1 Chapter 1
Beep
Beep
Beep...
I woke up to my annoying alarm beeping at me to wake up. I rolled over slapping the alarm with little force to shut it off. I open my eyes to read nine am on the clock.
"Ugh..." I grumbled shifting to the other side of the bed. My face met with the small rays of sunshine seeping out of the thin, sheer, white curtains that covered the window. My legs squirmed around in the sheets in annoyance to the light. I squinted at the light before I got out of bed.
I made my bed and walked over to the shared bathroom down the hallway. As I brushed my teeth as I heard the faint mumbling and movements coming from downstairs, which ended at the slam of a door.
I made my way downstairs to come face to face with my older sister, Rachel. She was a near copy of our mom, with her brown hair, brown eyes, and just being slightly taller than the average lady. Just as beautiful as our mother in her youth, also being quite the fashionista helped her flaunt her beauty.
"Mom already left for work. She left scrambled eggs on the table for you. If you need anything just holler, I'll be watching Felix." She briefed before walking upstairs before I could answer.
I, on the other hand, sat down on the wooden chair placed at the table. I took my time to eat the fluffy eggs my mom had prepared. I looked outside to examine the heat that awaited today. I had been enjoying my meal for a few minutes until I heard a knock at the door, I quickly got up from my seat to answer it.
"Coming! I'll be there in a second!" I approached the door and took a look at the peephole. It was a familiar raven-haired boy that I've known for about six years now. He was an inch or so taller than me, usually displayed soft expressions, and overall looked good. I unlocked the door to greet the guest.
"Hey, Asaru! Cmon in, it's gonna start warming up in a bit." I motioned him to come in before I closed and relocked the door.
"Do you want anything? Tea? Water?" I asked before making my way to the cabinet with the glasses.
"Water would be nice." He replied. He sat on the chair across from mine at the table, I soon followed and sat in my chair after giving him his glass. He took a long sip from the glass. I saw his face relax and then let out a relieved sigh.
"So, what do you want to do today?" He asked, placing his glass on the table.
"I'm up for anything that involves an AC, it's supposed to be in the nineties later today," I said with a mouth full of eggs.
"Yea I heard the highest it was gonna be was ninety-eight today. Man, it must be ninety already, it's so hot outside!" He wined. "But if we're talking about places with AC, I suppose we could go to the mall or library." He started tracing the outer part of the glass with his index finger.
I choked down my eggs before replying with, "I mean we could go to a stationary shop. It's almost July. Oh, wait, Independence Day is coming up soon! We can go buy fireworks as well!"
He giggled at my excitement. "That sounds good. So the plan is to go back to school shopping then go buy fireworks?"
"Why would you need to go back to school shopping if it isn't even July yet!" Rachel shouted from upstairs.
"Doesn't mean we can't prepare!" I shouted back. Asaru choked on his water as he listened to our unexpected bickering.
"Oh let me wash the dishes and get my wallet. Then we can head out."
"Alright, take your time!" He gave me a closed-eye smile with a thumbs up. I started washing the dishes then I sped up to my room to grab my necessities for going out.
I felt like a bird flying as I went down the stairs. Mainly because I skipped more than four steps going down the stairs and almost tripping and eating it on the floor. Asaru just stared at me as I caught my balance.
"I told you to take your time. There was seriously no need to rush, we have all day." He lectured. "You could've gotten hurt," he grumbled. He sighed and we went to the door to start our plans for today.
"Bye Rachel, I'll be home by twelve or so!" I yelled, cupping my hands around my mouth. I didn't wait for a response and just walked out the door. I locked the door on the way out before we started walking.
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Our first destination was to go back to school shopping at office max. It was a good thirty-minute walk from my house to the store. Asaru and I divided off into the different sections of the store. I ended up picking up a binder, folder, paper, and other materials I needed. I ended up meeting Asaru at the register.
It was a fairly quick trip. We walked out of the store to our next destination, the fireworks stand.
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"Oh. My. God." Asaru gasped. "They're so expensive…" his voice cracked at the end, I could also tell that not only was he surprised, was very displeased with the prices. He groaned as he looked at more of the fireworks. I observed the flyer with the pricing for each firework and pack. They were indeed expensive. I only brought enough money for the cheaper items, not a two hundred dollar pack of fireworks. And a single firework would be fifty.
"Should we see if our parents bought some already? We don't have nearly enough money on us to buy a pack." I asked.
"I think that would be the smarter move, but how about some poppers, maybe some sparklers too?" He pointed at the items on the flyer.
"I don't think we need sparklers, I already have some saved from last year," I mumbled. "But I think we could buy some poppers." I looked back up from the flyer.
"Sounds good to me, twenty packets should be enough right?" He asked as we approached the front of the line.
"Yea, it should only be about ten buckets right?"
"Yea ten dollars will get you a twenty pack." The worker added.
"Alrighty, sounds good to me." Asaru slapped down a ten-dollar bill onto the wooden plank. The worker handed us our poppers and we were on our way back home.
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The sun was now at the peak of today, radiating the rays that would cause the annoying summer heat for the next few months.
"Hey, you want to get something to eat? We're right next to McDonald's." I asked as I pointed at the restaurant producing the alluring smell.
"I mean, we really shouldn't but, there isn't anything stopping us from eating there." He joked. We looked at each other before simultaneously shrugging as a joke.
"I mean, we couldn't starve on our way back right?" I smirked.
"Exactly." He snapped and finger gunned me. We walked into the McDonalds. The greasy but addicting smell filled my nose. We waited in the fairly short line in front of us.
"Oh, should I get something for my sister?" I asked.
"Oh most definitely, she'll probably spout on how we didn't get her anything, might as well avoid it altogether." We were now in the front.
"Yea, you're right." I agreed. We both ordered our meals. I handed the cashier the payment before Asaru.
"Wait, I was gonna pay." He wined.
"No, you already paid for the poppers. I think it should be fair that I pay for something too." I responded. He just sighed in defeat as the cashier gave me my change. "Don't worry, go sit down and I'll bring the food." I shooed him away. Asaru ended up sitting in the back, far from the front counter. I rested my back against the glossy white wall as I looked around me. No one was in line, most of the customers were dispersed thinly into the seating, and it seemed the cashier had gone into the back. I was alone in the front. I looked down at the receipt, examining the order number.
"Aspen!" A voice loudly shouted for me. I looked up and started searching for the voice that called me. No one around me called my name. I turned back and looked for Asaru. When I saw him, he was just scrolling through his phone, unbothered.
"That's strange," I mumbled looking down before reclaiming my spot at the wall. Our order was eventually called out. I took our meal then called for Asaru to join me for our walk back.
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When we entered the house our bodies relaxed. I breathed in the cool breeze the air conditioner was producing. I made it to the kitchen table, Asaru following, to see Racheal playing or texting on her phone. I shook the McDonald's bag.
"We brought back food~" I sang as I continued to shake the bag. Rachael immediately looked up for her phone, her right hand making a grabby motion. I plopped the bag of sandwiches, fries, and chicken nuggets into her hand. Asaru sat to the left of Rachael and I sat on her right. She opened the bag to reveal the wonderful, but unhealthy goodies.
She squealed a bit, "You know me so well!" She happily said as she took the 10 piece nuggets out of the bag. I snatched the bag to grab the delicious sandwiches Asaru and I ordered for ourselves. I could see a bit of drool coming down from Asaru's lips as I handed him his sandwiches. I smiled at the sight before taking a chunk out of my sandwich. I savored the taste of the chicken in the sandwich.
Rachael took the bag from me, grabbing one of the two medium fries out of the bag. She poured out the whole thing onto the top half of her nugget box. I gave her a pissed glance, but she pretended to not notice. Asaru took the other medium fry.
"Oh wait, we should have some soda with this! Give me a second, I'll go get a few." She got up from her chair and went to the fridge.
My pettiness got the better of me, so I took a nugget and a few fries from her box. Asaru silently watched me do it. She returned with two Pepsi's and a sprite for herself.
"I hope Pepsi is fine with you Asaru." She said.
"Oh no I love Pepsi, it's fine." He waved his hands in front of him trying to show there was nothing to worry about. My sister then looked down at her box.
"Did you eat one of my nuggets? I know Asaru wouldn't do that." She accused.
"Why would I eat your nugget? I'm not fond of them, besides I have my sandwich." I argued. She looked down at the box now confused, but she shrugged and continued eating. I looked up at Asaru, both of us had a hand covering the side of our mouths as we smiled, holding in our laughs.
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"Your father won't be back for a few more days." My mother placed her glass on the table. The rest of the family just sat quietly.
After a few hours of us coming home, Asaru had left. My mom eventually came back from her job and made dinner. And unfortunately, my dad wasn't eating with us, again.
"So mom, what are we doing for the fourth? Do we need to buy fireworks?" I asked breaking the silence.
"Oh yea, I forgot about that!" My older sister and brother, who got home later, said in sync. We all looked at our mother, waiting for her response.
"Well, I'm planning for all of us to go to the fireworks show on the small mountainside
in the out parts of town. There's supposed to be a nice fireworks show everyone can see."
"Ooh, that sounds fun!" My brother said. My mother just smiled.
We all finished our meals, washed up, and made our way to our rooms. I started tidying my room up before putting away the items I bought today. I changed into a comfortable pair of shorts and then flopped onto my bed. I shimmied my way into my cool sheets before passing out.
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The menacing heat woke me up from my sleep. It was finally July fourth. My dad was finally home from his business trip, my mom had her day off, and we were all going to have an enjoyable family bonding time.
I sprung out of bed to use the bathroom before anyone else. The sticky, humid, and hot air in my room slowly climbed to me, causing discomfort. I took a quick cold and refreshing shower to get rid of the sticky and warm feeling. I got dressed in some simple shorts and a t-shirt. By the time I got out of the bathroom, my brother was in front of the door waiting. He went in without a word and I made it back to my room.
I ended up texting Asaru about our plans for tonight's holiday. Unfortunately, Asaru is just going to be lighting fireworks with relatives, while my family was going out to see the fireworks show at the edge of town. As eight am came banging of a metal object started to echo through the house, it was then followed by, "Breakfast is ready!"
It was my mom, I guess she got up much earlier than expected even though it was the weekend. When I went downstairs, it looks like a whole banquet was set up in the kitchen. The room smelled like an IHOP, with the bitter scent of coffee, the sweet smell of syrup, and the doughy goodness of the pancakes. There were stacks of pancakes and waffles. The table was filled with our favorite toppings as well.
I looked around the room. My dad had walked into the house with the newspaper and sat down at the end of the table. My sister sat next to my brother who barely came downstairs, he was seated next to dad. My mom was sat on the other side of my dad, along with my little brother, Felix.
I was the lucky one who got the other end of the table, right in front of my dad. My siblings and parents started talking to one another. And I sat and listening to their plans, thoughts, and stories. I cut into my stack of pancakes and took a bite. It was light, fluffy, and buttery, of course with the sweetness of the syrup covering the whole piece. I savored each bite, licking my lips of the sticky syrup.
Time quickly passed from our fun but small activities. It was now six pm, the sun starting setting, but my family was finishing up packing our goods to celebrate. We eventually packed everything into the car and started our drive.
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It was about seven pm or so when we reached our destination. The sun was now behind us and the dark indigo sky greeted us. I looked around to see other families setting up their spots. Trucks with the trunks open with goodies, small barbecue grills, small fireworks, and the other goods you'd find at a summer event. The charred smell of the grilled meats slowly took over the refresh and crisp air of the night.
My family had a similar setup to others. We had a small grill and meats to cook. We also had our picnic blanket placed down wrinkled free. But now my family was doing their tasks. My mom and dad reading up the grill. My brother, sister, and her boyfriend chatting. Then there was me, who was stuck babysitting my 1 and a half-year-old brother, Felix.
I walked around with him for a bit before heading back to our picnic area. I left Felix with my parents before I went to the edge of the mountain for a peek at the view and fresh air. The ledge was fairly steep. I took caution and took a few steps back to enjoy the view.
I inhaled the fresh air of the cool-ish summer night before laying on the slightly dewy grass.
I gazed at the stars for a bit. I admired the black and indigo sky decorated in the twinkling lights of the stars. It was a peaceful and memorable moment until it was interrupted by a loud explosion.
When I sat up I noticed the faint colors of red in the sky. The firework show was starting. I of course rushed back to the picnic to enjoy this time with my family. It looked like they were having a good time barbecuing while I was away.
"C'mon hurry up and sit down!" My mom urged with hand motions. I sat down with my siblings while my parents were taking care of the cooking. It must've been five or seven minutes into the firework display before I realized something was missing.
"Hey, mom, where's Felix?" I asked. My mom turned as pale as a ghost before whipping her head left and right. This sent me into panic, she didn't know where he was either.
"H-hey all of you go look for Felix right now!" She shook my siblings' shoulders, catching their attention. Their visages displayed panic as well before everyone split up.
It was a few minutes before I reached the area I was at before. Nothing. There was no one else there. I had no idea what else to do, everyone was searching, and it's not like an infant could get far in ten or fifteen minutes.
And just like that, the happy moments of the night slipped away.
