Marianne by Elizabeth Hammer (best books to read in life TXT) 📕

I think you should go inside before you start any more trouble. What do you say?”

She sighed dramatically, “Oh, all right,” and turned toward her porch. She stopped on the step to glare at Marianne. “You’d best go home, too.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Patrick retrieved Nana’s purse from a corner of the driveway and held it out to Nana once she had opened the door.

“Do you want me to stay and help put away the paint stuff?” asked Marianne.

“Of course not,” said Nana. “Just go away and stop bothering me.”

“Sure thing,” said Marianne, only half hiding her grin. She peeked sideways at Patrick, trying to be sneaky, but he was already staring back at her. He was smiling slightly and didn’t look away when she caught him.

“Well, go then,” said Nana. “And you, boy. Come here.”

Patrick didn’t seem to hear her. He didn’t look away from Marianne at all. Oh, my.

“Come here, boy,” said Nana, louder.

“Yeah,” he said. He turned then and stepped up onto the porch in one stride.

“Leave, Marianne,” said Nana, “I need to speak to this one alone.”

Marianne walked a few paces down the driveway. Maybe Nana was going to berate him again for touching her purse.

“Not far enough,” said Nana. “Go home already and mind your own business.”

“Fine then,” said Marianne. Stupid old hag. She heard Patrick laughing at her as she stomped away.

5

Drawn and Quartered

About an hour later, Marianne was sitting on her back porch flicking the remains of her toast across the patio and onto the pool deck for the birds.

“And then do you know what happened?” asked Big-Mouthed-Beth. She was standing on top of the doghouse next door, leaning over the cinderblock wall and gabbing to Marianne.

Marianne smiled and tried to focus on her again. Beth’s story was unbelievably boring, but Marianne would die before she let on. “No. What happened then?”

“Well,” She stopped and covered her mouth while she laughed. Her face got all pink at the memory. “Then, after my friend Lori asked my friend Heather if she liked my other friend Andy...”

Marianne bit her thumbnail to keep herself from telling Beth that she’d already heard this part. Twice.

“... my friend Heather told my friend Lori, ‘No, I think he’s stupid!’”

“Wow,” said Marianne. “That was...”

“It’s funny, huh, Marianne?” Beth bit her fingers and giggled.

“Yeah, it’s funny.”

Mickey popped up by his sister. He crossed his arms on the top of the fence and laid his head down. “This has got to be the most boringest story I have ever heard. In my life!”

Beth blew her bangs out of her eyes. “You’re the most boringest thing in my life!” Beth turned back to Marianne. “And so then, my friend Lori went and told my friend Andy what my friend Heather said about him.”

“Oh, no,” said Marianne. She tossed another chunk of toast and hit the grill by accident.

Beth nodded dramatically. “She did.”

“Yeah.” Mickey nodded, too. “She really did.” Apparently, he wasn’t as bored by the story as he claimed. “And then, do you know what Andy did?”

“I’m telling it!” said Beth.

Marianne heard their back door open, and then Patrick yelled from the porch, “All right, you beasts, time for dinner.”

“I’m busy,” said Mickey, at the same time as Beth said, “I don’t like garlic bread.” They looked at each other excitedly and yelled, “Jinx!”

“I said it first,” said Beth.

“No, I did.”

“No—”

“Enough,” said Patrick. He appeared behind the kids and snatched them both up by their waists. The wall was only about five feet tall, so Marianne could see him clearly. “Oh. Hey, Marianne,” he said.

She waved.

“Don’t mind these two,” he said. “They haven’t really figured out the whole jinx thing, yet.”

“I’ve noticed.” Marianne had tried to explain to them before that jinx only worked if you said the exact same thing, but they’d just pitied her for her woeful ignorance.

Patrick glanced at his house and then back at her. “Don’t move. I have a message I’m supposed to give you.”

Marianne raised her eyebrows. “Okay.”

“Be right back.” Patrick walked away with the two squealing children. Marianne heard him deposit them in the kitchen, come back out for one that escaped, and then shut the door to lock them in.

Patrick appeared at the wall again and pointed at her. “I see you got your lip all taken care of.”

“Yeah. It didn’t bleed long.” Marianne touched her mouth where her scratch was. “Um, thanks for your help back there.”

“Absolutely. I’m always glad to rescue girls from old ladies.”

Marianne waved that off. “I can handle myself just fine. That wasn’t my first brawl with Nana, you know.”

“I hope you’re joking.”

“Nope.” Marianne stood up and dusted the crumbs off her jeans. “You should have seen the black eye she gave me last Christmas. Now that was a fight.”

Patrick smiled his perfect smile at her and leaned his arms on the wall. “Somehow that doesn’t reassure me about your self-defense skills.”

“Actually,” Marianne walked across the patio so she wouldn’t have to talk so loud, “I think your sister has it on video if you’re interested.”

“Oh, I could just see that.” Patrick rolled his eyes. “You, fighting for your life, and Danielle standing back with the camcorder.”

“Pretty much.” Marianne smiled at him and shrugged her shoulders.

He smiled back and then looked at the ground on her side of the wall. They were suddenly out of things to say. Marianne searched the yard around her for inspiration.

“So, about Nana...” said Patrick, at the same time as Marianne said, “What was the message?” They looked at each other for a split second, and then said, “Jinx.”

Marianne was pretty sure he’d been first, so she kept her trap shut. Patrick pointed to himself and then to her.

“What?” she mouthed.

Patrick pointed to each of them again and raised his eyebrows.

Marianne mouthed, “You,” and pointed to him.

He gave her a suspicious look and tried to tell her something, but it was too long for Marianne to read his lips. She shrugged.

Patrick held up his finger and disappeared. He came back with a piece of blue sidewalk chalk.