. They lectured me about cursing and respect for elders and solving things through non-violence, or at least my mom did, because my dad was still out with his friends from work. And my mom didn’t lecture me so much as scream at me while I tried to explain that it wasn’t my fault, that Danny R. had ripped my bag and that I had been sticking up for Annie. But my mom wouldn’t hear it and sent me to my room, not even caring that I had lost all my candy and that Annie’s mom had hit me.
The basement was worse then the Young’s haunted house. At least the Young’s haunted house you knew that the squishy things were just peeled grapes and the screams you heard were just recorded. But in the basement at night I remembered the time that Annie and I had watched the Exorcist from behind the couch when her brother was watching it and getting freaked out when the girl’s head twisted around and threw up and stuff. I would lay in the cot downstairs and lay perfectly still so that the devil wouldn’t know I was there. I tried to imagine good stuff but the good stuff ended up dying and I’d twitch and wake up. The light from the busted window made jagged lines on the wall that looked like an angry dog. Normally that sort of stuff wouldn’t scare me; once Annie and I made a picture show on the wall and we showed it off in front of my mom and grandpa and they laughed and laughed. But now the dog looked so scary and it was Halloween night and the night was bad enough.
I wondered if Annie was ok. I hoped that she’d picked up my candy, or Danny R. had. I hoped that they felt sorry for me and had at least left me some Hershey’s bars. I hoped that maybe Annie’s mom would feel bad for hitting me and come over and tell my mom what had happened and that my mom would feel bad for yelling at me and they’d tell me I’d done the right thing.
I heard the door shut quietly. I was too scared to get up, but I knew that my mom had been sitting upstairs in the kitchen. I heard them talking quietly but I didn’t know what about.
I closed my eyes and tried to sleep but then their voices kept getting louder.
“…supposed to tell Cathy?” I heard my mom say. I opened my eyes again. Did my mom rat me out?
“You can tell that brat whatever you want.” And I covered my head with my pillow and couldn’t hear anything but muffled yells.
I saw Danny R. from Mrs. Garry’s class. He was in my class last year and he and I used to play basketball at recess. His dad liked sports and taught him a whole bunch of games, like HORSE and stuff, games I don’t even remember. But me and him and these other two guys, Danny D and Ben, were best friends except for me and Annie. And Danny D and I used to play basketball against Ben and Danny R but they usually won because Ben was tall and Danny R was super good. Annie spent recess sewing stupid clothes for animals with the other girls which was dumb.
“Danny!” I screamed and started chasing him. He was dressed like a ninja turtle except he didn’t have a head band on so I didn’t know which was he was.
“Hi-ya!” he yelled, jumping into some pose.
I stopped. “Which turtle are you supposed to be?”
He stopped too. “I was Michelangelo but Henry took my band. He said that it made me look like a girl.”
“You look like a girl anyway, stupid.”
“Hi-ya! Cowabunga!” Danny R. jumped at me, waving his nun chucks at me. I swung at him with my candy bag.
“Daniel! Cathy! You stop that right-“ And then my bag split open, spilling my candy everywhere. Hersheys and Kit Kats and Twizzlers went everywhere, spilling all over the McKutcheon’s yard. I burst into tears.
“You jerk-face! My fucking candy!” I screamed, lunging at him. I pushed him to the ground and started pounding on him when Annie’s mom grabbed my by the arm and slapped me across the face.
“Catherine Jansen! What did you just say?” She screamed, pointing her finger in my face. For a second I was completely stunned, and then I started to cry. Danny R. just stood there, quiet. Annie was standing a few feet away, holding her shoes and staring at us.
“Catherine Michel Jansen! You will answer me when I’m speaking to you!” Annie’s mom said again.
“Mom…” Annie said.
“Shut up, you disrespectful little woman!” Annie’s mom yelled at Annie. Danny R. started to whimper. I’d never seen Annie’s mom like this before. Lights started to turn on in the Devon’s house.
“Don’t talk to Annie like that!” I yelled.
“Show respect to your elders!” And then I kicked her in the shins and ran off.
“You’re in big trouble, young lady!” I heard her yell before I turned the corner. Halloween was absolutely ruined.
The worst part about sleeping in the basement is that I’m absolutely sure that around every corner there’s some crazy murderer that snuck in the back door and is waiting to chop me up to bits. It actually happened a few years ago, that some boy scout was walking to the grocery store in the middle of the night and got chopped up by some crazy guy. Everyone was so sad because the kid was a really nice kid I guess and the crazy guy was from New Jersey. But I hate waking up and having to go to the bathroom because I’m sure that as soon as I open my door some guy in a mask is going to attack me with a knife.
Tonight it was worse because my parents had already screamed at me. They lectured me about cursing and respect for elders and solving things through non-violence, or at least my mom did, because my dad was still out with his friends from work. And my mom didn’t lecture me so much as scream at me while I tried to explain that it wasn’t my fault, that Danny R. had ripped my bag and that I had been sticking up for Annie. But my mom wouldn’t hear it and sent me to my room, not even caring that I had lost all my candy and that Annie’s mom had hit me.
The basement was worse then the Young’s haunted house. At least the Young’s haunted house you knew that the squishy things were just peeled grapes and the screams you heard were just recorded. But in the basement at night I remembered the time that Annie and I had watched the Exorcist from behind the couch when her brother was watching it and getting freaked out when the girl’s head twisted around and threw up and stuff. I would lay in the cot downstairs and lay perfectly still so that the devil wouldn’t know I was there. I tried to imagine good stuff but the good stuff ended up dying and I’d twitch and wake up. The light from the busted window made jagged lines on the wall that looked like an angry dog. Normally that sort of stuff wouldn’t scare me; once Annie and I made a picture show on the wall and we showed it off in front of my mom and grandpa and they laughed and laughed. But now the dog looked so scary and it was Halloween night and the night was bad enough.
I wondered if Annie was ok. I hoped that she’d picked up my candy, or Danny R. had. I hoped that they felt sorry for me and had at least left me some Hershey’s bars. I hoped that maybe Annie’s mom would feel bad for hitting me and come over and tell my mom what had happened and that my mom would feel bad for yelling at me and they’d tell me I’d done the right thing.
I heard the door shut quietly. I was too scared to get up, but I knew that my mom had been sitting upstairs in the kitchen. I heard them talking quietly but I didn’t know what about.
I closed my eyes and tried to sleep but then their voices kept getting louder.
“…supposed to tell Cathy?” I heard my mom say. I opened my eyes again. Did my mom rat me out?
“You can tell that brat whatever you want.” And I covered my head with my pillow and couldn’t hear anything but muffled yells.