5 A smashing good time
JAZLYN PARKER
Friday, June 28th
10:25 AM, Jazlyn's house
My eyes flutter open, basking in the light from the sun shining into my room while trying not to drown in Missy's drool.
I had just arrived at my parents' place of residence yesterday and both Missy and Joy have been all over me. Literally.
Surprisingly, my stomach growls loudly interrupting the peace and quiet of my room. After the big feast my family had yesterday, I'm shocked that my stomach is crying out for more.
Especially when Grandma Jean's homemade meatballs and chilli are on the menu.
-f l a s h b a c k-
Thursday June 27th, 2019
4:15 PM, Jazlyn's house
I chuckled to myself as I exited the Starbucks leaving a very flustered Oliver.
My parents' house is along Oxford Circus. We live in a 4-story apartment above Parker's Pizzaria-- my family's business, in which my grandparents taught my mom, who taught my dad, who is teaching my little sister. They tried to rope me in when I was younger, but I had other things I wanted to do, and joining the family business was not one of them.
As I entered the pizzaria, the smells of garlic, tomato sauce, and dough engulfed me, filling my nostrils with delight, making my lips curl into a smile. It was good to be home.
"Hey there, welcome to Parker's Pizzaria, what can I get for you to- Jazlyn!!!" My cousin, Jennifer practically leapt over the counter and enveloped me in a warm hug. "Welcome back! How was the academy?"
"It was great, but I'm glad to be back. Where's everyone else?"
"There all in the back taking a break. Auntie Jane and Uncle Ivan are upstairs in the kitchen prepping dinner with Grandma Jean," she replies, taking her spot back behind the counter.
"Alright, I'll see you at dinner then."
As you could probably tell, our whole family except for my dad have names that begin with the letter J. I guess my ancestors were obsessed with J.
I head into the back and am greeted by a couple more of my cousins and my Auntie Julianna-- Jennifer's mum.
Once again I'm enveloped in another big hug. "Good to see you again, Auntie Jules," I say, getting hard jabs on my ribs from my cousins Jayden, Jordan, James and Juliette. "And all of you guys as well," I added on before I get another hit to the rib.
I made my way to the stairs and hauled my suitcase up all 4 flights and into the entry.
"Hellooooooo, I'm hoooooome!" I coo, bracing myself for impact.
Within seconds, Joy— my 12-year-old sister comes flying down the stairs and leaps into my arms, latching herself onto my body. Missy— our dog follows suit and puts her front paws on my thighs eager to see me after all this time.
"Clearly you two missed me," I set Joy down, gave Missy a head scratch and headed into the kitchen where my parents were cooking up a nice, big dinner for the whole family.
"Mom! Dad! Grandma Jean!" I exclaim, running into their arms.
"Watch the pots!! Don't ruin my cooking," Grandma Jean croaks, making me laugh. Somethings just never change.
"How was the academy?"
"It was great, what's for dinner?" I say, hovering over the numerous pots and pans all lined up in a row releasing the most heavenly smells, lifting lids and taking whiffs.
"Spaghetti Bolognese with mum's famous meatballs, garlic bread, tomato and cucumber salad and your grandma's 'to-die-for' chilli," my dad exclaims, clapping his hands with delight.
Grandma Jean smacks my wrist before I could open the biggest pot of them all, causing me to wince and rub the spot. "Ah, ah, ah. You know the rules, Jazlyn. Wait until everyone is here. Speaking of which, call everyone up, dinner should be ready any minute."
-f l a s h b a c k o v e r-
I stretch my arms out in front of me and raise my head up off of my pillow, and am greeted by more of Missy's drool.
"Down," I command. She casually abides, striding out of my room most likely going to sit in my favourite seat in the family room.
Missy has always favoured me the most out of everyone in the family. She sleeps in my room— right next to me on my bed, she lays at my feet at mealtimes no matter how many times food gets thrown or dropped on the floor and she refuses to go on walks unless I'm the one taking her. No matter what, she always chooses me.
I trudge down the stairs, my eyesight becoming fuzzy leaving me seeing stars and flashes from the bright sun of the summer June morning.
Upon entering the kitchen, I head to the fridge and grab the orange juice and milk cartons. I set down my ingredients and grab a glass, bowl and spoon. I contemplate whether or not to make french toast-- my all time favourite food, or to just have some cereal and decide to go with the cereal because the laziness in me had been awakened.
As I am eating, Missy comes up to me with her leash in her mouth, her eyes begging for me to take her on our usual 11:30 walk.
"In a bit, Mis. Let me get ready first."
I finish my breakfast, give my dishes a quick rinse and fling them in the dishwasher. I tread back up the stairs and head into my room to get dressed. The house is extremely quiet, a little too quiet in my opinion. Usually, at least one of my cousins or sister is awake by now and causing havoc around, but no. Not a peep.
Wasting no time to get dressed, I speed out of my room and peek into my sister's room. She's not there. I check James, Jayden and Jordan's room. They aren't there. Lastly, I check my parent's room. No one's in there. I head downstairs into the pizzeria and surprisingly nobody's there and the shutters are closed.
Although none of the family seems to be around, Missy doesn't seem to care and nudges my leg harshly with her head.
Writing a short and simple note letting at least one of my relatives know where I am going, I attach Missy's leash and she wags her tail happily. "Let's go."
I unlock the main door and exit the shop. The door swings open outwards and smacks into some blonde girl who clearly wasn't looking where she was going.
"I'm so sorry!" I exclaim, grabbing onto Missy's leash so she doesn't bolt while trying to lock the pizzeria door.
"Yeah, it's fine."
Missy keeps pulling me away so I couldn't get to see the face of the girl who I had accidentally mashed with the door. "Sorry!" I shout back before jogging to catch up with Missy's pace.
As we walk, part of me feels extremely guilty for smashing that poor girl's face in. However, she shouldn't have been so close to the door. Since it swings outwards, we put a caution sign on the door because incidents like this have happened many times.
I guess it's an Oxford Circus thing- 'people with rocks for brains.'
I shake off the guilty feeling as the walk continues although one thing remains in my mind.
Who was this blonde girl?
