Disclaimer: This is an amateur effort, written purely for entertainment purposes. It is not intended to infringe on copyrights of the television production of "The Sentinel" in any way.Charades
by ysoneNaomi pulled on the handle to the rear door of the old van. It stuck a bit, just as it always did, but a strong tug and it came free. She climbed in, closing the door behind her and throwing the interior of the vehicle into darkness once again. Scooting forward on her knees to the side windows, she pushed back the short, heavy curtains she had made to give the illusion of privacy. Light streamed in, brightening up the small space considerably. Satisfied, she settled onto one of the two pallets that took up the majority of the small living space.
She dragged the bag she had been carrying closer. There wasn't much time. Blair would be getting out of school soon and would be heading straight home. He always came straight home.
Home.
She looked around the interior of the battered, old cargo van. Not much of a home. But, for now, at least, it was what they had. A wave of unfamiliar despair washed over her and she fought it down. Normally, she would look on this as an adventure, but today...today the reality of the life she had chosen for her and her son was driven painfully home.
Take life as it comes. That was the motto she had adopted. It sounded great in theory. And it worked out well enough most of the time. Naomi was an expert at adjusting to almost any given situation, and it was a trait she was proud to have handed down to her son. At eight years old, Blair was more independent than a lot of adults Naomi knew.
But there were times, like today, when she questioned the life she had thrust her son into. She was grown, and had chosen this lifestyle freely. But Blair hadn't had much choice, and had never really had the chance to taste any other kind of life.
Naomi heaved a sigh and pulled the bag closer. Fair or not, this was their life. Blair would be stronger for it, more well-rounded, and certainly more capable. In Naomi's experience, those traits were more valuable than a five-room house, complete with picket fence, marigolds, and a dog.
Besides, Blair never complained. She smiled as she thought of how well adjusted her son was. No matter what came their way, he accepted it. It was said every dark cloud had a silver lining, and if Blair couldn't find that lining, he manufactured it.
When their van had broken down here in Evergreen, over a hundred miles from their final destination, Naomi had tried to put a positive spin on it, tried to view it as just a small speed bump on life's highway. It might slow them down, but it wouldn't stop them. After all, she remembered explaining to Blair, life was one long, grand adventure, and if you hurried through it, you were liable to miss something important. For all they knew, she had insisted, something important was waiting for them, right here in Evergreen.
Lacking the money to get even a temporary place to live, they had simply coaxed the van, limping and sputtering, to the nearest campground and set up residence. After registering Blair in the closest school, Naomi had found a job waitressing, so they could save for the necessary repairs to the van. Living in the van wasn't easy, but in some ways, it was more of a home than some of the houses they had lived in. It wasn't the first time they had lived out of a vehicle, but it was the longest. They had been here for over a month now, and with the onset of winter just around the corner, Naomi was anxious to be moving on to Bayou La Batre, where they would find friends and warmer climates.
To his credit, Blair accepted the accommodations easily, never once complaining. To her bright, energetic and optimistic son, life truly was a grand adventure, every moment to be cherished and lived to the fullest, no opportunity to be missed.
Naomi smiled, her mood lifting. Even in his absence, Blair could lift her spirits.
She opened the bag, pulling out its contents and setting them carefully on the floor before her. She'd better hurry, Blair would be here any minute.
~~~ Blair hurried past the row of huge Winnebago's at the front of the campground, pausing only a brief moment to greet Snippy, Mrs. Carpenter's rat terrier, before taking off again. The little dog ran the length of his chain, yipping insistently after Blair. The boy turned and yelled back at the animal, "I'll come back later and play, boy. I gotta hurry. It's my birthday!" His young face broke into a huge grin. He turned and took off at a run.
His grin widened as he approached the van he called home. The curtains were open. Mama was home. She had promised to take off early from her job, but sometimes Mr. Mac was bossy and wouldn't let her. Blair had been worried that today would be one of those times.
But Mama was home.
His pace increased.
He was going to get it. He just knew he was. All day, he could hardly keep his mind on his school work. His thoughts kept wandering to his birthday gift. He'd been telling Mama for two weeks what he wanted, and he just knew he was going to get it.
Or rather him.
Blair wanted a puppy. Of course, Mama had said no right from the start, but that hadn't deterred Blair. Just a little one, like Snippy, he had pleaded. Little ones weren't much trouble, and they couldn't possibly eat that much. Yeah, they didn't have a lot of room in the van, but they weren't going to be living in it much longer, right? How much room could a little bitty puppy take up? He would take care of it and feed it and walk it and teach it not to make messes in the van. And he would teach it to sleep by their feet, so when it got cold at night it could keep their feet warm. Besides, he'd finally reasoned when Mama had looked like she was gonna say no again, if he had a dog, he would have someone to play with that he wouldn't have to leave behind when they left like he always did his friends.
Mama got a sad look in her eyes when he said that. She said she didn't want to talk about it anymore, but Blair was sure she was at least thinking about it. He'd been careful after that, only mentioning the puppy when he was sure Mama was in a good mood. She never said yes, but she was considering it, he was pretty sure.
Blair yanked hard on the rear door to the van. It came open with a loud protest of metal scraping against metal. Mama looked up from where she sat on her bed pallet and smiled.
"Hey, baby! Happy Birthday!"
Blair smiled back as he scrambled into the back of the van. "Hey, yourself, Toots!" he called, making his mama laugh. She always laughed when he called her Toots. That's why he did it. His quick blue eyes caught sight of the packages wrapped and stacked in front of Mama and his smile faltered. That definitely wasn't a puppy! Maybe Mama had the puppy hid...to surprise him.
But one look at Mama's face and he knew the truth. He knew there was no puppy.
Blair struggled to keep the disappointment and sadness from showing on his face. You had to take life as it came. That's what Mama was always saying. That meant don't wish for things you weren't ever gonna get.
~~~ Naomi saw the brief flash of disappointment in Blair's expressive eyes, and she knew what caused it. For two weeks, she had tried to explain to the boy why he couldn't have a puppy. She had thought the matter settled, but obviously he had still harbored some hope that she would relent and get him the puppy. And now he was forced to face another of life's harsh realities.
Naomi drew in a fortifying breath, releasing it slowly. Blair was smart and tough. He would be disappointed, but he would get over it. One day, he would understand.
"I got you some presents, sweetie," she said, pointing to the small stack of brightly wrapped packages. "And there's cake, too. Well, actually, cupcakes." She reached into a bag beside her and pulled out a couple of plastic wrapped chocolate cupcakes. "There's no ice cream, though. I didn't have any way to keep it frozen until you got home. Maybe we can go up to the corner for a frozen yogurt or something."
She avoided meeting her son's eyes, afraid of the accusation she might find there. She concentrated instead on unwrapping the cupcakes and sticking a small candle in one. "So, baby, which do you want first, the cake or the presents?"
When an answer wasn't immediately forthcoming, she finally looked toward her son. Blair was eyeing the packages, his expression wavering between disillusionment and expectation. Expectation finally won and a bright smile lit his face.
Pride flooded Naomi. Blair had found his silver lining, just as she had known he would.
~~~ Blair gathered up his clean clothes and towel and climbed down out of the van, heading for the brick building that housed the camp bathroom and showers. He made his way up the path, kicking absently at the rocks that got in his way. As he drew along side the Carpenter's Winnebago, he slowed to a stop. Snippy was still tethered to the vehicle. Blair changed course, heading toward where the small dog slept, curled up on an old throw rug. Snippy lifted his head at the approach, a low growl in the back of his throat until he recognized Blair's scent. In one fluid movement, Snippy jumped to his feet, tail wagging ferociously and bounced over to greet Blair.
Blair dropped his bundle of clean clothes and fell to his knees to embrace the dog. "Hey, boy!" He giggled and ducked away as the dog attempted to lick every inch of his face. "Whoa, fella. Come on, back off, would ya? I'm gonna get a shower myself. "
After a few minutes the dog settled down in Blair's lap, content to have his ears scratched. Blair glanced toward the Winnebago. Through the open blinds, he could see Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter eating supper. They'd be finishing up soon, looked like, then Mrs. Carpenter would let Snippy in for the night. Blair sighed and looked back down at the dog.
"It's my birthday, Snippy," he whispered. "I didn't get a puppy."
The dog lifted his head at the sound of Blair's voice, giving him a mournful look that seemed to speak of understanding.
"That's all right, though, 'cause Mama got me some notebooks and some pens so I can start a journal. And a really cool book about ants." He paused for a moment as the small dog settled back down in his lap. "I didn't really want a puppy anyhow. Our van's too small and puppies pee and poop all over everything, and they whine at night 'cause they miss their mamas. And he'd probably just run away or get hit by a car or something. 'Sides, he'd just tie me down. I'm gonna be an explorer when I grow up, and you can't take a dog into the jungle. The tiger's would eat him." He was quiet for a minute, then, "Dogs can't really be your friend, you know, 'cause they can't talk to you, or play games with you, or ride bikes or any of the really cool stuff. All they can do is cuddle at night, and I'm too big for that anyhow."
The lights beside the path clicked on with a hum, signaling the arrival of darkness. Blair gave the dog one last hug, burying his face in the soft, warm fur. "G'night, Snippy. I'll see you tomorrow, boy." He grabbed his bundle of clothes and turned away, wondering if his mama would notice if he just changed clothes, skipping his shower.
~~~